ON EASTERY SUNDAY of 1951, Elaine and Elmer Ramsey were united in marriage at the First Methodist Church in Kelso.
For their honeymoon, they took the train to Seattle, then the ferry to Victoria, where they stayed at the Empress Hotel.
“We paid $9 a night,” Elaine said. “I still have the receipt.”
On Palm Sunday in 2011, Faye and Craig Buhler were married in a friend’s backyard in Concord, Calif. For their honeymoon, they drove to St. Helena, Calif., where they stayed at the Harvest Inn, overlooking acres of vineyards, for three relaxing days.
Then, life went into a higher gear.
“We came back, got the dog and drove up to Washington,” Faye said.
“We arrived on Saturday. On Sunday, we went from church to the casino.”
Craig is a Sequim musician who plays with the Stardust Band, a regular at 7 Cedars Casino on Sundays.
Two weeks ago, he married Faye, a retired educator, whom he met through an online dating service.
Week of music
The newlyweds are in town this week for Northwest Big Band week, led by Elmer Ramsey, which culminates Friday with a dance at the American Legion featuring music that brought together a generation of couples.
“It’s a tribute to the American Legion and the USO during World War II,” Elaine Ramsey said. “We’re encouraging military people to be here in uniform.”
It was Ruth Short of Port Townsend who suggested that Northwest
Big Band musicians hold their annual concert and dance at the American Legion, which was originally built as a USO.
Although she was spoken for, Short would encourage her friends to dance with the soldiers, Elaine said.
A tradition of Northwest Big Band week, the dance, featuring music of the ’30s and ’40s, was formerly held at the USO building at Fort Worden State Park, where Northwest Big Band was based.
This year, the musicians are staying at Manresa Castle, with Elmer Ramsey rehearsing one group at Trinity United Methodist Church and Chuck Easton rehearsing the other in the banquet room of the castle.
Nightly jam sessions
The castle also is the site of nightly jam sessions.
“We warned them that there’s going to be a lot of loud music,” Elaine said, “but we’re taking up quite a bit of space, so there aren’t too many other people there.”
Elmer’s band includes Sanford Feibus, former Stardust director and now director of the Sequim City Band, which is getting ready for its first concert in mid-May.
Musicians Don Smaltz, Don Taylor, John Zuerner, Bob Golightly and Bobbie Usselman, Sequim’s deputy city clerk, also come over from Sequim.
“This is my third year,” said Usselman, who plays baritone sax.
“It’s fun, and I love to play. I get to play with people from all walks of life. They have great stories.”
Two participants — Al Kaeler, who turned 90 in January, and Dan Reedy, from Irving, Texas — attended the first Northwest Big Band Week, which was started by Gus Lindquist 14 years ago as an Elderhostel program.
New this year are Rich Sojka from Phelan, Calif., and Joseph Payne from Ohio, both of whom were recruited by Bill Brislin, a trombone player from Essex Junction, Vt.
‘Like a family reunion’
Also new is Arny Robbins of Mountlake Terrace.
“The rest are family,” Elaine said. “It’s like a family reunion.”
The reunion schedule starts early with breakfast at the castle, and by 8:30 a.m., the musicians are assembled at their rehearsal venues.
Craig Buhler, Rex Rice of Port Townsend and Owen Mulkey of Marrowstone Island lead improv lessons at the church, while Easton, a jazz guitarist who lives in Chimacum, Herb Payson of Port Townsend and Bill West of Prescott Valley, Ariz., do the same at the castle.
Some of the musicians haven’t done improv before, Elaine said, but learn that they can play without using the music.
Tonight, they will take turns playing jazz at the Upstage, starting at 7 p.m. (no cover).
During Big Band Week, participants are served lunch at Trinity UMC and dine out at local restaurants.
On Tuesday morning, spouses attended a Coffee Concert at Gwen Moore’s Rhino Ridge. On Thursday, the spouses will have “Tea with Rosalie,” spouse of the late Gus Lindquist, another tradition.
Friday’s dance and concert at the American Legion starts at 7:30 p.m., with a $5 donation per person requested to cover costs.
New dance floor
A bonus: Legion Hall has a newly refinished dance floor.
“We’re excited about the new floor,” Elaine said. “We were hoping they would get it done before we got here, and they did.”
The Buhlers, who attend the Little Brown Church of Blyn, met on an online dating service called www.christianmingle.com, Elaine said, and got to know each other through Skype before meeting in person.
The Ramseys, who live part time in Port Townsend, have known each other since grade school in Kelso and went to high school together, where they were both in the choir.
Elmer, who plays trumpet, started playing Big Band music at the age of 14 during World War II.
During his career as a professional musician, he played with bands in Hollywood that backed Nat King Cole, Mel Torme and Jimmy Durante.
He is retired from 40 years of university teaching and 30 years of symphony conducting, Elaine said.
“He just received an honorary doctorate degree from Cal Lutheran University,” she said.
The Ramsays are celebrating their 60th anniversary all year, Elaine said.
In August, they are taking their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren on a sentimental journey of the places their grandparents — the Ramseys, McDonalds and Falters — put down roots in southwest Washington.
On the itinerary is the First Methodist Church in Kelso, where March 25, 1951, Elmer and Elaine walked together down the aisle after tying the knot, a bond that has held for six decades.
More music from past
Today, Kevin Mason of Port Townsend will be performing two songs at the memorial tribute concert for Kent Morrill, a Tacoma musician who was a member of The Fabulous Wailers.
Mason, who was singing in a Seattle band when he was picked to play a lead in the original touring production of “Hair,” will sing “Unchained Melody” and “What’d I Say” with back-up singers and a horn section in addition to the Wailers.
While Mason never performed with Morrill, he said, he did record two songs with Wailers drummer Ricky Lynn Johnson. Mason also was in a band called The City Limits with baritone sax player Jeff Beals for several years back in the ’60s.
Beals went on to be the bass player for the Kingsmen, and his guitar is behind glass at the Experience Music Project music museum, Mason said.
“In those days, everyone recorded in the one studio in Seattle called Audio Recording with Karney Barton, who recorded all the hits that came out of the area,” Mason said.
People are coming from all over the country for the memorial concert for Morrill, who died Friday of cancer at 70.
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Jennifer Jackson writes about Port Townsend and Jefferson County every Wednesday. To contact her with items for this column, phone 360-379-5688 or email jjackson@olypen.com.
