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Tropic Lightning -- 31 August 2000
 Photo(s) by Spc. Kara McCarthy Sgt. 1st Class James McDowell of Co. B, 1st Bn., 27th Inf., adjusts Yumi Ishihara's uniform, while Hitomi Mizumoto and Ai Kitagawa watch. | Wolfhounds host Japanese children By Spc. Kara McCarthy The 1st and 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Soldiers have had three guests from the Japanese Holy Family Home Orphanage visiting Aug. 20 as a celebration of friendship between the Wolfhounds and the orphanage. Three 11-year-old girls, Hitomi Mizumoto, Yumi Ishihara and Ai Kitagawa, arrived from the orphanage and spent nine days with unit family members. They also visited many Hawaiian attractions such as the USS Arizona Memorial, Waimea Valley, Hanauma Bay and a special luau held in honor of the regiment's guests. There were nine families that hosted the girls during their Hawaiian stay which ends Tuesday. Spc. Ken Meredith of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Bn., 27th Inf., his wife Lynn and their two children, Amanda, 16 and Josh, 11, was one of the families that shared their lives with the girls. "It was great," said Meredith. "I could have kept them here the whole time. I could keep them forever." During the girls' stay with the Merediths, they visited the Honolulu Zoo, Waikiki and the beach. But, the girls were only there for 24-hours before they went to visit another family. 2nd Lt. Ed Larosa, Co. A, 2nd Bn., 27th Inf., and his family, Tracy and two children, took the children to the swap meet and an area beach. The Wolfhounds have been active in the orphanage, located in Osaka, Japan, since 1949, and their support has continued to this day. It all began during the Christmas season in 1949, when a Red Cross volunteer attached to the regiment recruited several Wolfhound Soldiers to create a lavish Christmas party for the children of the home. The volunteer had been assisting the orphanage with his own money. The Wolfhounds got involved with the orphanage and gladly donated money and their time to help the children. Retired Master Sgt. Hugh F. O'Reilly, honorary regimental sergeant major for the 1st Bn., 27th Inf., was one of the Soldiers who visited the orphanage in 1949. After returning from a Christmas party, he raised $143 from the 143 men in his company to give to the orphanage. For the next six months, O'Reilly spent five hours a day helping repair the orphanage and also spent time with the children. Thus began the tradition which has grown for both O'Reilly and the Wolf-hounds. The relationship with the Holy Family Home and the Wolfhounds is a continuing reminder that the Army is a value-based organization, said Lt. Col. Chelsea Chae, battalion commander. Two Soldiers from the regiment visit the orphanage every Christmas season and bring presents for every child in the orphanage. The regiment sponsors three orphan children to spend time with families of the 1st Bn., 27th Inf. and explore Hawaii each year. "It's a tradition that's been going on for more than 50 years," said 2nd Lt. Jake Bursack, intelligence officer for HHC, 1st Bn., 27th Inf. "And it really started to mean a lot more to me when I actually saw the kids. We've been doing a lot of work to bring them here and it's an important thing in their life. They have a lot to do, and Hawaii is a once in a lifetime experience for them." |
