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Taps Across the Water Wawasee | Memorial Day

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Taps Across the Water

Echoes of Taps to Sound Across the Lakes on Memorial Day Weekend

By Karen Kroemer, Chautauqua Wawasee

Honoring a Tradition Rooted in History

Taps originated during the Civil War, when Memorial Day was first known as Decoration Day.

In 1971, Memorial Day became a federal holiday honoring service members across all branches of the U.S. Armed Forces who died while serving our country.

A Moving Tribute Across the Lakes

The sixth annual Taps Across the Water Wawasee will be held Sunday, May 24, offering a moving Memorial Day tribute across the lakes. Trumpet players will be positioned around area lakes to perform an Echo Cascading Rendition of Taps. The buglers play Taps twice, with the music carrying across the water for nearly four minutes from shore to shore.

Listeners are encouraged to note the final sustained note, symbolizing the last breath of a service member. The event offers a solemn opportunity to reflect and honor those who gave their lives for our freedom.

Musicians United in Service and Sound

Dr. Matt Murdock, an educator who resides in Indianapolis and North Webster, has assembled more than 40 buglers and trumpet players for two programs, one in North Webster and one in Syracuse. Musicians include veterans, community band members, high school students, music directors, and professional musicians.

The program is inspired by Jari Villanueva, who retired after 23 years with the USAF Band in Washington, D.C., and founded Taps Across America in 2015. One of Murdock’s goals is to raise awareness about the shortage of live trumpet players at military funerals.

“As educators, it is our responsibility to instill in our students, especially those in high school bands, a sense of obligation to our communities. They may not fully realize the services they provide, whether it’s boosting school spirit at athletic events or fostering community spirit by participating in festivals. Taps Across the Water gives the students an opportunity to promote this experience personally with the intent of continuing community service after graduation.”

-Dr. Matt Murdock

North Webster Program Details

In North Webster, a memorial service will begin at 6:15 p.m. at Lake Webster Town Park.

  • Musicians will depart by pontoon to designated locations and perform Taps from piers at 6:30 p.m.
  • A trumpet ensemble concert of patriotic music will follow at 7 p.m. at the park

Many performers will then travel to Syracuse for the Wawasee, Syracuse, and Papakeechie lakes program.

Taps Across the Water Wawasee: Syracuse Program Details

In Syracuse, more than 40 trumpet players will continue the tribute on Lakes Wawasee, Syracuse, and Papakeechie.

  • A trumpet ensemble concert will be held from 8:10 to 8:30 p.m. at the gazebo at Oakwood Resort
  • Musicians will then move to designated locations around the three lakes to perform Taps following a one-minute silence beginning at 9:08 p.m.

Syracuse lakefront restaurants will provide information about the event to patrons. Last year, many diners stepped outside to listen reverently.

What to Know Before You Go

Please be aware of how the wind affects sound over the lake. We’ve had some years where it is hard to hear Taps because of the wind, which can make it difficult to hear.

An updated map with bugler pier locations will be available closer to the event on the Chautauqua Wawasee Facebook page. This post will also be updated to include the map.

Where to Listen

Those who do not live on the lakes may gather in front of the Oakwood Resort, at the bridge by the Channel Marker, or at the Lake Wawasee boat launch to hear Taps.

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Chautauqua Wawasee 2026 Program Schedule

Chautauqua Wawasee 2026 Program Schedule

Discover the Chautauqua Wawasee 2026 Program Schedule, a full year of inspiring events celebrating Arts, Education, Faith, and Recreation in the Syracuse and Lake Wawasee community. This year’s lineup blends beloved traditions with new programs designed to inform, entertain, and connect.

Program Schedule Highlights for 2026

The ever-popular Purdue Varsity Glee Club Performance returns on April 17, filling the spring air with music, harmony, and school spirit.

In July, our Famous Hoosier Series will feature Ralph Teetor. If you missed this film and discussion in 2024 at the Pickwick Theater, mark your calendar for July 28 when it returns to Chautauqua-Wawasee.

Our growing Arts Programs continue to expand in 2026 with hands-on workshops. Included in the lineup are Pottery, Stained Glass Mosaics, Pour Paint, and Plein Air Painting. These offerings support our ongoing goal of establishing our region as a true Artists’ Destination.

And since our Patriotic Speaker Series features a new historical figure each year, we’re especially excited to announce that George Washington will be our featured guest in 2026. His engaging reenactment will bring America’s early days to life through storytelling and character portrayal.

Returning Favorites

You’ll see the return of crowd favorites like the Pawasee Dog Parade, Taps Across the Water, Old Fashioned Christmas, and our Historic Cruises — all programs that continue to bring joy, connection, and tradition to our community year after year.

Plan Ahead

Mark your calendars, invite your friends, and make 2026 a year to remember with Chautauqua Wawasee. You can always find the most up-to-date information on all of our programs on the Chautauqua-Wawasee Facebook page. You can also check the Chautauqua-Wawasee calendar of events.

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Taps Across the Water-2024

Taps Across the Water

The annual tribute of Taps Across the Water is set for Sunday, May 26 for Lake Webster, Lake Wawasee, Syracuse, and Papakeechie Lakes. This event honors United States military personnel who died serving in the U.S. Armed Services. Trumpet players are distributed across the lakes and perform an Echo Cascading Rendition of Taps. With a staggered start, Taps is heard across the lakes for nearly four minutes from one side to the other. Participants and attendees share their experiences as reverent, contemplative, and memorable.

Dr. Matt Murdock, an educator who resides in Indianapolis and North Webster, has assembled nearly 40 bugler and trumpet players for two programs, one in North Webster and one in Syracuse. Participating musicians include members of our community and surrounding areas, including veterans, community bands, high school students and music directors, and professional musicians. Dr. Murdock makes the point “We are connected and inspired by Jari Villanueva’s Taps Across America. One of our goals is to bring awareness of the shortage of live trumpet players at military funerals. Jari retired from the U.S. Air Force, where he spent 23 years with the USAF Band in Washington, DC.” Murdock goes on to say, “As educators, it is our responsibility to instill in our students, especially those in high school bands, a sense of obligation to our communities. They may not fully realize the services they provide, whether it’s boosting school spirit at athletic events or fostering community spirit by participating in festivals. This event presents the students an opportunity to promote this experience personally with the intent of continuing community service after graduation.”

North Webster

A Memorial Service is planned for 6:15 p.m. at the Lake Webster Town Park. Participants and sponsors include the American Legion Post #253 and Dixie Sternwheeler. Following the service, musicians leave by pontoon for their designated locations around Lake Webster. Taps will be performed from piers at 6:30 p.m.
Following the Taps remembrance, a Trumpet Ensemble Concert of patriotic music will be performed at 7:00 at the Town Park. The Ensemble is composed of the trumpet players who sounded Taps during the ceremony. After the concert, many of the performers will travel to Syracuse to participate in the Wawasee, Syracuse, and Papakeechie Lakes program.

Syracuse

Chautauqua-Wawasee, Syracuse American Legion Post #223, and approximately 40 trumpet players, are collaborating for a Memorial Day weekend tribute on Lakes Wawasee, Syracuse, and Papakeechie.

The event starts with a trumpet ensemble concert of patriotic music at the Oakwood Resort gazebo on Sunday, May 26, from 8:10 to 8:40. Then the 40 musicians move to their designated locations distributed strategically around the three lakes to play Taps simultaneously at 9:09 pm. We ask that all guests observe one minute of silence at 9:08 p.m.

 

We are providing these maps as a guide, and ask that you please keep in mind that we put a lot of effort into carefully planning these locations. However, the direction of the wind can sometimes affect how the sound travels, and we’ve been made aware that it can make it difficult to hear. We’d also like to mention that many of our buglers are high school students with busy schedules. We apologize if you miss out on hearing the tribute as planned, but we are sure you can understand that many young people don’t have much control over their schedules and therefore may find themselves in a position in which they would possibly have to choose another obligation over the Taps Across the Water event at the last minute.

We genuinely appreciate your understanding and thank you for your patience, as so many things, including the fact that it’s a busy holiday weekend, can be a factor in hearing (or NOT hearing) this beautiful tribute despite our very best efforts.

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In Honor of the Fallen- Taps Across the Water Tribute

Over Memorial Day weekend, Chautauqua Wawasee and Syracuse American Legion Post 223 hosted the second annual “Taps Across the Water” to honor the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military.

The following local men gave the last full measure of devotion to our country:

 

Civil War:

Hiram Bonner, John Bonner, Joseph Clemens, George Epert, George Gordy, Thomas Orr, David Snyder, Andrew Tom, James Veneman, Andrew Maloy, and Cyrus Weaver

 

World War 1:

Phil Garriott, Hugh Sloan, Fred Smeltzer, Bryan Vanpherson, and John Wilbur Wilkinson.

 

World War 2:

Curtis Bushong, Ernest Miller, Charles LeCount, Robert LeCount, Richard Ruple, Edward Whirledge, and Paul Thomas Xanders.

 

Korean era:

Carlyle Bob Weaver.

 

Vietnam War:

Max Irwin Baer, Dennis Lee Brock, Robert Wayne Ellis, Jerry Denver Thomas, and Kenneth Eugene Willard.

 

Second Iraq war:

Jim Snyder.

 

…that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg, November 19, 1863.

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