December 2 marked the 45 anniversary of the America Samoa Army Reserve. And the man who is credited for starting the reserve, Retired Lt. Colonel Mapu Jamias, looks back with great satisfaction at what the Army Reserve has accomplished and the blessings it has brought to American Samoa.
The army reserve started with just 30 soldiers, he said. Then two companies were added, which became the famous B and C companies of the 100th Battalion, 442d Infantry, “Go for Broke” Unit—the most decorated unit in US Army history.
Jamias spent more than six years as commander of the local Army Reserve before taking up another posting off-island, but he returned in 1999 to set up two more units.
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Jamias said having the Army Reserve in American Samoa has been a blessing for reservists and their families and also contributed to the territory’s economic development. He points to the Army Reserve Training Center, the post exchange, and the VA clinic as examples of the benefits generated by the presence of the Army Reserve.
To mark the 45th anniversary, Jamias has organized an anniversary dinner to be held Friday, December 5, at the Maliu Mai Beach Resort, beginning at 6 p.m. “It will be a time for us to celebrate and reminisce about the early days of the reserve,” he said. “Many of us are advanced in age, and we want to remember the struggles and triumphs of the last 45 years.”
Tickets for the dinner are $100 per person and is for reservists and their families.
