Operation Happy Note
Barb and Steven Baker, both 67, of Fergus Falls, Minnesota, had no idea what they were getting into when they sent a guitar to their son, Marty, while he was serving overseas in Baghdad in 2005. “It was one of my own personal guitars,” says Steven, who ran Fergus Music, a musical supplies store, until he retired this past January.
What Steven didn’t think of was that his son played guitar left-handed. “I’m right-handed,” he explains, and goes on to tell how, with the help of his vendors, he then sent out a left-handed electric and several other guitars, which his son distributed among the soldiers in his unit.
“We thought it was going to be a one-time thing,” Barb says, laughing.
She credits her son for what happened next, and it begins to become apparent that this all happened without either of the Bakers’ intention. “He said that, when he went to hand out the guitars, there was a whole menagerie of soldiers saying, ‘Can I have one?’ And then someone would start playing, and others would sing. Then somebody else would grab a garbage can lid and use it as a drum.”
With little to do for recreation, it seemed many of the troops wanted to entertain themselves (and each other) by making music. “It’s like being around a campfire,” Barb says, recognizing a primal connection. “They told us it brings them together.”
Before long, Barb and Steven sent more instruments, and people started making donations and raising funds to support the cause. Eventually, the Bakers applied for tax exemption. And this is how Operation Happy Note came to be.
Where'd You Get That?
In a place so far from home, camaraderie is one of the most important things soldiers can have. It’s not difficult to imagine that making music helps alleviate the loneliness felt by so many troops. “We figure music is a great healer,” says Steven. “Even if it’s in short duration.”
“It takes them away from there,” adds Barb.
Both Steven, a Vietnam veteran, and Barb have an enormous appreciation for our troops serving overseas, and it would seem this sentiment goes both ways; Operation Happy Note currently receives as many as 300 requests per month, and the Bakers now have about 3,000 requests outstanding. “It’s surprising how word can spread,” Barb reflects.
But it isn’t really all that surprising. When someone is doing something so meaningful, so good, people have a tendency to notice. And when those people are soldiers, who are proud by nature, they are glad to tell others, especially whenever they are asked, “Hey, where’d you get that?”
Jared Ziesmer, 25, who served in Iraq, was one of five soldiers in his unit to receive a guitar through Operation Happy Note. He had played when he was eight years old, but remembered nothing and needed to relearn from scratch. Luckily, one of the other troops was quite skilled, and he taught Ziesmer power chords. “It was great,” he recalls. “Sometimes when you’d get back from patrol, guys would be sitting on some steps, just playing guitar, and it was nice, you know?”
Some recipients of instruments from Operation Happy Note choose to leave their gifts with fellow soldiers when their tour is done; others bring them home as mementos. Ziesmer still has his guitar, and continues to play now that he is back stateside. He remembers how much of an outlet it was in Iraq. “To be able to just drop your gear and grab a guitar and start playing...” His voice trails off, and it’s clear he’s remembering his tour. “For me, it was a big release. It kinda just clears your mind from all the stuff you’re doing and seeing over there.”
When he returned to the US, Ziesmer started a motorcycle club. Not long after, he found out where Barb and Steven were based, and being a native of nearby Alexandria, Minnesota, he felt obligated to repay the patriotic couple. He helped organize the First Annual Operation Happy Note Motorcycle, Classic Car, and Hot Rod Rally, which also included live music.
The event brought in donations totaling more than $3,300. Ziesmer is already planning next year’s event, in which he hopes to double the amount raised. “They did so much for me,” he says of Operation Happy Note. “I’ll help them any way I can.”
Prized Possessions
To date, the Bakers have shipped nearly 4,000 instruments, which range in type from acoustic and electric guitars to kazoos and accordions. “One woman donated brand new bagpipes,” says Steven, still somewhat incredulous. “She sent it to us because she could never figure out how to get it out of the box. There was a combination lock on there, so I said, ‘Wait a minute. If she’s never opened it, the combination must be 0-0-0,’ so I tried that and it opened right up.”
Interestingly, the Bakers have actually received (and fulfilled) requests for bagpipes, as well as drum sets, violins, keyboards, and a psaltery.
Steven will occasionally open a package to find an instrument worn by years of use. Giving up a personal instrument, a “real prized possession,” as he puts it, is a powerful way to demonstrate support, and adds a deeper meaning to a donation. Usually, Steven is able to fix them up and ship them out. “I’ve only gotten two that were wall-hangers,” he says.
Once in a while, the Bakers have the opportunity to meet a recipient of an Operation Happy Note instrument. “A young female soldier came in with a guitar we sent her. It was all dinged up, with the original strings still on it!” Steven still can’t get over this; he sends strings, tuners, picks, and other accessories with every guitar he ships, so why this particular soldier had not used her extra strings is beyond him. “I put new strings on there, a new pickup, too. When I handed it back to her, she couldn’t believe it. Then she said she was expecting a bill.” Steven laughs, anticipating the forthcoming joke. “I told her, ‘My name isn’t Bill.’”
The Bakers have countless stories like this. A favorite is the one about a particular 1991 Fender Stratocaster. “It was kind of weird,” recalls Steven. “We got all these Fender guitars, and one of them was this ’91 sea foam green Stratocaster. Around the same time, we had a request from a soldier who had had a ’91 Stratocaster that was sea foam green; he’d had it since he was 16, but it had gone missing. And he was just devastated. So he asked us for a guitar, and when we read the e-mail, we thought, ‘Well, this is just perfect.’ When he opened it up, he thought it was his original guitar. He couldn’t believe it. And then he noticed the serial number was different. He was just, literally, blown away.” Steven laughs, remembering how it felt fated, a godsend, as though the guitar had fallen into his lap. “It literally went ka-plunk.”
Barb can’t deny the power of such a coincidence. “Some of these things are just God things,” she says.
Post Operative
With only a handful of volunteers and limited funds, it’s not yet possible to grant each soldier’s request, despite the fact that there are always instruments waiting to be shipped. “I’ve got about 60 guitars and a whole bunch of wind instruments,” says Steven. Ultimately, it’s the cost of postage that causes the backlog. “If we could overcome [the postage cost], we’d be shipping like maniacs,” he laments.
Despite the fundraisers, donations, and media coverage Operation Happy Note has received over the years (an article on the front page of the Washington Post, as well as a visit from MSNBC news anchor Alison Stewart), the organization has been unable to overcome the hurdle of postage. “If we had free postage, we’d probably never have anything on hand,” says Barb.
Steven agrees, “[We’d] be able to grant every single request that came in.”
But something like that would require more money, a larger building, and actual employees, not just volunteers. None of that’s possible so long as postage continues to be an expense.
Operation Happy Note has been trying for years to get a political sponsor to lobby for free postage. Until that happens, it’s up to Barb to sift through the requests and decide who will get an instrument and who will have to wait. “I hate using the term ‘most in need,’ but...” She doesn’t finish the thought. Instead, she says, “Our mission statement is to relieve stress and raise morale.”
So, Barb often follows her heart and sends the instruments where she feels they will be most useful. Her son once pointed out that some troops were stationed on big bases and had all kinds of recreational options, while others belonged to self-sufficient units in the countryside, with little or nothing to entertain them. “For them, we put together boxes of instruments that don’t need electricity: acoustic guitars, harmonicas, kazoos, and hand drums.”
The Bakers possess a thoughtfulness that makes them ideal for this kind of venture. It is a pure-intentioned pursuit that helps restore faith in the goodness of the human spirit. Barb and Steven do not send instruments to troops for the modest celebrity or recognition they receive, but because they feel morally obligated to do as much as they can.
“I read these letters that we get in, and some of these soldiers are going overseas for their fifth or sixth deployment. It’s not fair.” The sadness is thick in Barb’s voice. “They’re never going to be the same.”
It’s simpler for Steven, who spends most of his time handling and repairing instruments. He doesn’t read all the letters, so he is more easily able to focus on the task objectively. “We just have this love for our men and women over there,” he says, “and we want to support them.”
RICK KORNAK is grateful for those who serve and hopes this article helps the Bakers send every wanting soldier an instrument. To find out more about Operation Happy Note, visit www.operationhappynote.com.
