On March 1, 2010, at 3:22 p.m., I used my iPhone to record a song that to this day brings an intense frisson.
Following a volunteer’s playing of “Amazing Grace” on bagpipes — in a light drizzle and with a backdrop of at least a dozen U.S. Flags being held at attention by a group of bikers that perform the volunteer service at veterans’ funerals — another volunteer played “Taps” on the bugle as we laid my grandfather, Ret. U.S. Navy airman Robert Lee Troutman, to rest in front of a small group of immediate family in Wichita, Kan.
Though we did not have many opportunities to talk about his time in the service, my “Pa Pa” was a proud Navy veteran joining the service right out of high school in 1944 and using his skills gained as an airman to benefit his lifelong career at Boeing Company, where he made blueprints for airliners.
His love for country and willingness to defend it preceded and followed him.
In our family tree, we have Peter Troutman, who served in the Maryland Militia during the Revolutionary War; Robert M. Troutman, who served in the Indiana Home Guard in the Civil War; Robert L. Troutman, my paternal grandfather, who served in WWII; William Troutman, my eldest uncle who served in the Navy during the Vietnam War and First Gulf War; Shawn Troutman, my cousin, who served in the Navy for 7 years; Jeremy Sutton, my cousin in-law, who served in the Navy for 10 years; and Ethan Troutman, my only brother, who is currently serving in the Air Force and stationed in South Korea with his wife and four children.
Roger Pierce, my maternal grandfather, also served in the Marines, and my uncle’s brother-in-law, Charles Welch, served in the Air Force.
Pa Pa flew Martin Mariner PBM-3s in WWII, a twin-engine American patrol bomber flying boat, and his service no doubt inspired my uncle and cousin to enlist, especially proud to be in the Navy.
Memories of these family members flooded me this morning as I edited week’s front page story on U.S. Navy Cpt. Edward Estes, who passed in October.
Estes was a prisoner of war in north Vietnam for five years, and his harrowing story — from a last minute decision to go on that fateful solo mission to continuing serving stateside after he was released — pulled at my patriotic heart, especially considering it is election day.
I have interviewed many veterans over the years through my line of work. WWII veterans are few and far between any more, and their recollections of living through the Great Depression then returning home from Europe triumphant nearly always seem like scripts from a movie. The memories of so many seem unfathomable in today’s world, especially to someone who has never served in the military.
This summer, we also had a great story on Hilda Howell and her service as a Rosie the Riveter. Women who stepped up to the plate on the home front should not be glossed over when we address sacrifices made for country as Veterans Day approaches.
Over this weekend and on Monday, I plan to attend multiple Veterans Day events in our community, which is full of people who have served or are currently serving. Numerous leaders in Barry County are veterans, and there are a handful of students from schools in our county that enlist in the military upon graduation.
While I did not get to talk to my Pa Pa much about his service, I did talk to my uncle on occasion. One thing that has always stood out was the treatment of Vietnam veterans after the war, which Estes also experienced on his return home during antiwar protests.
I’ll never forget a story I did for The Daily Citizen in Searcy, Ark., on an African-American man who served in Vietnam. At the end of the interview, I thanked him for his service. He was reduced to tears by the five simple words.
“You’re only the third person who has ever told me that,” he said.
No matter your opinion of war or politics, our veterans deserve wholehearted recognition for their sacrifices of, at best, their time and their talents, and at worst, their limbs or their lives.
Frisson is defined as the phenomenon of chills or goosebumps that come from a piece of music. It’s a feeling I experience every time “Pa Pa Bagpipes” plays on my iTunes randomly, and it’s a feeling I will no doubt experience again on Monday when “Taps” is played at the Veterans Day events I plan to attend.
In honor of our veterans, I hope you feel it, too.
Kyle Troutman has served as editor of the Cassville Democrat since 2014 and owner/publisher since 2023. He was named William E. James/Missouri Outstanding Young Journalist for daily newspapers in 2017, and he is a twotime ISWNE Golden Dozen award winner. He may be reached at 417-847-2610 or ktroutman@cassville-democrat. com.
