A lot of folks frequent Duke’s Dawghouse, some by car or truck, some by boat.
This past Monday afternoon, the parking lot was full, and an estimated 30-40 boats either docked at or floating in the small cove in front of the tavern on Sinclair Marina Road to observe the annual Memorial Day’s Taps Across America.
The idea that has become an annual tradition originated in 2020 with CBS’s Steve Hartman in his “On the Road” broadcast, and Larry Edwards and some friends organized the local event that same year.
“I saw it on TV that Friday night on his segment,” Edwards recalled prior to Monday’s event. “He said, ‘I encourage everybody to do it three days later, Memorial Day’. So, I said, ‘I think I got a place’. I talked to the folks here at Duke’s. Everybody was in, and it was put together.”
Edwards did not have to go far to find his trumpet player. His nextdoor neighbor on Jackson Road just across the lake in Putnam County, retired Army Colonel Larry McLendon, agreed to play that year and has every year since.
The two have lived side by side four years and have become good friends.
“Larry just happened to know I was an old horn player,” McLendon said. “So he asked me, and I said sure.”
Nearby resident Julian Hood, also involved in the planning of the annual ceremony, welcomed the crowd of about 300 Monday afternoon.
“This is the fourth year doing this, and it gets better and better,” he said. “I think this is the biggest crowd we’ve seen.”
Hood took the opportunity to ask everyone to make it personal.
“I want everyone to take a moment, and if you know someone who lost their life in defense of our country, I want you to think about them for a minute.”
Edwards followed with a brief history of the national holiday.
“Memorial Day started as Declaration Day and was first observed in 1861 to honor those who had died,” he said, “and it stayed Declaration Day until Congress passed (a bill) and made it a national holiday. It was formerly observed on May 30, and now it is observed on the last Monday in the month. In 1970 it was passed to be a national holiday.”
McLendon retired from the military in 2006, last serving as an active member of the Georgia National Guard. The former musician played with the popular band Grapevine for 31 years and started playing his instrument in the third grade. He was proud to be a part of the annual salute.
“I am glad to have been able to contribute in a small way,” he said. “I think it’s a great program. I think it’s worth the time to remember and honor those men and women who never made it out of uniform.”
Just before McLendon took the stage, Edwards shared a passage he felt worthy of consideration on that occasion.
“This is not about all those who served,” he read in part. “That comes in the Fall. This one is in honor of those who paid in life and blood.
“This isn’t simply a day off,” he concluded. “It’s a day to remember, that others paid for every free breath you get to take. It’s called freedom.”