DURHAM, N.C. - "Daddy, daddy! Look, real live G.I. Joes," a young boy excitedly said, jumping up and down while tugging on his father's sports shirt.
"Just like the ones we see on television," the father said as they watched nearly two dozen Army Reserve Soldiers walk onto the Durham Bulls Athletic Park field during a recent baseball game here.
"Do you think they have been to war and saw bad guys," the boy asked his father as he pressed his nose through the black netting separating the playing field and several thousand fans attending the Tuesday-night game.
"I'm sure they have," the young father said patting his son on his head. "Maybe you can ask them after they are done."
As the 81st Regional Support Command's "Wildcat" Soldiers, based at Concord, N.C, stood at attention with their tools of the trade at the ready, fans of all ages rose to their feet as the crackling of the public address system speakers turned on -- hushing the eager baseball fans.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please stand for the playing of our national anthem, performed tonight by members of the 208th Army Band," the announcer said.
As the father grabbed the boy's baseball hat off his head and tossed it to the seat behind them, the young boy looked up at his father - already holding his right hand over his heart.
Slightly mimicking his dad, the boy raised his left hand, fingers spread wide apart, and placed his hand over his chest as he looked wide-eyed toward the nearby Soldiers standing at "Attention" just several feet away.
The father looked down, smiled, and again focused on the activity behind home plate of the AAA minor-league team affiliated with the Tampa Bay Rays.
As Chief Warrant Officer Timothy Lyden, the unit's bandmaster, raised his ivory baton, the final breaths of the bandsmen could be faintly heard just moments before performing music heard from little league to major league ballparks across the country each game night.
"Who has a better gig than this," Lyden said prior to the game, referring to the band's week-long performances across North and South Carolina. "We get to do something we love and play for fans of not only baseball but of service members and our country."
Lyden's love for music and his country reflected on his Soldiers as a single baton represented respect. With a quick flick of his wrist, the instruments and drumsticks were motionless for a brief moment. Then, Lyden's hands swooped downward, beginning sounds interpreted from a poem written almost 200 years ago by a 35-year-old amateur poet named Francis Scott Key. He wrote the poem after witnessing the bombardment of Fort McHenry by British Royal Navy ships in Chesapeake Bay during the Battle of Baltimore in the War of 1812.
As players, coaches and ball boys lining the infield faced toward a large American flag over the left field wall, the band performed a perfect rendition that sent tears down the face of one elderly man sitting in a nearby wheelchair.
Staff Sgt. Patricia Dew, a clarinet player and the unit's music librarian, said those types of reactions are common during performances.
"For us, it's important," said the Durham resident. "It's a very public setting, and we can play the anthem the way the anthem should be played."
Dew said she hopes the band's performance lets people enjoy the patriotic spirit of the game. "This is the most American of all sports and a military band performs the anthem the way people expect it to be played," Dew said. "We play it in the way that we hope instills pride and patriotism in America.
As the last notes inspired a thunderous cheer throughout the crowd, the band members' instruments could barely be heard. As quickly as it started, the last snap of Lyden's baton sent the instruments back to the ready position as the crowd's clapping filled the humid summer air.
With a nod of approval to his band, Lyden did an "About Face," and saluted the crowd.
The same boy, just feet away, raised his hand to salute back - giving the Wildcats his personal approval of their performance.
"Band, left face," Lyden ordered. "Forward. March!"
As the band marched off the field and up the stairs with the precision of a well-training military drill and ceremony team, the high fives and random comments of support brought noticeable smiles to the Army Reserve bandsmen.
Staff Sgt. Robah Ogborn, from Tobaccoville, N.C., said each performance is about making a personal connection to the audience.
"Hopefully, they have enjoyed our performance and really reflect on what our nation is about," he said. "I really want them to know we are ordinary people with the same problems, issues and concerns. We are all Americans."
As Lyden reached the top of the stairs, an elderly man wearing a World War II veteran baseball cap attempted to rise from his wheel chair to shake his hand. Lyden motioned for his fellow comrade to remain seated.
As he slowly reached out to shake Lyden's hand and said, "Thank you for what you do."
"No thank you for what you have done," Lyden replied back. "We are all in this together. Thank you again."
Unnoticed to Lyden and other band members, the elderly gentleman finally made it to his feet and rendered a salute to his fellow Soldiers as they disappeared into the growing, eager crowd.
"Do you still think I could be in the service at my age," he jokingly asked a Bulls staff member escorting the band after the performance. "Thank you for bringing them here. It's good to see young people serving our country."
As the band gathered in the center seating area to share small stories about their performance, the game announcer focused the crowd back on America's favorite past time - good old American baseball.
Whether they are young families or elderly veterans, people enjoy music, according to Lyden, and he is excited about every performance.
"We love what we do," he said. "What better way to spend a week than to perform music and interact with communities who have already given us more than we could give back."
This one night here wasn't special because of Army Reserve Soldiers.
Rather, it was special because, for a brief moment during game nights at thousands of ballparks of all sizes across the country, fans of baseball and all sports take time to remember and honor the words of a poet watching the birth of a new nation that we now call the United States of America.
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