Kathy Hashimoto watched her husband, 1st Force Recon Marine Major Mark Hashimoto, depart for Kuwait in preparation for a possible war in Iraq. Mark left behind not only his wife Kathy, but also his two young daughters, Elizabeth, 3 and Marie, 1. However the family believes the sacrifice being made is of the utmost importance to the safety and freedom of all Americans, and they make the sacrifice with a deep understanding of true patriotism and pride.
As if it isn’t difficult enough to be apart from family and friends, Mark and many others in the U.S. military are being bombarded by anti-war propaganda played up by the American media, spun so it seems everyone in America is against the president and the U.S. military.
“RFA Flag with Mountain centered”
Kathy, and her friends who also have spouses in the military overseas, say they are growing sick of watching the American media and many liberals bash the United States, the military and President George W. Bush.
“The anti-Americanism was really overrated and over-reported,” Kathy says. “I am not ashamed of our country. I am proud to be patriotic and so are many other people in our country.”
“RFA Jan Kaeo centered”
Kathy says she and other military spouses want their loved ones and others in the U.S. military to know that not all of America is against them and their action in the Middle East, rather the majority of Americans do support the president and his efforts to stomp out terrorism.
“RFA Children centered”
So Kathy, her sister Julianne Barcia, and her friend Jessica Mace, also married to men in the military, coordinated a “Pro-America Rally” to counter some of the bias and misinformation perpetuated in the national and local media.
They created pro-troops and pro-American signs, brought U.S. flags, played patriotic music and decorated Kailua’s Pohakupu Park with red, white and blue balloons. The rally, held this afternoon, attracted more than 300 participants, including state legislators, community members, military personnel and their families.
“We had a really good turnout. People we didn’t even know or talk to beforehand learned about the rally and just showed up,” Kathy says.
“RFA Family at Rally centered”
Kathy also was relieved there was no violence on the part of the “party crashers”