William Gabbard

Now what? A picture of a Navy football player? What site was this again?

But...if you look a little closer at #74's jersey, particularly his left shoulder...you'll notice that he's wearing, like all service academy football players, a patch, which the players wear to honor military units. Here's the patch close up:

My son Ben graduated from the Naval Academy in May 2008. This photo is from his last regular season game in December 2007, at Ravens Stadium in Baltimore.

During his USNA years he was an offensive lineman, playing in over 35 games, helping the Mids win four Commander-In-Chief's Trophies, a victory over Notre Dame (Navy's first in 43 years), and four bowl appearances.

He wasn't the only Navy player to wear an Army patch that day. Star running back Reggie Campbell, in honor of a relative deployed with OIF with the 1st ID, proudly wore TBRO on his Navy jersey.

Ben honored all of us in the Army Bands family in his last Army-Navy game, the 108th in the series.

 This Saturday is the 110th meeting...here's to two great football teams, made up of some great young men whose best days serving our country lie ahead.

Oh...and here's Big Ben with his proud mom and pop, taken on his wedding day at USNA, May 2009.

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Taken more recently, somewhere "Over There." Not as many troopers, obviously, as the photo I posted several days ago.

But the sentiment...and the dedication to duty, are the same.

Here's to us and those like us...Godspeed to all those in harm's way and to those who "keep 'em flying."

A salute to all Veterans on this special day!

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With the approach of the 91st anniversary of the Armistice ending the First World War, a date which has evolved into what we now mark as Veterans' Day, I thought I'd post an interesting photo that was recently sent to me. The noted American photographers Arthur S. Mole and John D. Thomas took a series of "living photographs" during the war which were used to help drum up support for the war effort. This particular shot was taken in the summer of 1918, at Camp Dodge, Iowa (now the headquarters post of the Iowa National Guard).

It's an amazing photo, and to think of the logistics involved in making it happen (especially in a pre-computer age)...that makes it all even more amazing. Some of the stats:

Base to Shoulder: 150 feet
Right Arm: 340 feet
Widest part of arm holding torch: 12 1/2 feet
Right thumb: 35 feet
Thickest part of body: 29 feet
Left hand length: 30 feet
Face: 60 feet
Nose: 21 feet
Longest spike of head piece: 70 feet
Torch and flame combined: 980 feet
Number of men in flame of torch: 12,000
Number of men in torch: 2,800
Number of men in right arm: 1,200
Number of men in body, head and balance of figure only: 2,000

Total men: 18,000

At the time the photo was taken, the Allied Expeditionary Force numbered between 1 to 2 million Soldiers in France (250,000 in March '18, 1M in July, 2M by 11 Nov in 29 divisions).  18,000 troopers for a photo pales in comparison to the millions of brave souls who journeyed "Over There," many of course never to return.

As Veterans' Day approaches next week, let's remember the service and sacrifice of multiple generations of Soldiers (and vets of the other branches) who have served, and continue to serve, our great country.

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We're almost two weeks into our Fall tour and the concerts have all been wonderful, with enthusiastic audiences at every stop. In addition to our evening shows our chamber groups have been hard at work performing in schools and colleges along the way. The Soldiers' Chorus recently did a recital at Flower Mound High School in the metro Dallas area, to an audience of about sixty young singers.

Speaking of young singers, I had the good fortune to share a smile with a young person after one of our shows:

(Photo by SFC Rob McIver, TUSAFB)

I think she had a good time!

Check our website for our upcoming shows: http://www.armyfieldband.com/media/flash/map/InteractiveMap.html

We'd love to see you there!

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Seventeen members of The Musical Ambassadors of the Army ran in the 25th annual Army Ten Miler in Washington, DC on October 4. It was a gorgeous Sunday morning as 30,000 runners from all over the world participated in what has come to be the world's second largest 10 mile race. Hooah! spirit was in abundance as Soldiers from units worldwide sent teams to compete in the official team events, and scores of more "informal" teams (like ours), from Army units far and wide, showed up to enjoy the day, visit with friends, and bask in the beautiful morning sun of our nation's capital. Our fellow bandsmen from TUSAB supplied entertainment along the trail as did one of the local Guard bands, as well as the excellent band from Paul VI HS in Fairfax.

Among our numbers were our commander, COL Tom Palmatier, and one of our very newest members, SSG Christy LaBarca. We look forward to next year's event, and hope to bring even more folks from the Field Band. Hooah! (Ouch!)

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Many of you who read these posts serve, or have served, with Samoan Soldiers, whose families have been affected in many ways by the awful events of the last 24 hours. News accounts of the tsunami have found their way onto all of the major national and worldwide news outlets.  I would also recommend http://www.samoanews.com, the local paper, which has pretty up to date info on water and electricity-related issues, and many updated photos.

I won't bother with posting a photo as there are already hundreds available on the Net, in addition to Youtube videos, Tweets and other cyber stuff. Thank goodness for all of the latest techno doodads which make the info flow move fast and furious...the only catch is, is that all of this depends on electric power, which may in the near future be spotty on island.

The outpouring of support has been, as it always is in these cases, overwhelming. Words of encouragement, good thoughts and of course much prayer is appreciated. Give a hug and a good word  to a Samoan trooper today!

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     We're finishing up a short tour through NJ, NY and PA. The audiences have been wonderful, as always. Tonight we performed at the Saratoga Perfoming Arts Center to a crowd of over three thousand, bundled up and somewhat chilly in the fall evening air of upstate New York, but warm and friendly in their response and reception.

I'm always encouraged by the genuine love and support for America's Army that exists out in the Heartland. It's nice to get beyond the Beltway Moat to see the "real America."

We'll head home on Sunday, then spend the next couple of weeks getting ready for our Concert Band and Soldiers' Chorus Fall concert tour which takes us through nine states, starting in New Mexico, then working our way east through Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia. You can see our tour itinerary at http://www.armyfieldband.com/pages/schedule/bc_sched.html

Hope you can make it to a performance!

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I had the privilege of traveling to Georgia this past weekend to witness the final parachute jump and graduation ceremony of Class 40-09, Basic Airborne Course at Ft Benning. 442 Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines received their jump wings at the end of a long day in which all of them made their final jumps at Fryar Drop Zone in front of bleachers full of families, friends and fellow Soldiers.

Among the newest paratroopers was my son Michael. Mike is a junior at Towson University in Baltimore, MD, majoring in Criminal Justice. He is a ROTC cadet and a member of the Towson/Loyola Ranger Challenge team.

After the entire company completed their jumps, the Airborne School cadre conducted the graduation ceremony. The company commander spoke of the significance of the day, which of course was on all our minds as we reflected upon the horrible events that had sparked the Global War on Terror. The guest speaker was the CSM of the Ranger School, whose own son was graduating that day. He also shared his thoughts on how proud he was of all of these newest members of the Paratrooper ranks.

It's one of my proudest moments, a moment I'll always remember, pinning silver jump wings on Mike's uniform. His mom and I are amazed at his dedication to duty and his outstanding achievements. We are grateful that he carries on our family's five-generation tradition of military service, together with his older brother (an officer in the Navy currently serving aboard one of the nation's newest warships).

Many of you who read these pages have been through the crucible of Airborne School, and I salute you for your achievement and professionalism in some of the Army's most challenging training. I'm proud that Mike has joined your ranks.

Many of us who have served long careers in the service have been reassured to see the many thousands of young men and women who have chosen to serve in America's Army in recent years, especially in the years following 9/11. I couldn't think of a better way to have spent the anniversary of this event, than to witness a hard-charging group of proud young people who join the generations of Airborne soldiers past and present, and who resolve to do their part as the "mighty Airborne Force" of the future.

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