Every year, thousands flock to Oahu to bask on Waikiki Beach, surf at Sunset Beach, or golf at Turtle Bay. When the tourists think of the military there, they think of Pearl Harbor as something in the past - a headline, a movie, a call to arms - not as a fully functioning military installation that still operates today (for example, when the USS Ronald Reagan was docked there just a few weeks ago).

Oahu is covered with military. It seemed to me that I was never more than 50 yards from the nearest serviceman. There is the obvious female reaction to all that camo, but there is something more: a sense of security. I knew that I could walk to my accommodation at any hour and not have to look over my shoulder. I knew that no matter how lost I got (yes, I can get lost on an island - I'm talented that way), there would be someone with patience and knowledge to get me out of the bind. This was evidenced one morning when I took a wrong turn and found myself heading for Hickam Air Force Base. I knew I wouldn't be able to enter - you have to have military ID for that. But the sentries posted at the entrance are incredibly helpful and friendly. It must happen often enough, since they have a built in u-turn spot to make the exit easier!

One evening I was meeting a friend at his installation, and I arrived a few minutes early. Again, I knew I wouldn't be able to gain entry to the parking lot. So I just idled the car on the side of the road and stepped out to stretch my legs. A moment later a colonel in a sporty little red car pulled up to see if I was having car trouble. I can't remember the last time a civilian (not counting a truck driver) stopped to see if I needed assistance.

And while we're on the subject of car trouble, I was lucky enough to meet my new favorite person in Hawaii: Lieutenant Colonel Kevin Upson. When the LTC was in Iraq (he was a Major then), I was assigned as a Soldiers' Angel to the 82nd Airborne, which was his unit. I was to send all correspondence for the troops to him, and he would distribute at random. I would usually receive an email from him every month or so, and if I didn't hear from him, I'd drop him a line to check in. He was the only one in the unit I had contact with - the rest was done anonymously. He's been in Hawaii for a few months now, so of course I contacted him when I found out I was going over. And when I arrived at the gate of Camp Smith to check in with the PAO for PACOM, it was the LTC who greeted me. It was a great honor to meet him - one I will cherish always, though he said the honor was his. Having him meet me at the door was only the first surprise he had in store. After my various chats with the Public Affairs Coordinator (Maj. David Griesmer, USMC - more on that meeting later) and other staff, LTC Upson escorted me out and told me to go "suit up" for a formal occasion. Hmmmm... intriguing... How does this all lead to car trouble? I'm getting to that - bear with me! (Although I was also able to interview LTC Upson, I will post that at a later date. I'm trying to stay on topic here!)

He picked me up a couple of hours later to escort me to the kickoff of Military Appreciation Month - a rather swanky "do" on Ford Island at the new Pacific Aviation Museum. The event was hosted by a series of local and corporate sponsors, and attended by Admiral Keating, the man who runs the show at PACOM. This was the LTC's way of saying thanks for all I had done, even though I felt I could never do enough.






Anyway, to the car trouble.... after wining and dining on the catering of some of the finest restaurants on Oahu, and listening to the USMC Jazz Trio (they were awesome!), it was time to call it a night. We walked back to the car, only to find a dead battery. LTC Upson was terribly embarrassed, all dressed in his A's, with a dead car. A fine pair we made soliciting through the crowd to see if anyone had jumper cables! Sure enough, we found a table of young kids - Army - so young I wondered if they should have had those beers in their hands. One of them suggested popping the clutch on a rolling start. What a spectacle! Four or five of them, plus the LTC, pushing the car while another sat in the driver's seat getting ready to start her (a success!). Me on the sidelines, holding somebody's beer and laughing at the sight, especially when an equally young bunch of Marines walked by and stopped to stare. To me it was one of the high points of the evening, though LTC Upson will probably send me a tersely worded email just for writing about it!

Perhaps it's because I'm Canadian and we tend not to be very outgoing and helpful. Maybe it's an "American thing". Or maybe it truly is that having that many overgrown Boy Scouts in one place means you are never alone, and never without help when you need it. For that reason alone - not the beaches or the palm trees or even the pink-hued sunsets - did I feel at home on Oahu. And it is for that reason I would someday return there.

Labels: Hawaii, Military, PACOM, Soldiers Angels, Travel