Scott Jackson (l) with Pam Tubbs and Gary Boswick
The Program
President Gary introduced our speaker, Scott Jackson, General Manager of the Virginia Arts Festival. Scott became Producer and Director of the Virginia International Tattoo in 2002. Scott is a musician who graduated from the Eastman School of Music; and holds a Master of Arts degree in Applied Music from Temple University; he is a member of the Virginia Symphony Orchestra. (Undisclosed fact: he plays percussion instruments.)
Scott informed us that nine Medal of Honor recipients will attend the Tattoo this year; two of those are Woody Williams, USMC, who participated in the battle for Iwo Jima in World War II and Bruce Crandall piloted an Army helicopter in Vietnam. There are only seventy-one living recipients so it is very special that so many will be in attendance. Scott also noted that there will be a contingent from the ‘Old Guard’ who man the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington. They were also sending a caisson platoon for the 65th Annual Parade of Nations on Saturday for the NATO festival. A special beer, ‘Lafayette Lager,’ has been made just for this celebration.
Scott spoke at some length on how he selects units to participate. For example, he is excited about a group from South Korea that has a Tae Kwon Do team as well as dancers and the band. This year is the one-hundredth anniversary of the birth of Leonard Bernstein and so on May 12th there will be a concert Bernstein on Broadway, which will include Brooke Shields. Scott played under Bernstein in his second to last concert before his death. It seems that the woodwinds and strings were out of sync, and his conducting style was both insightful and effective. Bernstein said, “woodwinds, you should listen to the strings…and strings, you should listen to the woodwinds…” The famous conductor encouraged the development of relationships as that would lead to better playing—among other benefits.
Scott also noted that there will be a Mozart Celebration on May 11th with Andre Michel Schub (a winner of the Van Cliburn award in 1981) who is in his last season before retirement. This is sure to be an extraordinary concert.
There were many questions for Scott involving different aspects of the Tattoo program. One Rotarian wanted to know how many other Tattoo’s are there. It seems that there are substantial programs in Halifax, Basel, Norway, Germany, The Netherlands. But Scott reminded us that a bagpiper from the Scots Guards once said, “this is the best show of its kind in the world.” (the Scots Guards is unit assigned to protect the Queen at Buckingham Palace or Windsor Castle.) Scott was asked how long it takes to plan the show; he works two to three years out. The Department of Defense must grant approval for military units to participate; luckily, approval for this program was received last September. Scott also mentioned that he looks for esprit de corps when scouting bands. Groups need to show and share their passion. There was a question about the economic impact of the Festival; the answer was over twenty million dollars. Also, 32% of the audience was from out of town and Tattoo audiences were over 50% from out of town. Hotels will be full this week! Dyteya Lewis inquired about how the Festival selects groups for discounts; she talked about the Senior Center and how some of those who attend could not afford ticket prices. (See Raffle discussion later.)
Although in other years we have had performers from the Tattoo, it was entertaining and informative to have Scott Jackson give us the backstory on the programs and processes involved. Well done!
The Meeting
Pam Tubbs led us in singing The More We Get Together and America. Then President Gary led the Pledge. The invocation was presented by Jim Baker. Our School of the Week was Sherwood Forest Elementary.
Visitors & Visitation
Jean Owens introduced Crystal Rivenbark, a visiting Rotarian from Suffolk. Kelly Stefanko introduced her guest, Jenny Lester who is responsible for fundraising with the Red Cross. Barbara Lipskis introduced her guest, Carole Forrester
Winston Whitehurst was pleased to announce that all our ailing members are on the upswing. Pam Tubbs and Lorna Cochrane were both in attendance; Jane Dembert had hoped to make it but needs more time to rest up. Mark Shaw is also improving as is Ann Morgan, our bookeeper of almost ten years.
Announcements
Suds ‘n Buds volunteer sign-up sheets were put on our tables. Rotarians need to sign up for tickets as well as stations. Chick Robison noted that more $20 wines are needed for our wine pull. The event is scheduled for May 18th; be there or be square!
Sharon Laderberg announced the upcoming flexible activities. Our drive for tennis balls for Lake Taylor Rehab facility wrapped up. Jenny Lester, a guest from the Red Cross, announced that Rotarians can help install fire detectors on May 5th; this is a national initiative to insure that all dwellings have detectors which will alert people and save lives.
Happy Bucks & Fines
Bob Powell confessed that he was mentioned in Tidewater News because he gave a talk on Estate Planning to the Lions Club in Franklin. Bob Ash contributed bucks because he was on live TV on Saturday and he was hoping that someone had seen him. (He noted that it was such a beautiful day, it was understandable if nobody had seen him. And so it turned out.) Ashley Molinaro contributed because she had forgotten her Rotary pin. Lorna Cochrane was pleased to announce that she was cleared to drive and thanked everyone who had chauffeured her the past few weeks. Sharon Laderberg announced a Cinco Pinko at The Westin on May 4th from 7-10pm which will feature a “Chopped” contest.
Raffle
There were two winners of the daily raffle: Jim Kitz won first, got two Tattoo tickets and promptly donated them to Dyteya Lewis for the Senior Center; then Chuck Spence won the money. President Gary then showed Scott Jackson the book donated to our School of the Week. He noted that there will not be a formal meeting next week but there are other opportunities to enjoy with Rotarians.