JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. – The 2024 Joint Base Lewis-McChord Armed Forces Day will be on McChord Field’s Heritage Hill May 18 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
“We are very excited to hold this event after months and months of planning," said Bruce Antonowicz, JBLM Morale, Welfare and Recreation's community recreation division chief. "We think this is going to be a very fun event that will honor several branches of our nation’s armed forces, and we look forward to celebrating the brave men and women who serve.”
Come out and enjoy activities for all ages. Explore static military airplanes and helicopters, vehicle displays including infantry, artillery and engineer vehicles and weapons displays. See living history encampments representing military life in the past and ask questions to learn more about bygone eras of military field life.
Look for stage entertainment, roving entertainers, military dog demonstrations, games, food and craft vendors and more.
PREREGISTRATION REQUIRED FOR NON-DOD ATTENDEES
New this year, non-Department of Defense ID cardholders, ages 18 and older, who attend the event without a DOD ID cardholder sponsor in the same vehicle, must preregister online to be vetted prior to attending the event. The information requested in the online registration is the same information people provide when requesting a visitor pass at our visitor centers.
“While the security procedures we’ve used for previous events met all requirements, the new online process is much more efficient and provides additional security-focused benefits that otherwise wouldn’t be possible," said Maj. Keith Hayes, JBLM Provost Marshal. "The process has shown to be very effective at other installations, and we’re excited about implementing this capability here at JBLM.”
After submitting the online registration form, a text message confirming or denying access to the event will be sent soon after submission. Each person’s driver’s license used during submission becomes the attendee’s Armed Forces Day event pass, valid for the event only.
Preregistration will help speed up the process to welcome our non-DOD guests to JBLM and will become the new normal for other future public events such as Freedom Fest.
For more information on this year’s JBLM Armed Forces Day and the registration process, visit https://jblm.armymwr.com/AFD.