Battleship MISSOURI Memorial Commemorates 64th Anniversary of the end of WWII

Congressman, Assistant Secretary of Defense among guest speakers.

In honor of all World War II veterans, the Battleship Missouri Memorial will commemorate the 64th anniversary of the signing of Imperial Japan’s formal surrender aboard the USS Missouri (BB-63) with a free, hour-long ceremony, titled “The End of the War in the Pacific.” Guest speakers will include Congressman Neil Abercrombie and retired Lieutenant General Wallace C. Gregson, Jr., U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense, Asian and Pacific Security Affairs.

The ceremony, to be held on the battleship, will take place Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2009, from 8 to 9 a.m. at the Battleship Missouri Memorial on Ford Island, Pearl Harbor.

The program will coincide with the time of day that representatives from 10 nations signed the formal “Instrument of Surrender,” officially ending history’s most devastating war. The ceremony will feature additional speakers, patriotic music and a traditional military rifle salute to those veterans who paid the ultimate sacrifice in defense of freedom.

Congressman Neil Abercrombie, representative of the first district of Hawaii, is a senior member of the U.S. House of Representatives. He is chairman of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Air and Land Forces, with critical oversight responsibilities for U.S. Army and Air Force operations, budget and equipment and weapons systems procurement. Additionally, Congressman Abercrombie serves as a member of the Readiness Subcommittee, which considers issues such as building and maintaining the U.S. military’s state of readiness.

Retired Lieutenant General Wallace “Chip” Gregson was recently sworn in as the Assistant Secretary of Defense, Asian and Pacific Security Affairs on May 13, 2009. A graduate of the United States Naval Academy, General Gregson is a combat veteran of the Vietnam conflict, in which he earned the Bronze Star with Combat “V” device for valor and heroism, and was also awarded the Purple Heart. One of General Gregson’s sons is now serving as a Marine Corps officer.

This is a return trip to Hawaii for General Gregson, as he previously served as Commanding General of the Marine Corps Forces Pacific and Marine Corps Forces Central Command from 2003 to 2005, during which he led and managed more than 70,000 Marines and Sailors in the Middle East, Afghanistan, East Africa, Asia and the United States. From 2001 to 2003, he also served as Commanding General of all Marine Corps forces in Japan, where he was awarded the Japanese Order of the Rising Sun, the Gold and Silver Star, and the Korean Order of National Security Merit Gukseon Medal.

General Gregson is a past chief operating officer of the United States Olympic Committee and former owner and president of WCG & Associates International.

Free shuttle bus service from the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum and Park will run between 7 and 8 a.m. The shuttle will also provide return transportation following the ceremony. For more information, call (808) 423-2263 and press 7 immediately following the greeting, call toll-free at 1-877-MIGHTYMO (1-877-644-4896), or visit ussmissouri.org.

Battleship Missouri Memorial, located a mere ship’s length from the USS Arizona Memorial, completes a historical visitor experience that begins with the day of infamy that saw the sinking of USS Arizona in Pearl Harbor and ends with Imperial Japan’s unconditional surrender aboard USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. Following an astounding career that spans five decades and three wars, from World War II to the Korean conflict to the Liberation of Kuwait, the “Mighty Mo” was decommissioned and donated to the USS Missouri Memorial Association, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, which operates the battleship as a historic attraction and memorial. The association oversees her care and preservation with the support of visitors, memberships, grants and the generosity of donors.