Located in the North Pacific, Guam has been a staple of U.S. military operations for decades — even before the World War I broke out.
In fact, the first American shots of WWI weren’t fired in some German trench, but rather in Guam.
Although Guam is more than 7,000 miles away from the mainland, Guamanians serve in the U.S. military at a higher rate than any of the 50 United States.
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In the mid-16th century, the island was colonized by Spanish Catholic Missionaries. As a result of the Spanish-American War, Guam was ceded to the U.S.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, Japanese forces captured the fertile island and occupied the land for over two years.
But America’s always had Guam’s back and fought for the area in 1944 — eventually winning the war.
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Now, both the U.S. Navy and Air Force have installations that, combined, occupy nearly 29 percent of the island’s area and house over 7,000 service members.
Today, many Guamanians believe that the American effort to liberate the island from Japanese control created a unique, tight-knit relationship between the Military and the locals.
To get a taste of that relationship, check out the fourth episode of We Are The Mighty’s original show, Meals Ready to Eat:
(Meals Ready to Eat, KCET)Watch Meals Ready To Eat on KCET’s site at the link above. New episodes are posted every Wednesday night — and they’re awesome.