WAARNG Honor Guard reads the deceased veterans' names

Who’s ever heard of the VMT Program? Very few. There’s been almost no news coverage. Yet, as Post Bugler for VFW Post 1040 in Lynnwood, I have played “Taps” three times in the past three weeks for almost 600 veterans who recently died in King County, Washington—twice at ceremonies at Veterans Memorial Cemetery at Evergreen Washelli and once at Acacia Memorial Park in north Seattle. And that’s going to continue. What’s this all about?

All veterans are eligible for military funeral honors, but most survivors do not request them. Before 2010 in Washington state, when the moment for honors had passed, that was that. But now, tribute is later paid to them in absentia by the the Washington Army National Guard (WAARNG) through its Veterans Memorial Tribute Program (VMTP). Now, none are forgotten.

"Ready" to fire three volleys, VFW Post 1040 Firing Squad

The Honor Guard Program of the Army National Guard in Washington and 7 other states is headed by William A. (Bill) Graham, Jr., Regional Director and State Coordinator, located in Camp Murray near Ft. Lewis. When a person dies in Washington, he says, the funeral director typically submits a death worksheet to the Department of Health, Center for Health Statistics. On the worksheet, Question #12 asks whether the deceased was a veteran. Quarterly, the state forwards a list of all such veterans to the WAARNG which then checks this list against a national database of all veterans who already have been accorded military honors. It turns out that about 65% of eligible veterans do not receive military funeral honors. The VMTP remedies this.

Presenting the flag

WAARNG is the first in the nation to institute this tribute program. When VMTP first started in 2010, the state sent them data for 2008, 2009, and 2010 (to date). The 2008 and 2009 batches contained about 14,000 names each!

Mr. Graham says the goal is to furnish an Honor Guard for these mass committal services in all 39 counties of the state. The Honor Guard renders military funeral honors en masse for each new set of deceased veterans. Most are concentrated in King County. For a KREM-TV report on a memorial service held last October in Medical Lake in Spokane County, see http://www.krem.com/news/local/Tribute-program-honors-veterans-gaining-local-support-132498463.html.

With gratitude, respect and honor, the final salute

At a typically brief tribute ceremony, the names of the deceased vets are read aloud, a bell is rung, a prayer is offered, a poem is read, and the nation’s deep gratitude is expressed. In north King County, this is done twice a month by WAARNG’s Bellingham unit which usually reads about 200 new names each time—at Evergreen Washelli on the first Tuesday and at Acacia on the third Tuesday of each month. VFW Post 1040 furnishes the firing squad and the bugler—me, playing my Super Olds cornet, serial number 133097 with my Bach 8C mouthpiece. Similar honors are rendered monthly in south King County. Mr. Graham says that in less populous counties, the tribute ceremony would be rendered less frequently, depending upon the need. The public is welcome to attend.

Photos by Richard Larson at Veterans Memorial Cemetery, Evergreen Washelli; click on any photo to enlarge it.

WE REMEMBER THEM [excerpt]

At the rising of the sun and at its going down

We remember them…

As long as we live, they too will live;

for they are now a part of us

as we remember them.

Glenn Ledbetter on cornet

After a wonderful, hearty dinner on Christmas Eve, we carried on our traditional family program: readings from Isaiah and Luke about the birth of the Christ child, prayers, carols, gift opening, and snacks. Meanwhile, about four cameras were continuously flashing and whirring. For music, my wife passed out our colorful booklet of carols (which she produced herself) and played the piano while we sang. Normally, I play one or two tunes on my cornet, too, always with her accompaniment. This year, I soloed. I played “Angels We Have Heard on High” straight as written, but to “Santa Baby,” I added a little fun with some special sound effects using my Harmon (wah-wah) mute in the middle of the piece and a long, quick glissando from G to an accented High G at the end! (Smiles and applause!)

Happy New Year! 

And then we rehearsed one of the loveliest songs ever written about the coming of the Christ child. The arrangement we played was by David T. Clydesdale and is available through Word Music (see http://www.wordmusic.com/item/080689886270). The concluding lines are “My whole life has turned around, I was lost but now I’m found. A baby changes everything, yeah, This baby changes everything.”

It was written and composed by Tim Nichols, Kim Wiseman, and Craig Wiseman. Faith Hill made it a #1 hit in 2008. To see and hear her sing it, please see:

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7D-DH9aT3bs (live concert)
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-y0_wNPSOaw&feature=related (video with scenes from the movie, “The Nativity Story”)

Think about this special baby—can you name any other man who has ever had a more profound, widespread, long-lasting impact on humanity and human history?

We also played several hymns and Christmas carols. The jazz arrangement of “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” by Tom Payne was especially good (see http://www.praisecharts.com/detail/arrangement/2132).

For my four other posts about playing in this church orchestra, simply click on Church Music at the beginning of the paragraph below this post.

F-Sharp Major

Last Sunday, I played trumpet in the church orchestra again, and this time our music was in the key signatures of F# (six sharps), B (five sharps), E (four sharps), and B-flat (two flats). So what, who cares? I did last spring when I facetiously complained about it in my post of 28 March (see also, 11 April) 2011. But no more. As the Worship Director commented with a wide smile, she chooses the key signature of the music for the benefit of the congregation. It’s all about worship by everyone, not about the musicians or the orchestra. Right on!

The Navy provided the color guard, and VFW Post 1040 of Lynnwood furnished the firing squad and bugler—me! You can see a video of the event and hear “Taps” at King-5 TV News,http://www.king5.com/news/cities/seattle/Holiday-wreaths-placed–135386858.html . The volunteers placed 100 wreaths on veterans graves here. There are six Medal of Honor and two Silver Star recipients buried at Evergreen Washelli (see my posts of 2 and 19 July 2011).

All but three of the photos below are courtesy of the Navy Wives Clubs of America. Click on any photo to enlarge it.

Eckstein Wind Ensemble

At Eckstein Middle School in northeast Seattle on 8 December, more than one-quarter of the entire student body performed in one of four bands at the winter concert. These bands are comprised of 341 musicians out of the student body of 1280 students–that’s 27% and that’s success! You simply can’t argue about the superiority of this music program when you look at all the trophies in the hallway outside the auditorium, which was packed with parents, relatives and friends like me.

The Beginning Band (31 students) conducted by Chris Boscole played three pieces. Next was the Junior Concert Band (109 students) conducted by Cuauhtemoc Escobedo (aka “Mr. E” or “Moc”), Director of Bands at the school. The Junior Band played five pieces, finishing with Leroy Anderson’s “A Trumpeter’s Lullaby,” featuring three trumpet soloists. After that, Mr. Escobedo conducted the Intermediate Concert Band (107) in another five pieces, one of which featured another trumpeter. Finally, Mr. Escobedo conducted the Wind Ensemble (94) in yet another five pieces. Soloists included two clarinetists and five flutists.

Flute soloist in Eckstein Wind Ensemble performs "Gemeinhardt Suite" by Robert W. Smith

The music, including some Bach and Mozart, was challenging for the students—there was no effort to “play it safe” with easy compositions—and the students were up to the challenge! It was very impressive and enjoyable.

Two of my trumpet students performed—see my blog posts of 18 November 2009, and 19 April 2010. One is in the Wind Ensemble, and the other is in the Junior Concert Band. I was very proud of and happy for them.

Please click on any photo to enlarge it.

Thus ends "Sheherazade" by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov

Students don Santa hats for the finale, "Sleigh Ride," by Leroy Anderson

Three trumpeters accept the applause from the Eckstein Junior Band (standing) and the audience after soloing in "A Trumpeter's Lullaby" by Leroy Anderson

Mr. Shawn McGinn (left, front), 2nd-year band (left, back), and 1st-year band (right)

On Thursday, 8 December, the parents and relatives gathered at band period (7:55-8:35 a.m.) to hear their kids play in the band in the school cafeteria at Skyview Junior High School in Bothell. For the 1st-year band, it was their first concert ever, and the featured song was ”Jingle Bells.” Then the 2nd year band played two pieces: “Apollo Fanfare” by Robert W. Smith and “Five Christmas Favorites,” a medley. The band director is Shawn McGinn, and I am his assistant for brass instruction (trumpet, trombone, baritone, and French horn). Photos by I-Phone; click on any photo to enlarge it.

Glenn Ledbetter, 10 Dec. 2011

On 7 December, the 70th anniversary of Pearl Harbor Day (1941), Martin Spani, Commander, VFW Post 1040 of Lynnwood, appointed me the new post bugler. It’s not national news, but quietly, it’s a big deal to me. I’m a Vietnam veteran who served on three ships in the Pacific Fleet during 1963-1967: USS Los Angeles (CA-135), a heavy cruiser homeported in Long Beach, CA; USS Walton (DE-361), a destroyer escort homeported in San Francisco; and USS Koiner (DER-331), a radar picket escort vessel homeported in Agana, Guam.

World War II was formative for me, even though I was a small boy not yet in school. And more important to me than Pearl Harbor Day are V-E Day (8 May 1945) and V-J Day (14 August 1945), when I was five years old…I remember the relief and exhilaration of those days.

When I was at Officer Candidate School (OCS) in Newport, Rhode Island in late 1962, I played in the drum and bugle corps. After I graduated from OCS, my first orders as an Ensign were to report for duty aboard the Los Angeles, then in Japan. Enroute from San Francisco, I stayed over in Hawaii and went to Waikiki. Now, whenever I go on vacation to Honolulu, I always visit the “Punchbowl,” the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. I love to listen to the birds in the trees as I walk in the sunlight among the graves, read the markers, survey the wide, green burial field, and thank God and those of that great generation—my mother’s and father’s generation. They stand very tall in world history. At the Punchbowl, the soft, peaceful truth stares and sings right back at you: freedom is not free.

My ship bombarded the coast once, but I never shot to kill in Vietnam, and neither I nor my ship was ever fired upon. Our naval duty was to patrol the coast of South Vietnam to prevent and stop the movement of supplies from North Vietnam, China, or wherever which might support the Viet Cong. We patroled in the combat zone, but it really was a land war. With a crew, I boarded junks in coastal waters, searching for contraband. Anything could have happened.

I’m a lucky man. Not so for many others in American history. Have you heard ”American Anthem,” by composer Gene Scheer, as sung by Nora Jones on the sound track of the Ken Burns film, The War? That tells you why it’s a big deal to be a VFW post bugler in a little town far off in the northwest corner of America. Please listen to it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdjnAFqapg4:

“Let them say of me, I was one who believed in sharing the blessings that I received. Let me know in my heart, when my days are through, America, America, I gave my best to you.”

The choir members processed down the aisles through the crowd to the stage, singing “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” which always chokes me up: “O come, Desire of nations, bind in one the hearts of all mankind; bid thou our sad divisions cease, and be thyself our King of Peace.” And on from there went the splendid concert to start the blessings of the Christmas season, 2011. ‘Tis a joy to be a believer in these past 18 years after living the previous 34 years as an agnostic. In 1994, I gave up “If it is to be, it’s up to me,” for “Thy will be done.” It’s a Good Life!

Tran was one of the winners of the concerto competition in November within the School of Music at the University of Washington. On 12 January 2012, he will perform Piano Concerto #1 in G Minor, OP. 25, by Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847) I. Molto allegro con fuoco II. Andante III. Presto – Molto allegro e vivace. Tran is a student of Craig Sheppard. He plans to complete his Master of Music degree in Piano Performance in Spring 2012. See http://www.music.washington.edu/upcoming/detail/39408.

Proceeds go into the CID Scholarship Program which provides financial assistance to students attending primary or secondary schools in Vietnam, where the average family income is less than US$90 a month and the average primary/secondary tuition at a public school is nearly US$70 a year per child. Kids in poor families often must drop out of school to help their families. Without proper education, they have little chance for a better life.

Scholarships in the amount of $100 a year help pay for the basic educational needs such as tuition, fees, uniforms and school supplies. The monies are distributed directly to the recipients. To encourage students to earn a high school diploma, CID pledges to continue assistance to the recipients each year until graduation, provided they keep in good academic standing.

Currently, CID’s prime target areas are in the rural southern region near Ho Chi Minh City, central region near Binh-Thuan and Da-Nang, and the highlands region near Kon-Tum.  In the past two years, CID has provided 85 scholarships, with over half of the awards going to repeat recipients.

If you are unable to attend but wish to make a donation, please see the CID website, http://www.cid-vn.org/index.php, or email compassionindeeds@gmail.com. As they say in their motto, “Because every child deserves a chance.”