Remembering Pearl Harbor: New Philadelphia band students traveling to Hawaii to take part in 70th anniversary commemoration

  • by Jennifer Kneuss
  • November 28, 2011
  • 324
                        
Summary: Area students will find that the events of December 7, 1941 will become much more than a page in a history book as they participate in events commemorating the 70th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor. The world was forever changed on December 7, 1941, when hundreds of Japanese planes attacked the Pearl Harbor naval base near Honolulu, Hawaii. Two hours later, more than 2,000 American sailors, soldiers and civilians were dead, with another 1,000 of their comrades wounded. Almost 300 US planes were destroyed, along with eight huge battleships, including the USS Arizona, which was hit by a 1,800 pound Japanese bomb and exploded and sank with 1,000 men trapped inside. Other smaller vessels were also destroyed, and several nearby airfields and Schofield Barracks suffered extensive damage. Over the next four days, the United States found herself drawn into World War II against not only Japan, but also Germany and Italy. For all but a quickly shrinking percentage of American citizens, that infamous December 7 day 70 years ago may have become no more than a chapter in a history book. The lucky ones will hear first hand stories of that day from those referred to by journalist Tom Brokaw as ‘The Greatest Generation’. A select group of area teens will soon be treated to that opportunity. 84 New Philadelphia High School band members will be honored to join with members of 11 other high school bands from across the US as part of a more than 650 member mass band chosen to participate in the 70th anniversary of that infamous day. The band will perform pier-side of the Battleship Missouri Memorial in Hawaii, under the direction of Pearl Harbor survivor, 91 year old former Army bugler Allen Bodenlos, a Cleveland, Ohio native. Bodenlos will also share his story with the students on Dec. 6. “We will have a rehearsal on the day before the performance to put it all together. The feature will be some of the best patriotic songs ever written. We have had to get clearance from the US Navy to be on base during the event. The audience will be military dignitaries and family members of performers and service personnel,” explained New Philadelphia band director Jeff Furbay of the December 4-11 trip, for which the band raised $280, 00 to attend. The mass band will be performing the Star Spangled Banner, Stars and Stripes Forever, Salute To America's Finest, Hawai’i Pono'i, Amazing Grace, and In Defense of Liberty. “I am most personally excited about the unique opportunity our students will have here in 2011 to directly connect with an individual who lived through the events of Dec. 7, 1941,” stated Furbay. “To hear Bodnelos’ stories of that day, and learn what it took to make it through it all.” The students and their 56 family members, staff, and chaperones will also be touring the island’s famous scenic as well as historic sites, and will enjoy traditional Hawaiian lei flower greetings and a luau. Jordan Wherley is a 17 year old senior, and is one of four New Phila band field commanders, along with Marissa Bartell, Katarina Sprankle, and Abby Riggs. “I’m really excited, but also really nervous. We’ve been waiting a year and a half for this opportunity, and it doesn’t get a whole lot better than spending a week in Hawaii with your best friends while serving your country,” said Wherley. “Our show for this entire season has been based on that one day. It has made me really want to go in depth on the history. Our whole show depicts the events of Dec. 7, 1941. Gaining all that information, and learning the details of that day, has made it more real to us than it might be for other teenagers of our generation.” Director Furbay is looking forward to the opportunity to have his students perform for the memorial event. “More than the sites we will see or anything else, just to know that these kids will be able to carry this experience with them into the future is so rewarding.”


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