A new publication hit Okinawa bases Friday.

Stripes Okinawa, a free, weekly publication produced by the Stars and Stripes advertising department in the Pacific, will be delivered with the regular newspaper and will also be available in newsstands, stores and elsewhere on the island’s bases.

All information is local and focused on community and school events, entertainment listings and schedules. Freelance writers and advertising staff produce the stories.

The addition of Stripes Okinawa is part of a larger program as Stars and Stripes transforms its role within local military communities around the globe, according to John D. Panasiewicz, general manager of Stripes in the Pacific.

In May 2005, the paper launched Stripes Guam, a similar community information weekly. Panasiewicz said the Guam advertising supplement has “really caught on.”

“The positive response from readers, local commands and advertisers has really generated a lot of excitement,” he said. “That in turn provided us with the confidence in our business model to expand this to other locations as part of our five-year strategic plan. … This was really a big success story for us in 2006 and we are ready to share it with the Okinawa community.”

Stars and Stripes is exploring similar publications in Europe and elsewhere in the Pacific.

Stripes Okinawa will have island-wide distribution at all bases and will be found at common locations in front of or inside exchanges, commissaries, gyms, schools, clubs, billeting, MWR facilities, banks and credit unions.