Three years ago, Richard Niven traveled to the Gettysburg National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, and participated in 100 Nights of Taps, a nightly ceremony that runs from Memorial Day to Labor Day, in which buglers and trumpeters from all over the United States play taps each night at the cemetery.
As gatherings were limited as a result of coronavirus concerns this year, Niven and his grandson, Gabriel Avila, answered a call put out by CBS News for Taps Across America to join thousands of buglers across the country in playing taps from their front porches, kicking off a socially distant 100 Nights of Taps on the National Day of Remembrance.
“This year, it had to be virtual,” Niven said of the nightly 100 Nights of Taps ritual. “They opened the cemetery again last week, but we went online and picked one of the nights that were available, and if it’s open, they reserve your spot. Because it’s virtual, the spots fill up pretty quickly.”
Niven and his grandson played for the national cemetery in a virtual performance on the evening of June 13. The video of them playing can be viewed at www.youtube.com/watch?v=j380sl9QDuU.
Niven said having one of his grandchildren playing alongside him was very special to him. Avila, who will be a junior at Dardanelle High School in the fall, is one of Nevin’s 13 grandchildren.
“I look forward to any opportunity to be in the lives of our grandchildren,” Niven said. “This is just another opportunity to motivate him to be involved and help the community in this way.
“When I can’t do it any longer and if he is available, they can call on him. I just want to be an inspiration to him and allow him to pick up the ball and volunteer when he can.”
Rebekah Avila, Niven’s daughter and Gabriel’s mom, said everybody in their family plays an instrument, but only Gabriel plays the trumpet. She said he has taken lessons from her dad and practices all the time.
“My dad served in Vietnam and played taps when they needed someone at a funeral or something,” she said. “He has always done that and knows the importance of it, especially for veterans.
“I’m very happy they are doing it together.”
Niven posted on Facebook the video of him and his grandson playing together for Taps Across America on Memorial Day, and since then, the video has received more than 380 likes, 138 comments and 125 shares.
“I was really surprised,” Rebekah said. “My parents live on a main street in Dardanelle, and if we had known it would have gotten the attention like it did, we would have invited people to stand around and hear it, while maintaining social distance.
“I didn’t know people would be that interested in it.”
Niven said some of the comments on the video included people who have had relatives die and had taps played at their funerals. He said that really meant something to him because so many people can identify with taps.
“I was surprised by how many people saw the video,” Niven said. “Usually, when I get birthday greetings, I get 150 responses or so, and that would be pretty much it. I don’t know how so many people got to see [the video] — it kind of boggles my mind.
“It wasn’t intended to draw any kind of audience. It was just something we wanted to participate in on that level. It was just kind of a personal thing that became very public after it was posted.”
Niven started playing taps at funerals when he was in high school, back in the 1960s. He said he has probably played at more than 100 military funerals, as well as when police officers are killed in the line of duty.
“It is important to me since I served in the military,” Niven said. “It really means a lot to survivors of veterans to have taps played at the funeral, and it’s even better if it’s live — it just means a lot.
“Anytime I’m asked, I’ll do it. When I was teaching, I didn’t always have time to attend a funeral, but now that I’m retired, I will do it more often.”
For two years, Niven served in the United States Army and is a veteran of the Vietnam War. He is a retired music teacher who taught for the Dardanelle School District for 28 years. He has also taught at Fayetteville High School, as well as in Missouri.
“I knew I wanted to be involved in music in some way, and when it came time to think about going to college, my brother and sisters had gone to [Arkansas Tech University in Russellville], and I knew Tech had a very good music department,” Niven said. “It was just a natural fit, I thought.”
He said that as a teacher, he has always loved being able to see students learn how to play an instrument and just enjoy the music. He said he has taught at every educational level, from elementary school to college.
“And music communicates on all those different levels,” he said. “I have always received pleasure seeing students respond to music.”
Niven is originally from Russellville, having graduated from Russellville High School in 1964. He earned a bachelor’s degree in music education from Arkansas Tech University in 1968. He went to graduate school at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, and earned his degree in 1972. He met his wife, Sue, at ATU, and they have eight children. Sue was a music teacher as well, teaching elementary music and middle school band.
Rebekah Avila, who teaches first grade at Dardanelle Primary School, said she wasn’t sure why her son started playing the trumpet, as she was always careful not to push band onto him too much.
“I want to take him out to Gettsyburg sometime, hopefully next summer, and get him involved,” Niven said.
“I’m hoping my father and Gabriel can do that together,” Rebekah said. “They couldn’t go this summer because of the coronavirus. I think in our state, if more people knew about it, more trumpet players, more musicians, would get involved in doing that type of thing.”
Staff writer Sam Pierce can be reached at (501) 244-4314 or spierce@arkansasonline.com.