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All in a Row

March 29th is National Vietnam War Veterans day.  Lenny is a Vietnam veteran.  We thank him and them for their service and sacrifices.

ALL IN A ROW

As I stand here on solid ground not moving not making a sound.
As I look around all I can see is white crosses, rows upon rows as far as I can see.
Young men and women who fought to be free.
Now laying in the military cemetery, with these words etched in their minds.
“Give me liberty or give me death.” Because this is what I’m fighting for.
But if this is the way it has to be, victory to all of us lying in a veteran’s military cemetery.
With white crosses all in a row, and heaven looking down on us from above.
Showing us love as the wind continues to blow, whispering the words of heroes who fought so gallant and true,
And now what’s left is – white crosses all in a row. As the sun continues to shine from heaven – up above.

By Lenny Jaynes

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March Meeting Historical Society of Frankford

March 11th is the opening day of the Historical Society’s 2025 program series. The subject is something never discussed in my memory, organ building in Frankford.  see below for more information.

John Roberts (1829-1877), Frankford Organ Builder

presentation by Gail Rodgers McCormick and Paul Marchesano

A native of Salford, England, John Roberts arrived in Philadelphia with his parents and siblings in 1848. Apprenticed in the organ trade in England, Roberts was soon offering his services repairing and building pipe organs in his shop on Frankford Avenue and Orthodox Street. He built organs in Cambridgeport, Massachusetts, for a few years in the late 1850s, then returned to Frankford, setting up his residence and workshop at Orthodox and Penn Streets. Roberts and members of his family were among the early residents of the Orthodox Street block that was developing in the 1860s and has been home to the Historical Society of Frankford for over a century. Roberts’ organs graced many churches in the Philadelphia area, as well as in Chicago, Wilmington, and Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgh organ (1874), one of only two Roberts organs known to be extant, was the first of many financed by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. Although little-known now, John Roberts was at the forefront of organ building in Philadelphia during an early period of growth in the industry. 

Gail Rodgers McCormick, historian, archivist, and author, will discuss Roberts’ background and his life in Frankford. McCormick’s new two-volume history Charity, Change, and Community: Frankford’s Swedenborgians, 1817-1971, features John Roberts and his family, who were longtime members of the New Jerusalem Society of Frankford. 

Paul Marchesano, a professional pipe organ restorer, historian, and chairman/editor of the Organ Historical Society’s Pipe Organ database, will discuss the basics of organ construction and John Roberts’ role among other organ builders in Philadelphia and the United States. Paul recently advised the University of Pennsylvania on restoring its Curtis Sesquicentennial Exhibition Organ (Austin, 1926). He is president of Fans of the Curtis Sesquicentennial Exposition Organ, which plans to hold a centennial Symphonic Organ Symposium in 2026.

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Doors open at 6:30pm for in person attendance, live streaming begins at 7:30pm, click the Facebook link to the right. Refreshments served after the program.

 

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Shades of Blue

SHADES OF BLUE

I dreamed I was falling in love with you.
It felt like you were the only one that could make my dreams come true.
I pray that one day this dream will come true and strengthen our love in shades of blue.
Don’t wake me up, it may be too soon. Let this dream – continue on.
Tomorrow is tomorrow, and the past is still the past. Let’s move into the future and make this journey last.
For tomorrow is tomorrow, and the past is still the past. We must move with the quickness and make this journey last.
I need to wake up, because this is our new beginning, to be able to make this journey last.
Because today is the day, and the past is still the past.
So, don’t look back. If you only knew, this only happens – in shades of blue.

BY LENNY JAYNES

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In The End

IN THE END

Sometimes we get lost with the true meaning of life, and think all you have to do is roll the dice or dream of a two-car garage, and a house that may be too large.

But when you stop and think of all these things, and you have nowhere to lay your head, it’s more than just a dream, it’s more than just a fantasy.

Just look around and you will see. People struggling from day to day not knowing what’s going to happen at the end of the day.

So, if I repent from all my evil ways, and learn to worship in a godly way and get back on the path that God has laid down for me, and then would I know the real meaning of life?

Yes, Because in the end – PRAYER CHANGES THINGS.

By Lenny Jaynes

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I’m Home

I’M HOME

 

I remember the day I came home from the war. I threw my shoulders back and I opened the door.

There was a crowd standing around with tears in their eyes. I said I’m home, and no one was surprised.

I looked over in the corner, and I could see a casket draped in red, white, and blue, and on it, it said, J.J. O’Reilly. – I said that’s me – how could that be.

When I looked around I can see them, but they couldn’t see me. I turned around and shouted, “I’m home can’t you see”!

Then again, I can see them, but they couldn’t see me. Then I realized those tears were for me – I’M HOME!

You no longer need to worry about me, I’M HOME ! So, shed no more tears for me. I’M HOME ! In a little town called Frankford – this is home to me – I’M HOME!

BY LENNY JAYNES