FEBRUARY 2019 | ISSUE 252 COMMANDING GENERAL MCIPAC Brigadier General Paul J. Rock Jr. ASSISTANT CHIEF OF STAFF, MCCS, MCIPAC Edward S. Hutsell DEPUTY ASSISTANT CHIEF OF STAFF BUSINESS & SUPPORT Michael S. Gieseck DEPUTY ASSISTANT CHIEF OF STAFF MARINE & FAMILY Carlos J. Saldaña CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER Jim Kassebaum EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Mike Daley MCCS ART DIRECTOR Henry C. Ortega OKINAWA LIVING ART DIRECTORS Margie Shimabukuro Jongeun Spencer GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Catherine Newquist, Emeline Toole EDITORIAL Amanda Carrasquillo, Ashley Sablan DIGITAL MARKETING MANAGER Thomas Alan Smilie PHOTOGRAPHER Kailey LaValliere DIGITAL & SOCIAL MEDIA Kathlene Millette, Emi Hays CULTURAL RESEARCH SPECIALIST Ayako Kawamitsu ADVERTISING SALES & SPONSORSHIP MANAGER Roy Forster ADVERTISING SALES & SPONSORSHIP Yoshihiro Shinzato, Hiromitsu Horikawa Athena Garcia, Becky Stalcup MARKETING ACCOUNTS & RESEARCH MANAGER Andrew Menges MARKETING ACCOUNTS & RESEARCH Kristen Wong, Ashley Snipes, Tiffany Moore DISTRIBUTION Desiree Adams, Joan Webb
mensôre “Welcome” to Okinawa Living
Quality Time Valentine’s Day is right around the corner… have you gotten a gift yet? Are you going for something of a floral nature? Something produced from cacao beans or perhaps a delicate fragrance encased in a tiny ornate (but exorbitantly priced) bottle? Before you pull the trigger on that purchase, did you know that the best gifts— Valentine’s or otherwise—oftentimes aren’t the ones that can be purchased with money? Before someone takes this as an excuse to completely bypass purchasing a Valentine’s gift and use the monies saved on a new set of Bluetooth headphones or a year’s-worth of Netflix, that’s not what’s being implied. The answer is simple—quality time. Spending quality time together is the greatest gift of all, is it not? And, what better place than Okinawa to enjoy activities with that special someone? Living on Okinawa offers many opportunities to explore the island’s beauty—not limited to warmer weather, pristine beaches or seemingly endless colorful reefs teeming with sea life to explore. Take the day off and hike in northern Okinawa; trekking on the steep trails together will feel refreshing with the lack of summer heat and humidity. Sign up for a whale watching tour with Tours+ and gasp in awe as you witness a humpback whale breaching for the first time…together. Build Ryukyu glass cups for each other to use for morning orange juice. Or, even sign up for a Japanese language class together and practice on each other off base in the local community. The investment isn’t necessarily in money…it’s time well spent as each moment is a priceless treasure in itself; a gift that pays dividends in the form of fond memories that last long after that last chocolate morsel is digested, the last rosebud has fallen or last droplet of perfume has vaporized. As always, we thank you for picking up this issue of Okinawa Living Magazine, now time to turn the page and let your journey begin!
We welcome your comments. Please send letters to editor@okinawa.usmc-mccs.org For advertising | 広告掲載のお問い合わせ (日本語可) 098-970-2245 (phone) | 098-970-0975 (fax) sales@okinawa.usmc-mccs.org (email) See our advertising rates at mccsokinawa.com
QUALITY STOCK ARTS/BIGSTOCK.COM
MCCS MARKETING BRANCH MCB Camp S.D. Butler. Unit 35023, FPO AP 96378-5023
Okinawa Living is published by MCCS Marketing. Its purpose is to inform the military and civilian community about events and programs offered by MCCS or available in the local market. Dates and times may change. Copyright ©2019 by MCCS. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transferred in any form, by any means, electronic, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without written permission of the copyright owner. No federal or Marine Corps endorsement of advertisers and sponsors. MCCS is not responsible for editing content of non-MCCS ads. Okinawa Living Magazine is printed with
Mike Daley Editor-In-Chief
Take us on the road Enjoy Okinawa Living Magazine on your favorite mobile device! Visit mccsokinawa.com/ol for the latest issue. Also, visit issuu.com/mccsokinawa to see back issues of the magazine.