NAHA, OKINAWA, OKINAWA, JAPAN -- Footsteps pattered over hot walkways as figures dressed in black made their way to a shady alcove, lined by stone walls engraved with hundreds of thousands of names. The names are those whose lives were lost in the Battle of Okinawa in 1945.

Okinawa residents and Status of Forces Agreement members gathered June 23 at the Okinawa Peace Memorial Park in Itoman, Okinawa, Japan for the 2016 Okinawa Memorial services.

A U.S. ceremony was held at the beginning of the day by the memorial walls and an Okinawan ceremony was held at the center of the park. Thousands sat in rows of chairs, lined the perimeter and sat in the shade surrounding the stage where the ceremony took place.

“Seventy-one years ago we concluded the 90-day very, very challenging battle here on Okinawa,” said Lt. Gen. Lawrence Nicholson, the III Marine Expeditionary Force commanding general. “It was the last large battle of the war. Today, we take time to remember the great loss of life on the American side, the Japanese armed forces side and the Okinawa civilian side. It is good that every year we stop and honor those who we have lost.”

Approximately 20 U.S. service members attended the American ceremony, which was held before the Okinawa-based ceremony at the park.

The ceremony began with an invocation by Lt. Cmdr. Ulysses L. Ubalde, the deputy chaplain of Marine Corps Installations Pacific, Marine Corps Base Camp Butler-Japan and speeches by Lt. Gen. Nicholson and Consul General Joel Ehrendreich.

“When I first visited this beautiful site after I arrived on Okinawa, I was moved by the quiet, yet powerful message,” said Ehrendreich. “We are surrounded by the carefully inscribed names of more than 240,000 individuals who died in this battle - an indelible reminder of our past struggles and our responsibilities to avoid the horrors of war. The lives lost are a heartbreaking reminder that freedom has a painful cost.”

As a symbol to honor the fallen, the speakers and distinguished visitors from the U.S. and Japanese government presented wreaths which were placed against the memorial walls.

“We are fortunate that many of our countrymen were, and prepared to give themselves for their country’s endurance, to place themselves in harm’s way to protect the United States, its allies, and its people,” said Ehrendreich.

Side by side, SOFA members and Okinawa residents gathered stood gazing at the memorial site in remembrance to pay their final respects to the fallen. Fingers traced countless engraved names as they stood together in silence.

“Those who have survived the Battle of Okinawa and have seen the unity of the two countries,” said Nicholson. “The United States and Japan have worked together to ensure the security of this region for 71 years. We thank all of you who are here to remember those who preceded us and paid that great price, so that today we can enjoy freedom in our country, in Japan and on this great island of Okinawa.”