Once again the artistry of Ray Sorenson and his yearly Memorial Day painting of Freedom Rock in western Iowa. This is the 10th anniversary of Ray's project. Photo courtesy of FREEDOM ROCK

A news item this week about the organization "Bugles Across America" brought back memories of my time assigned to the base funeral detail while stationed at the Presidio of San Francisco. As I recall we were blessed with a bugler from the 6th Army Band that could hang onto a note during taps that would send a shiver up your spine and tears streaming down the faces of bereaved. When congress decreed that all veterans were eligible for military burial many places were forced to use a recording of TAPS. Retired bugler Tom Day felt that this practice was unacceptable and founded Bugles Across America.