Washington, D.C. — Congresswoman Uifa’atali Amata made a whirlwind series of visits to meet up with Service Members from American Samoa at military installations in five states along the U.S. east coast, including 100 Samoans in one location at Fort Gregg-Adams in Virginia. Over two weekends, and the last week of January, with Congress out for those days, she was able to drive through multiple states for visits to a series of military installations as well as American Legion posts.

“Almost all of us in American Samoa are in military families with loved ones who serve or have served or young people considering military career options,” said Congresswoman Amata. “These Service Members make me so proud, and our islands can take tremendous pride in them as they demonstrate professionalism and leadership. These young patriots are serving the nation and the cause of freedom. When I visit, I’m often greeted by the Commander of that military installation, and these officers speak very highly to me of our Service Members from American Samoa, who serve with dedication and excellent teamwork.”

“It’s a delight to see them all, on behalf of their parents and family in the islands,” she continued. “I know they miss home and family, but I find them doing well, leading productive, purposeful lives, often with other Samoans in their lives for mutual support.”

Her itinerary included Fort Liberty, NC; Fort Jackson, SC; Fort MacDill, FL; Fort Moore, GA; Fort Eisenhower, GA; Fort Eustis, VA; Fort Gregg-Adams, VA.

“I want to thank our fantastic military liaisons who worked with me on very complicated and hectic schedule spanning ten days,” concluded Amata. “Thank you to each of these Department of Defense locations and their commanders for their generosity with their time, and everywhere I went and everyone who showed me around was truly a credit to their uniforms.”

Amata with our troops at Fort Gregg-Adams, VA [courtesy photo]