Armed Forces Day is tomorrow, May 17th, and what better way to celebrate and honor our Marines, Sailors and their families than to come together with the Oceanside community for Operation Appreciation!
“We want to give a big thanks to our military men and women who go into harm’s way,” said Kristi Hawthorne, event coordinator at the Oceanside Chamber of Commerce. “We don’t want to forget 9/11 and the service of our military.” [Source]
Activities at Operation Appreciation
The event will kick off at Oceanside Pier at 11 am and last until 4 pm. The event is open to the public and active duty military and their dependents with ID receive unlimited rides, activities and free lunch. Nonmilitary can purchase food and carnival tickets to help support the event. Last year’s Operation Appreciation served lunch to 5,000 troops and their families and drew a crowd of 10,000 area residents! [Source]
Several military vehicles will be on display from the base’s Mechanized Museum and a Marine Explosive Ordnance Disposal team will even be demonstrating it’s robots.
Entertainment for the Kids
There will also be plenty of fun for the kids! A Children’s Fun Zone will feature everything from inflatable jumps, rock climbing and crafts to puppet shows, photos with the Padres Pad Squad and face painting.
Check out a few photos of last year’s event via the Oceanside Chamber of Commerce:
