This origin of this post came about through a discussion on Facebook with a fellow writer at Virginia Tech, Steven Mackay. We were commenting on how have been spending our day remembering the “heroes of Pearl Harbor” and the strength of our grandparent’s generation. Despite the challenges and sorrows of the times they “marched on anyway.” The following post is an expanded and more detailed entry based on that discussion
My mother's parents (Bill and Stella Green) lived in Hawaii at that time. They were newlyweds and Bill worked as an entertainment director with the YMCA/USO. They lived through the attack, and had many scary moments. The YMCA were he worked was set-up as a makeshift hospital. Stella stayed at home through the blackouts (alone and no-doubt fearful of additional attacks) for several days, while Bill helped at the YMCA.
Among his many talents, Bill was a piano player. After the attack, the music of his piano playing was often heard throughout the hallways of the building. He performed hymns and other musical favorites of the time on the piano in the hopes of soothing and calming the nerves of the wounded, nurses, doctors and other refugees there.
A few years back, my dad was listening to a local radio show that was paying remembrance to the veterans and victims of Pearl Harbor. It was a call-in show. While he was listening, an eyewitness called the program. The caller recalled what it was like that first long night after the attack, being at a very young age, sitting on the floor of a very large and darkly lit lobby. Many refugees had taken shelter there for the night. This individual remembers watching a man matching Bill’s description calmly walking across the lobby floor to the piano standing at the center of the room. He sat down and began to play. He played all night until the sun rose the next day.
The caller made a point to say that this was something joyously welcomed by all who were there and how much that music made an impact on the moods and attitudes of the frightened and shaken people.
My father listened to this, and was stunned that someone would still remember this small occurrence after so many years. But wait, it gets even more interesting.
A little later in the program, a second caller was put on the air and corroborated this account. This person was also at the YMCA that night, however in a room off the main hallway, apart from the lobby. The music of Bill’s piano had made its way throughout the building. This caller remembers hearing the music and how, being a young child at the time, it soothed them throughout the night.
When my dad told me this story, my heart soared. I was so impressed at how despite all the horror of that day, this simple uncommon approach made such an impact on the people who needed it most. I still marvel at how these two random people effectively “reconnected” through a shared experience so many years afterward. Not to mention that this small gesture on the part of my Grandfather stuck with them through the years. It also makes a grandson proud. Many thanks, thoughts, and prayers go out today to the veterans and victims of the Pearl Harbor attacks.
