Four orphans from Japan arrived to a royal welcome at Schofield Barracks yesterday, as children from the Holy Family Home Orphanage have done for 50 years.

The children, two girls and two boys ages 10 to 12, climbed out of a Humvee to be greeted by applause and cheers from more than 150 civic and military leaders.

The children, with the girls wearing colorful kimonos, walked down a red carpet and were saluted by a color guard and draped with lei by six host families who will provide them with a home for the next week.

It will be a vacation from their orphanage in Japan, an effort to make the children feel like they are part of a family, said volunteer Keoni Wagner.

The Wolfhounds of the 27th Infantry Regiment have dedicated this year's 50th anniversary visit celebration to Sgt. Maj. Hugh O'Reilly, who started the unit's tradition of helping the orphans during the U.S. occupation in Japan after seeing their poor living conditions and inadequate medical coverage.

The bond between the Wolfhounds and the orphanage has spanned 62 years.

And since 1957, more than 200 children have been rewarded for good behavior with a trip to Hawai'i.

Specialist Binta Norman, 29, and his wife, Teresa, volunteered to host two brothers to add to their family of two daughters and a son. Teresa said she plans to foster more children, so it was a great opportunity to host 12-year-old Seiya and 10-year-old Hayato Nishida.

"It's a lot of fun for them to get to come to a normal home," Teresa Norman said. "They have a lot of fun; we show them a lot of compassion that they may not get in a family setting."

The Norman family will spend two nights and three days with the boys, taking them to places such as the Outrigger Canoe Club and Hawaiian Waters Adventure Park.

Son Ty Norman, 7, said he is excited to have two new additions to his family.

"I never had a whole bunch of people in my house before," he said. "I want to show them my games: GameCube and Game Boy."

The girl visitors are Misaki Takenaka and Miho Tanaka, both 11.

The four children will rotate and live with three different families during their stay.

Lt. Col. Rich "Flip" Wilson, who helped organize the event, said the children quickly adjust to living with their host families.

"You see all the smiles on their faces, and the pranks they pull, and ... tug at your leg — it's a different feeling to see them evolve in terms of relationships over the next few weeks," Wilson said.

Near the end of their stay, the children will share their Japanese culture, ending with a traditional dance at the closing ceremony at Bellows, Wilson said.

The children were not available for interviews.

Although the children speak only Japanese, Wilson said they can still communicate through gestures and facial expressions.

What they communicate is thankfulness "that someone cares for another human being," Wilson said.

"You see it in the eyes of the children and in the Wolfhounds and their family members."