‘Last night of Taps’ draws a crowd to Glen Rock neighborhood
Retired U.S. Navy Chief Petty Officer Andy Raymond greets U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Joshua Corney after the final amplified recording of “Taps” was played from Corney’s Glen Rock home Thursday, Nov. 30, 2017. (Photo: Chris Dunn, York Daily Record)
Dozens of people gathered for the amplified playing of “Taps” last night.
(Glen Rock) — Dozens of people gathered in the driveway of U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Joshua Corney’s home in Glen Rock on Thursday night and listened to his last playing of an amplified recording of “Taps.”
Corney shook hands and thanked people for coming. Some live in the borough, others traveled in from outside. They stood quietly in the drizzle as the military tribute played for 57 seconds.
“I’m very happy that everybody was able to come out, especially with the weather,” Corney said afterwards. “I think it’s important that we as a community, we come together, and we can work to honor our men and women and the sacrifices that they’ve made for our country.”
Corney has been playing the recording of “Taps” over loudspeakers every night, but his evening tradition has led to disputes and legal battles in the past two years.
In the near future, an amplified recording of “Taps” will be played at the Glen Rock Park on Fair School Road. The borough voted unanimously earlier this month to allow it. Corney, who serves on the committee, said he’s hopeful that it can be set up in the park in a month.
Corney said when he first started playing “Taps,” “I wanted it to be a part of the town, and that’s going to happen, and maybe not in the exact way that I wanted it, but it’s going to happen, and I think that’s a good thing,” he said.
Retired U.S. Navy Chief Petty Officer Andy Raymond, a member of the AMVETS Post 22 in Hanover, and Christy Lucas, CEO of Roots for Boots, drove to Glen Rock to support Corney.
“We wouldn’t want to be anywhere else tonight,” Raymond said.
Lucas said she thinks the playing of “Taps” will do better at the park.
“It gives him a better platform to connect with more of the community. He obviously has a lot of community support here, and that’s where it comes from — it comes from the roots of the community,” she said. “So I think he’ll be able to educated people more about ‘Taps’ — about why we play it, about the sacrifice of our servicemen and women and why it’s important that we never forget.”
This story comes to us through a partnership between WITF and The York Daily Record.
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