On Veterans Day, 11 November of any given year, I always have more than one opportunity to perform my one-hour trumpet show, “I Stand for the Flag,” at various retirement communities, partly because I’m a Vietnam veteran and I wear my Honor Guard uniform as VFW Post 1040 Bugler. But it’s first come, first served, and last year, Mountlake Terrace Plaza (MTP) booked me first. I played 24 patriotic marches, songs, and bugle calls before a large audience in the dining room in the afternoon. I used five horns—trumpet, cornet, flugelhorn, pocket trumpet, and bugle.
It was my third appearance at MTP. In August 2021, I performed my show, “Showtune Favorites,” and in July this past summer, I performed “In Retrospect.” You can easily read my blog articles about these two appearances by searching “Mountlake Terrace Plaza” in the box at the upper right of this page.
For me, it was unique to see that Anne Paine, Director of Wellness Programming, had displayed a “Missing Person Table” at the entrance to the dining room. As of this performance, I had performed six different one-hour shows at 36 retirement communities in the Greater Seattle area, and I’ve never seen that Table set anywhere else. Most other activity directors probably have never heard of it. And I have also seen it set when I sounded “To the Color” and “Taps” at several ceremonies at Edmonds Community College.
According to the National League of POW/MIA Families, the “Missing Man Honors Table” carries the message that American Prisoners of War and Missing in Action from the Vietnam War shall never be forgotten. The table, its empty chair(s), and its contents are all symbolic, and a proper candlelight service can be conducted. At the table at MTP, there were two empty chairs and place settings, a white tablecloth, three American flags, the New Testament and Psalms, a red rose, a burning candle, and a flyer that explains the symbolisms. For more information, please see https://www.pow-miafamilies.org/the-missing-man-table.
According to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, “At present, less than 81,000 Americans remain missing from WWII, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War, and the Gulf Wars/other conflicts. Out of the less than 81,000 missing, 75% of the losses are located in the Indo-Pacific, and over 41,000 of the missing are presumed lost at sea (i.e. ship losses, known aircraft water losses, etc.).” At present, the number from the Vietnam War is 1,566. For more information on the government’s efforts to identify the missing, please see https://www.dpaa.mil.
The photos below are courtesy of Mountlake Terrace Plaza. Please click on any photo to enlarge it.
My mother-in-law lived at Fairwinds Brighton Court (FBC) in Lynnwood for a couple of years, and that permanently endeared me to this vibrant retirement community. So, I was delighted to return there on 10 November 2025 for another performance, my seventh. FBC is the current leader for my total appearances among the 36 communities where I’ve presented at least one of my six one-hour trumpet shows. This time it was “I Stand for the Flag” because the next day was Veterans Day.
“I Stand for the Flag” calls for five horns—trumpet, pocket trumpet, cornet, flugelhorn, and bugle. I play 24 patriotic marches, songs, and bugle calls, and I invite the audience to sing along (or hum). Who doesn’t know “When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again,” “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” “Over There,” “God Bless America” and many more such?
FBC’s staff, led by Colleen Loveridge, Program Supervisor, are always expert in setting up the room and equipment that help make the shows successful. The audience is always sizeable, engaged, and responsive. They know and like each other. In short, it’s fun for them and fun for me. “See ya next time.”
Photos are courtesy of Fairwinds, Brighton Court. Please click on any photo to enlarge it.
Of the 67 bugle calls published by Carl Fischer, I have sounded six in public, plus “Echo Taps.” But until the morning of Saturday, 12 July 2025, at a memorial service, I had never had the opportunity to perform “Church Call.” The service was for Merlin D. Staatz at Open Door Baptist Church in Lynnwood (https://opendoorbaptist.com/). My “Church Call” opened the service, and my “Taps” helped close it.
In the afternoon, I sounded “Taps” for Gerald “Jerry” L. Seldon, Sr. at Nile Shrine Center in Mountlake Terrace (https://nileshriners.org/). It was a Masonic service, the second one in which I’ve ever participated. Inscribed on the statue in front of the clubhouse is this: “A man never stands so tall as when he stoops to help a Child.”
Each ceremony attracted about 100 friends and relatives. They were honorable men who served our country and on whose shoulders we stand. Regrettably, I know nothing of Seldon’s military service. Staatz was born in 2026 and was 99 years old when he passed in June. According to the program, he “served in the Philippines during the last year of World War II, sleeping in foxholes and leading his unit as a scout as they tried to take back the island of Luzon, one hillside at a time. He was awarded a Purple Heart. A week after Japan surrendered, he was stationed near Tokyo.”
At each of these two events, the flag presentation ceremony was performed by the Color Guard of the Shoreline unit of the U.S. Volunteers-Joint Service Command (USV-JSC) (https://www.usvjsc.org/). With these two, my “Taps” performances now total 245. I use my Getzen bugle.
L to R: Bugle, Pocket Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Trumpet, and Cornet
On this Independence Day, I finally got to perform one of my six trumpet shows at La Conner Retirement Inn. In 2022, I was scheduled to perform “I Stand for the Flag,” on Flag Day in June, but Covid struck in March, and we cancelled that show. Then the Activities Director, Allie Kester, booked me for a Christmas show, and we had to cancel that one, too. This year, we hit paydirt. On 4 July, I performed “I Stand for the Flag” for the residents during their Friday afternoon Happy Hour.
The Inn offers both Independent and Assisted Living accommodations and services. Allie proudly told me that they have three residents who are 100 or more years. The oldest one to attend my show is 98, and I dedicated “You’re a Grand Old Flag” to her. She and others liked to sing along to some of my patriotic songs and marches. The audience voluntarily stood while they sang “God Bless America,” and stayed standing while we said the “Pledge of Allegiance” and closed with “The Star-Spangled Banner.” It was an extra-special performance for me because my youngest son from Las Vegas happened to be visiting in nearby Oak Harbor and came to hear me play for the first time. He helped with the handouts and reloading my car. We shared dinner afterwards.
I used all five instruments and used my flugelhorn mute once. The bugle and trumpet are Getzens, the pocket trumpet is a Jupiter, the flugelhorn is by ACB (Austin Custom Brass), and the cornet is a Super Olds, given to me by my parents when I became a freshman in high school in 1954. This show features about two dozen patriotic marches, songs, and bugle calls.
On Saturday, 24 May 2025, I traveled to Renton to perform my one-hour trumpet show, “I Stand for the Flag,” for the first time at Solstice Senior Living (please see https://solsticeseniorlivingrenton.com/). It is a Provincial Senior Living Community, headquartered in Arlington, Texas. They operate about 70 retirement communities across the country. Others in Washington state include Bellingham, Normandy Park, Point Defiance (Tacoma), and Kennewick. At Renton, Independent Living is offered, with the support of health care professionals, when needed.
I entertained the residents with about a dozen patriotic marches, songs, and bugle calls. They sang along with me and laughed at my jokes. I used all five of my horns: trumpet, pocket trumpet, cornet, bugle, and flugelhorn.
For awhile now, I’ve been wanting to perform one of my six trumpet shows at Mirabella, Seattle. My chance came this spring, thanks to Diana Rawls, Activities Director. On 11 April, I performed “Showtune Favorites”–about two dozen songs from popular musicals and movies familiar to the residents.
Why did I especially want to play there? Because it’s operated by a non-profit organization, occupies a whole city block in downtown Seattle, and is still quite new, opening for business only 15 years ago. I’m impressed!
I used four of my five horns–Getzen trumpet, Super Olds cornet, ACB flugelhorn, and Jupiter pocket trumpet (but not my Getzen bugle). I’ve owned the flugelhorn for only two and a half years, but the cornet for 71 years—Holy Cow! My parents gave it to me when I was a freshman in high school, and it took me to the Texas All-State Band when I was a senior. Love that horn! (Thanks again, Mother and Daddy, may they rest in peace.)
Besides At-Home Care, Mirabella, Seattle offers Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Care, and Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation. Residents from all levels came to my performance. One couple among the audience has lived there since it originally opened!
Photos are courtesy of Mirabella, Seattle. Please click on any photo to enlarge it.
U.S. Navy Wreath (photo by Phil Onishi)Photo by Glenn LedbetterPeople voluntarily lay the wreaths (photo by Phil Onishi)
Despite the high, cold wind at 9 a.m. on Saturday, 14 December 2024, the participants and crowd gathered at the Doughboy statue in Veterans Memorial Cemetery at Evergreen-Washelli in north Seattle for the 16th annual Wreaths Across America (WAA) ceremony. The wind chill was so bad that the emcee, Lorraine Zimmerman, cut her own speech from the program. She is President and Executive Director of the Veterans Memorial Wreaths Foundation (WMWF—please see http://www.vmwf.org).
The croud gathers
My bugle call, “Assembly,” called the ceremony to order. The first major event, as always, was the placement of flags upon the 8 ceremonial wreaths by representatives of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, Coast Guard, Merchant Marines and POWs/MIAs. (Read more about the POW/MIA representative below.) Then the Honor Guard of VFW Post 1040 of Lynnwood fired a 21-gun salute (3 volleys).
Lorraine Zimmerman presides as emcee
The ceremony concluded with “Echo Taps.” I sounded the lead part and James D. (Jim) Kellett, Army Musician CWO2, did the “echo.” I used my Getzen field trumpet (bugle), and he used his Super Olds trumpet. [Recall that I own a Super Olds cornet.] He is a member of the VFW 1040 Honor Guard and regularly sounds “Taps” with the Rifle Team at funeral services for veterans at numerous cemeteries throughout the area.
The second main event is the placement of wreaths against selected headstones among the more than 5,000 graves of veterans within Evergreen-Washelli. Seven Medal of Honor recipients are buried there. Zimmerman asked the wreath-laying volunteers to read aloud the names on the headstones as they placed the wreaths and thank them for their service—they are not forgotten.
Similar ceremonies are being held this year at the same local time in more than 4,500 participating locations in all 50 states, at sea, and abroad. More than two million volunteers and supporters are involved (please see http://www.wreathsacrossamerica.org).
Flag placement on POW/MIA Wreath
Capt. Wilson, Cadet Mugo, and Lorraine Zimmerman
When the time came, Zimmerman called the POW/MIA representative to the podium to receive the flag that he would place on the POW/MIA wreath. As he stood before her, she read a brief description of his POW experience.
““Captain William W. Wilson, U.S. Air Force, is assisted by Cadet Martin Mugo, UW USAF ROTC.
“Captain Wilson, former prisoner during the Vietnam War, made 33 missions over North Vietnam and Laos, flying an F-111 Aardvark before being shot down while bombing the Red River docks in downtown Hanoi on 22 December 1972. He evaded capture for a week, was nearly rescued by a Super Jolly Green helicopter, and then was captured by the North Vietnamese on 29 December. He spent a month in the ‘Heartbreak’ section of the ‘Hanoi Hilton’ [Hoa Lo Prison, loosely meaning ‘hell’s hole’ or ‘fiery furnace’] before being moved to the ‘Zoo’ [facility near the village of Cu Loc].
“He returned to U.S. control on the last C-141A Starlifter out of Hanoi on 29 March 1973 during Operation Homecoming.
“Bill will now place a flag in honor of the more than 83,000 United States servicemen and women from all branches of the service whose last known status was either Prisoner of War or Missing in Action. These individuals have never returned to their families and homes. We will not forget you.”
After he placed the flag and rendered a slow hand salute, he turned and walked slowly back across the grass toward the crowd. From a distance, I rendered a hand salute to him, and as he stepped onto the paved road, the crowd broke into warm applause. Zimmerman later told me, “I was so proud when the crowd honored him so spontaneously.” Indeed, it was the highlight of this year’s ceremony. Please see the photos (below, by Phil Onishi) of Captain Wilson and Cadet Mugo.
Embouchure Troubles Are Subsiding Nicely
Glenn Ledbetter warms up his bugle by sounding “Assembly” with a practice mute that deadens the sound
It was one year ago that I developed severe embouchure troubles for the first time in my life. Old age brought crooked teeth, to the point that my left front tooth had crossed over the right one just enough to disrupt the air flow into the mouthpiece of my horns. The problem flared up suddenly, right before last year’s WAA ceremony. I first alluded to it in my blog post of 10 June 2024, about the previous WAA ceremony. Then I wrote about it in more detail in my post of 12 June about my performance at The Bellettini retirement community in Bellevue. (Please use the Archives in the left column to find these articles, if you wish).
I had to go to the orthodontist for the solution: not braces, but Invisaligners (see http://www.invisalign.com). I wear them constantly, daily, except when eating. They have been gradually straightening my teeth since last February. Next spring, my teeth should be completely straight with the proper overbite—Oh, Happy Day!
But last May, after only four months, my teeth had straightened sufficiently that I was able to start performing again. My first public appearances were on Memorial Day when I performed at the ceremonies at Veterans Park in Lynnwood and in T-Mobile Park at the Seattle Mariners baseball game before a crowd of 24,000. Since then, on a reduced schedule, I have performed my one-hour trumpet shows at several retirement communities in the Greater Seattle area (scroll down this page). I’ll resume normal scheduling in 2025.
Photos Credits and Donations, Likes and Comments
Please click on any photo to enlarge it. All photos (except the one by me) are by Phil Onishi (please see https://philonishiphotography.smugmug.com). Mr. Onishi, long-time Band Director at Lynnwood High School, sang the National Anthem.
Donations are welcomed by both WAA and WMWF. I invite you to “Like” and “Comment” by clicking on the links below.
I’ve performed at 32 different retirement communities in the Greater Seattle area, and Quail Park is unique in a good way. Of course, every community is unique, but I’m thinking of Quail Park’s private, hilltop location and its eight different floor plans:
2 bedroom/2 bath cottage with garage (1,616 s.f.)
2 bedroom/2 bath apartment (787-1,072 s.f.)
1 bedroom/1 bath apartment (592-794 s.f.)
Studio bed/1 bath apartment (411-603 s.f.)
Private Studio Suite – Studio bed/1 bath (377-399 s.f.)
Tribute Studio Suite – Studio bed/1 bath (374-469 s.f.)
Tribute Adjoining Studios – Studio bed /1bath (374 s.f.)
Adjoining Studios-Lynnwood – Studio bed/1 bath (352-420 s.f.)
For diagrams of the different layouts and to match each floor plan with the four lifestyles (assisted living, enhanced assisted living, independent living, and memory care), please see the website, http://www.livingcarelifestyles.com/quail-park-lynnwood.
So, it was a privilege to perform for the residents in their beautiful auditorium on 12 November, one day after Veterans Day. In my VFW uniform, I performed my one-hour trumpet show, “I Stand for the Flag.” As usual, I used my five horns to play about two dozen patriotic marches, songs, and bugle calls. I love to match each instrument—trumpet, cornet, flugelhorn, bugle, and pocket trumpet—to the character and mood of each different piece.
This is my second performance at Quail Park. The first was on 22 December 2019, before the Covid pandemic. I presented my Christmas show, entitled “Things Remembered.” In addition to these two, I have four other different shows. I look forward to returning in 2025, God willing. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Veterans Day, 11 November 2024, found me in Bellevue for my third performance at The Gardens at Town Square retirement community. That afternoon, I presented my one-hour trumpet show, “I Stand for the Flag” to a large, generous audience.
Actually, I have two versions of this show. In 2021, after the Covid Pandemic peaked, I performed the “talk version.” In this show, I not only play patriotic marches, songs, and bugle calls, but also, I talk about veterans’ current well-being, concerns, and activities. But this year, I performed the “standard version”–about two dozen pieces of music with a bit of talk to introduce each piece. The audience sings along as I play my five horns: Getzen Eterna Severinsen trumpet, Super Olds cornet, Austin Custom Brass (ACB) flugelhorn, Getzen bugle, and Jupiter pocket trumpet.
We had such a great time that I look forward to returning sometime in 2025, God willing. I have six different trumpet shows, so there’s plenty to choose from. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Lobby, courtesy of Fairwinds, Brighton Court, Lynnwood
Veterans Day generated three gigs for me, and the first one was at Fairwinds, Brighton Court in Lynnwood on Saturday, 9 November 2024—two days before the actual Veterans Day (11 November). The other two performances will be covered in forthcoming blog posts.
I’ve now performed at 32 retirement communities, including many repeat appearances, throughout the Greater Seattle area. Fairwinds, Brighton Court is now the leader with six performances. My first trumpet show there was in 2018.
On this occasion, I appeared in my VFW uniform and presented my one-hour show, “I Stand for the Flag.” The audience was large and quite responsive. I used five horns: trumpet, cornet, flugelhorn, bugle, and pocket trumpet. The show consists of about two dozen patriotic marches, songs, and bugle calls. The audience sings along.
I look forward to returning for a seventh time in 2025, God willing. I offer six different shows, so next time could be entirely a different experience for the residents. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Glenn's Trumpet Notes 