The 2023 Amache Pilgrimage Memorial Ceremony (May 20, 2023)

On Saturday, May 20, 2023, the annual Amache Pilgrimage Memorial Ceremony was held at the Amache Camp Site in Granada, Colorado, where many Japanese-Americans were interned during WWII.

The Pilgrimage Memorial Ceremony is held every year in May to honor and remember the 120 individuals who died in the camp and the 31 Japanese-American soldiers who lost their lives on the battlefield in Europe. Approximately over 100 people, not only from Colorado but also from other states, attended the ceremony. Consulate-General of Japan in Denver was also invited and Consul-General Mikami and Consul Furutani attended.

< Reference> The Amache Camp Site was designated a National Historic Site on March 18, 2022. In 1993, Mr. John Hopper, President of the Amache Preservation Society (APS) and former Principal of Granada High School, founded the APS, which has been working to preserve the Amache Camp Site for over 30 years. Mr. John Hopper received the Foreign Minister’s Commendation for FY2019.