The Masters of Harmony Helps Commemorate the 75th Anniversary of Pearl Harbor
Some of the members encountered Pearl Harbor survivors on their flights to Hawaii and later during the week. Seated one row behind me on my flight to Honolulu was Peter Nichols. He had been assigned to the Battleship USS Oklahoma but was later reassigned to Kaneohe Naval Air Station on Oahu, which also came under attack. Thus, he avoided the fate of being on a ship with a casualty list second only to the USS Arizona. When our plane taxied in, the local fire department honored Peter’s presence and that of other veterans on our flight with a fire-hose salute that arched over the plane from each side. A large welcoming committee greeted him with reverent respect as he and other war veterans disembarked.
Mark & Meredith Travis described an especially poignant encounter: “On our flight home from Pearl Harbor, Chief Petty Officer Greg Pruitt, a Navy diver serving in San Diego, sat next to us on the plane. We struck up a conversation during which he shared this special story. Greg has interred ashes of Pearl Harbor survivors into the harbor several times in the past. At this 75th memorial of Pearl Harbor, he was part of a solemn ceremony of three survivors. They toasted their fallen comrades with a bottle of champagne – 1941 vintage! The survivors had Greg take the bottle and a glass to join those entombed in the undersea wreckage of the USS Arizona.”
The well-planned itinerary allowed ample time for members to visit the Arizona and Oklahoma memorials, as well as other museums that honor the lives lost on the horrendous day. These repositories have records that describe the courage of survivors who brushed aside their initial stunned disbelief and leaped into action, bringing down 29 of the 360 Japanese planes in the strike force.
On Tuesday, December 6, chorus members rehearsed with and then performed a joint concert with two Sweet Adelines ensembles, the Nae Leo Lani and Oregon Spirit choruses, at the Harris United Methodist Church. After the performance, the ladies of the Nae Leo Lani chorus served a delicious all-you-can-eat buffet.
Wednesday, December 7, started with a joint rehearsal with some 200 select singers from various high school choirs, who would join us for the opening ceremonies later in the day. One of the highlights for the Masters came after we sang for the high school singers. Their applause was as instantaneous and as fully visceral as the one the Masters received from the audience of 7,000 in the 2014 International Contest in Las Vegas. What made this applause unusual was having the mostly teenage girls scream for an encore!
The opening ceremonies began at Fort DeRussy and were attended by over 100 Pearl Harbor survivors. The Grand Marshall for the parade was Gary Sinise, a tireless advocate of American servicemen and their families for nearly 40 years. After inspiring speeches by 103-year-old survivor Navy Lt. Jim Downing and Sinise, the Masters flanked their youthful choral counterparts in a joyful rendition of “God Bless America,” accompanied by approximately 1,500 band members positioned nearby in their respective groups. Moments later, we joined the Pacific Fleet Marine Band to sing the National Anthem. At the end of the opening ceremonies, the Masters assembled at their designated parade spot, No. 32 of the 105 entries, for a 1.5-mile parade down Kalakaua Avenue. The crowd of spectators lining both sides of Kalakaua, over 3-deep along the entire route, greeted us with enthusiastic applause throughout. Every MOHer marched proudly for the entire route. Some members spotted veterans in the crowd and reached out to shake hands and thank them for their service to our country. Sinise’s reaction to his part in the parade echoes what we all felt that evening: “What a tremendous blessing it was for me to ride in the parade with our WWII heroes. It was such a joy to see the massive crowd that turned out to cheer them on. The whole week was fantastic. An honor to be part of it all.”
After the parade, we assembled in Kapiolani Park for a meal provided to parade units, followed by a brief rehearsal and then a performance in the world-famous Waikiki Shell, whose design resembles the Hollywood Bowl. Seated at the front of the audience were about 20 Pear Harbor survivors, about half of them in wheelchairs. When the Masters performed the Armed Forces Medley, we asked members of the audience to stand when their particular service song was sung so they could be honored for their service. All 20 of those survivors stood to receive that honor!
On Thursday, December 8, we traveled to the USS Missouri where we first toured the battleship’s various decks and exhibits. We could stand on the spot where the allied leaders took the official surrender of the Japanese forces and General Douglas MacArthur uttered those immortal words, “These proceedings are closed.” From the forward parts of the ship, we stood and looked across the waters to the Arizona Memorial that honors the 1,177 lives lost on that ship that fateful day. After a brief rehearsal, the Masters performed a 40-minute concert to the hundreds on the decks above us. The words of our opener “Just let a smile be your umbrella on a rainy, rainy day” were never more appropriate. At the point where we briefly looked up to the sky with uplifted hands, an ongoing light rain touched every hand!
On Friday, December 9, we traveled to the First Hawaiian Bank for a delicious beef barbeque prepared in large part by the director of the Sounds of Aloha chorus, Mark Conching. Following the tasty feast, the Masters performed several songs and then the rest of the evening was devoted to quartetting and socializing. The evening ended appropriately when Alan Gordon, who directed us so skillfully throughout the week’s performances, led the combined choruses in “Keep The Whole World Singing,” a perfect way to close out an often somber, reflective week in Hawaii.
The members of the Masters family who traveled to Hawaii owe a great debt of gratitude to Skip Farrar and the many hours he put in to make this unforgettable week possible. In turn, Skip gives credit to his counterpart, Mark Conching, for all the legwork he did in Honolulu on our behalf. Thanks, Skip, Ed, Mark, Alan, Joe and all those who worked so long and hard to bring all of this together . . . a great big Hawaiian Mahalo Nui Loa!
