Retirement center anniversary
John Knox Village, a retirement center located in Pompano Beach, celebrated their 40th anniversary in 2007 with a concert by the Ted Knight Orchestra.
The Wednesday afternoon concert featured music of the 40s, with 350 residents in attendance. Click images to enlarge.
Evelyn
Russell was featured on vocals, delighting the audience with songs
such as Embraceable You, Taking a Chance on Love, and Blues
in the Night.
Ted
enjoyed playing the facility's fine baby grand piano, and did the vocal
honors on several numbers himself. He sang a Louis Jordan tune called
Choo Choo
Ch'Boogie, and did Moonlight Cocktail with harmony by
Evelyn.
The horns were in fine form. Jim Adle played tenor and baritone saxes, Ray Oram handled alto and tenor, and Tim Walters played trumpet. Frank McCallum played trombone.
Forty
residents made forty home-made birthday cakes in honor of the occasion.
Ted led Happy Birthday to You, the bakers blew out their
candles, and then everyone enjoyed a bite while the band took an
intermission. A brief program honored long-time residents, with special
recognition for those who had reached their 100th birthday.
After intermission, staff moved several
rows of chairs so that people could dance. Evelyn put a lightly Latin
spin on Cole Porter's "Night and Day," and did a swinging version of
"Route 66" featuring a sax solo by Ray Oram.
Ed DeMatteo
kept the beat for the band on his big double bass. Drummer Sy Pryweller
was featured on an armed forces medley and on Glenn Miller's
St.
Louis Blues March.
The anniversary celebration continued the following day with mini-concerts at two other John Knox Village locations.
Ray and Ed returned on sax and bass. Sy moved to trumpet and Kevin Campfield was enlisted to play drums. The musicians met Mikki Phillips, the widow of jazz saxophone legend Flip Phillips, who lives at John Knox. She enjoyed the music so much that she went to get gifts for the band, compact discs and concert videos featuring her late husband, tremendous honor for the musicians.
Ted's band returned to John Knox Village in 2008 to play for a renewal of vows. Many of the couples participating were celebrating 60 or even 65 years of marriage. TV cameras captured the memories for the evening news.