Carole Turner, wife of Lt. Gen. Roger Turner, commander of III Marine Expeditionary Force, speaks to military spouses during the Okinawa Leadership Seminar at the Butler Officers’ Club on Camp Foster, Okinawa, April 16, 2026. (Brian McElhiney/Stars and Stripes)
CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — More than 30 military spouses on Okinawa have graduated from a leadership seminar designed to build professional skills and strengthen community ties across the services.
The three-day Okinawa Leadership Seminar concluded Thursday at the Butler Officers’ Club on Foster, bringing together spouses from multiple branches to develop leadership, communication and networking skills.
Carole Turner, wife of III Marine Expeditionary Force Commander Lt. Gen. Roger Turner, praised participants’ “flexibility, resilience” and “really broad worldview.”
“There’s a lot of opportunity here in Okinawa, but there’s a lot of opportunity in the whole world,” she said at the closing ceremony. “And I know so many groups and organizations that would benefit from your skills, but also who you are as military spouses.”
Turner, speaking to Stars and Stripes after the event, said the seminar has evolved in recent years from a Marine Corps-focused volunteer program into a broader initiative supporting spouses across services in careers, entrepreneurship and education.
She also emphasized the importance of “community and connection,” particularly as some Okinawa-based forces deploy overseas.
About 2,500 members of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit are in the Middle East aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli in support of Operation Epic Fury, according to U.S. Central Command.
Military spouses attend a small group session during the Okinawa Leadership Seminar at the Butler Officers’ Club on Camp Foster, Okinawa, April 16, 2026. (Brian McElhiney/Stars and Stripes)
The command on Sunday released video of those Marines rappelling onto the M/V Touska, an Iranian-flagged commercial vessel disabled that day by the guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance as part of the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports.
“Right now, we have a MEU that’s forward from here, and those spouses have really come together and formed a community,” Turner said. “And there’s leaders stepping up in that program, and I know that having skills from seminars like this will benefit those types of programs.”
The seminar featured three speakers addressing leadership and personal development.
Gregory Evans, a business professor at the University of Maryland Global Campus, spoke about leading groups with different communication styles.
While military spouses often face unemployment or underemployment overseas, Evans said it is important to recognize they are “not alone, not the only one, and what can I do with my time while I’m here.”
Marine Corps spouse Jasmine Johnson, an aerospace engineer and ballerina, shared her experiences in education and professional development, including studying in Hong Kong.
Syliva Maiko Black, an adviser to III MEF on southwest islands affairs, discussed building connections in the local community, drawing on her Okinawa and Texas backgrounds.
For some participants, the seminar offered an opportunity for reflection.
Jacqualine Chan Wong, wife of Navy dentist Lt. Jonathan Wong, said the program prompted her to reassess her goals as she prepares to leave Okinawa.
“There was a question that was asked yesterday by one of our presenters, and he said, ‘What is your foundation? What is your anchor?’” she said. “And I realized that I don’t have that. I don’t have anything definitive. … I don’t feel anchored. So that’s kind of what I’m taking away from this, is I need to figure out what is my guiding point.”
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