I left my heart...

Driving to my first Navy Musicians Association reunion in 2006, I didn't think I'd meet anyone from my first band, Navy Band San Francisco. Well, I figured Doyle Church, my old LPO, would be there--he's the NMA secretary--but I imagined we'd be the only guys present from those distant days in the City by the Bay.

Oh, how wrong I was. After greeting Doyle in the hotel lobby, I was carrying suitcases into my room when a familiar voice called my name. I went to the door and there was John Hanson, my San Francisco Dixieland partner, looking no different than he did in the '70s.

That night I was jamming in the lounge when I looked up from the piano and saw, his hair still as red as it was when he led the Showband, Charlie Sweet. The next morning at dance band rehearsal, Frank Kemp was sitting in the trombone section. We took a break, I went to the coffee mess for a cup, and there was J.J. Connor, Navy Band San Francisco's Assistant Bandleader.
Every year, I run into someone else from that band. Bob Marquart and I have renewed our old friendship, and, this year, I've already heard from two more San Francisco alumni, drummer Dave Whitaker, and guitarist John Derby, who are planning to come to San Antonio.

I can't say that I left my heart in San Francisco, but I left a lot of friends. And, thanks to the NMA, I'm finding them again.