News Stories

Photo by Sgt. Isaac Orozco - Katie Mintz, U.S. Navy Ombudsman with Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 102, Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5, holds a handmade blanket she created for the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, June 6, 2025. Mintz was chosen as the recipient of the 2024 Dorothy Flatley award for exceptional support to Sailors, Marines, and their families. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Isaac Orozco)

U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Amanda Moreno, left, a food service specialist, and Sgt. Christian Lim, the food service manager for southside mess hall, both with Headquarters & Headquarters Squadron, Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, and natives of Florida, pick up trash alongside the riverbank during a clean-up at the Kintaikyo Bridge, Iwakuni, Japan, April 21, 2025. The Marine Corps Community Services Iwakuni, Single Marine Program hosted a bridge clean-up as part of the SMP Days of Service, a five-day series of events where service members from Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni volunteer to build stronger relationships and give back to the community. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Randall Whiteman) - U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Amanda Moreno, left, a food service specialist, and Sgt. Christian Lim, the food service manager for southside mess hall, both with Headquarters & Headquarters Squadron, Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, and natives of Florida, pick up trash alongside the riverbank during a clean-up at the Kintaikyo Bridge, Iwakuni, Japan, April 21, 2025. The Marine Corps Community Services Iwakuni, Single Marine Program hosted a bridge clean-up as part of the SMP Days of Service, a five-day series of events where service members from Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni volunteer to build stronger relationships and give back to the community. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Randall Whiteman)

Photo by Lance Cpl. Dahkareo Pritchett - Catherine Matchem-Watkins, a Marine Corps Family Team Building Trainer with Marine Corps Community Services Iwakuni, poses for a photo with her family at Akiyoshidai Safari Land, Japan. Matchem-Watkins, a native of Chicago, Illinois, learned time management skills at a young age that she continues to use to this day to effectively balance time with her family, work, and volunteering in her busy schedule. (U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Lance Cpl. Dahkareo Pritchett)

Photo by Sgt. Mitchell Austin - A portrait photo of Corina Gonzalez, at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, Aug. 1, 2023. Gonzalez is a Marine Corps veteran and loving mother who volunteers at numerous organizations throughout MCAS Iwakuni, and has proven to be a diligent and dedicated member of the community. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Mitchell Austin)

Photo by U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Isaac Orozco - U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Yocelin Vertiz (center right), an administration specialist, and Lance Cpl. Meghan Sauvalle, an expeditionary airfield systems technician, both assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron, Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, help children off a bounce house during the Owl Park Inclusive Day community relations event at the Atagoyama Fukuro Park, also known as the Atago Owl Park, in Iwakuni, Japan, Oct. 23 2022. Vertiz currently serves as the H&HS Primary Single Marine Program Representative, where she helps coordinate events for her Marines. (Courtesy photo by U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Isaac Orozco).

MCAS Iwakuni hosts 2019 Special Olympics - Local Japanese athletes and U.S. Marines participate in a soccer game during the 2019 Special Olympics at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, Oct. 13, 2019. The Special Olympics was held in order to provide Marines and Japanese families volunteer opportunities with each other in a cultural exchange. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Triton Lai)

Friendly neighborhood Single Marine Program - U.S. Marine Corps Pfc. Yoshi Cacho, a combat engineer with Marine Wing Support Squadron (MWSS) 171, participates in the Humvee pull during the Day of Service at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, April 19, 2019. The Humvee pull was one of the culminating events that was held after the Days of Service clean-up concluded on Friday. The Days of Service is a week-long event with multiple volunteer opportunities that culminates with the final day of the event, the Day of Service. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Pfc. Kevin Alarcon)

Halloween Carnival in Iwakuni City creates opportunity to make f - Local Japanese and Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Iwakuni residents participate in the 2018 Japanese American Society Halloween Carnival in Iwakuni City, Japan, Oct. 19, 2018. The carnival created an opportunity for local Japanese and Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni residents to make friends, enhance the U.S.-Japan alliance and conduct cultural exchanges by participating in the holiday together. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Stephen Campbell)

Single Marine Program volunteers cleanup Yuu Beach - U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Kaysom Montgomery, a heavy-equipment operator with Marine Wing Support Squadron (MWSS) 171, holds a trash bag for other volunteers during a Single Marine Program Yuu Beach cleanup at Iwakuni City, Japan, Aug. 25, 2017. The event was an opportunity to demonstrate the willingness of service members to be respectful ambassadors and contribute to making Japan a better, cleaner place to live in. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Carlos Jimenez)

Volunteers attend a barbeque picnic to celebrate their hard work and volunteer service after the 3rd Annual Single Marine Program’s Days of Service Clean-Up Day at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, April 21, 2017. Each day of the week volunteer service members spent time supporting the community by visiting a local Iwakuni nursing home, cutting and sorting coupons, teaching and playing chess with local Japanese students, and cleaning and walking dogs at the base kennel. Clean-up day was the finale dedicated to bringing all the volunteers together to recognize and celebrate their contribution to the community. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Pfc. Stephen Campbell) - Volunteers attend a barbeque picnic to celebrate their hard work and volunteer service after the 3rd Annual Single Marine Program’s Days of Service Clean-Up Day at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, April 21, 2017. Each day of the week volunteer service members spent time supporting the community by visiting a local Iwakuni nursing home, cutting and sorting coupons, teaching and playing chess with local Japanese students, and cleaning and walking dogs at the base kennel. Clean-up day was the finale dedicated to bringing all the volunteers together to recognize and celebrate their contribution to the community. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Pfc. Stephen Campbell)