2021

 We are working our way through 2021. Having had our COVID vaccinations we are staying safe from that terrible disease. We still stay home as much as possible. No gigs on the calendar for this year as most groups are doing the same.

We Lost a Dear Friend

 

On January 18, 2021, we lost our dear friend and fellow musician, William F. "Toby" Hughes. Toby and Dick first met at George AFB, California, in 1967. They were both learning to fly the F-4 Phantom in preparation for their air combat tours of duty in Southeast Asia. They performed together for the first time as members of the Incountry Group. First came the Incountry album, followed by Austin City Limits with Kris Kristofferson hosting.

Toby was an excellent singer, songwriter and musician. In addition to his "Fast and Low" CD, Toby worked with Dick on several albums preserving the songs and stories of the Vietnam War. 

In May of 2018, Toby joined Dick, Irv LeVine and Chip Dockery at Maxwell AFB to present an evening of songs as the culmination of a paper on the military/warrior music history. It was at this concert that "The Light In The Window" was first introduced which later became the title song on Dick's #32 CD. "The Light In The Window" is about the wives and families who waited at home while their husbands and fathers were away in the military. As part of the dedication on that CD Dick wrote: "I've known some pretty good fighter pilot lyricists through the years, Bobby Middleton, Thud Jock, Irv LeVine, also a Thud Jock and Chip Dockery who has flown the Phantom and a bunch of other stuff. But the warrior song-writing talent of Toby Hughes are unmatched by any of us. If there is a heavy thought you want to leave to posterity and you don't know how to say it, check with Toby."

On February 9, 2021 Toby was laid to rest with full military honors at Ft. Sam Houston National Cemetery, San Antonio, TX.

Toby, we will miss you now that you have "Flown West".

2020 is almost gone. THANK GOODNESS!

Well, needless to say, this has been one ugly year. All of the potential gigs that Dick might have attended were cancelled due to COVID 19 so we stayed home safe and healthy in Chino Valley. So...there wasn't much to "Blog About".

Dick did manage to publish CD # 32 in March titled The Light In The Window. 

Below is a list of the songs on the album.

1. The Light In The Window		10. No-Son-Of-A-Gun's Gonna Take My Gun
2. Mom and Me (Angela Jonas)		11. Off To War
3. Old Farts		12. Warthog
4. Willing To Fight		13. Son of the Warrior
5. Single Gold Bar		14. Whiskey Bill
6. Kay Cee One Three Five		15. Take a Stand
7. Red, White and Blue		16. Itazuke Tower
8. FNG		17. Medevac
9. Bill Kirk

In addition to Dick, authorship credits go to Toby Hughes for the title song: The Light In The Window. What a wonderful wordsmith he is. Also Bridget Bradshaw for 8 songs and Jake Brooks for three songs. For more information about this album and all of Dick's efforts take a look at his website: www.erosonic.com.

80 Years Young and still going strong!

Dick celebrated his 80th Birthday this March!

As you can see from the list below, he his looking forward to a full year of performances.

If you are in the area please drop in, say Hi and share the fun.



PERFOMANCE DATES & LOCATIONS:

29 March POW reunion 560FTS, Randolph AFB TX - Auger Inn

12 - 13 July, Patriotic Celebration, Forest Lakes AZ

25 September, F-105 Thud Reunion, Dayton OH

4 - 5 October, TLC Brotherhood Reunion, Las Vegas NV {Thailand-Laos-Cambodia Brotherhood}

We will be doing a lot of traveling this year and doing our best to criss-cross the country.

For more information about the performances contact the organization or Dick at .

"Dick's Gig Schedule" is also at his website .

The Arizona Veterans Hall of Fame Class of 2016 Induction Ceremony

Well, we did it! On October 28th Dick was inducted into the Arizona Veterans Hall of Fame Society. He was among 28 individuals who had been nominated for this honor. They all went through a rigorous selection process. "The Arizona Veterans Hall of Fame recognizes and honors our Arizona veterans who have made significant civic contributions at the local, state, or national level. Honorees are veterans who serve, or have honorably served, their country through military service and who also serve and inspire their fellow citizens with deeds and accomplishments outside their military service." [excerpt from the program]

Michele Reagan, Arizona Secretary of State and 
Colonel Wanda Wright, Arizona Department of 
Veterans Services Director
presented the medallion and plaque to Dick 
and all the other inductees.

 Here is Dick's biography from the program: Born in Hildreth, Florida in 1939, Lieutenant Colonel Dick Jonas served in the US Air Force as a combat fighter pilot/instructor who retired in 1986 with 21 years of service. For 15 years Dick served as an aerospace science instructor at Cactus High School, Glendale; and Mohave High School, Bullhead City; during which time he volunteered the equivalent of a school year guiding the cadets to drill meets, field trips, and summer camps. An active lifetime member of the Military Officers Association of America the the Air Force Association, Dick advocated veterans issues to Arizona's Congressional delegation, increased scholarship donations, and actively supported several veterans StandDowns. A military folk musician, Dick Jonas has traveled to Germany, Japan, and Korea to entertain the troops and to perpetuate the legacy of the warrior musician."

We appreciate Ron Perkins for successfully nominating Dick for this honor. 

Also we want to thank all the family members and friends who made the time to join us for the ceremony.

I am extremely proud of Dick for receiving this recognition.

Exciting News

It is with great pleasure that we announce that Dick has been selected for the Arizona Veterans Hall of Fame. The Society recognizes "distinguished Arizona Veterans who have dedicated their lives on behalf of our citizens." The Induction Ceremony will be held on Friday, October 28th, 2016 at the DoubleTree Resort by Hilton, 5401 N Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, AZ 85250 at 11:30 AM. If you would like to join us in the celebration go to the Unified Arizona Veterans web site at www.azuav.org for registration information.

The 144th Fighter Wing's Heritage Week

Entertainment will be provided by LtCol (ret) Dick Jonas who will perform songs about his experiences in Southeast Asia from the fighter pilot's perspective.

Brig. Gen.(ret) Robert "Earthquake" Titus will be the honored guest at the 144FW's Heritage Week Dinner. The general will discuss events that shaped the Air Force and his illustrious career that spanned more than 30 years and more than 500 combat missions.

The dinner will be Saturday, April 2 at 7:00PM - 9:30 PM PDT 

at the Clovis Veterans Memorial District: 808 4th Street, Clovis, CA 93612

Seating is extremely limited so register early! Tickets are $25.00 per person and may be obtained by visiting The 144th FW web site. http://www.144fw.ang.af.mil

Thank you to the 144th FW for doing such a thorough job of providing information about this event. I merely rearranged the information and copied it here.

New Friend

Multiple congratulations to Bryan "Cage" Zumbro. He was in charge of Haboob Havoc plans at Luke AFB and responsible for inviting Dick to perform. Then there was the 21st FS plane crash and he became responsible for undoing those plans and helping the 21st FS arrange the memorial for the lost pilot. Not an easy assignment on short notice but he managed and the memorial came off.

The other congratulation is that Bryan is about to be on his way to the "Swamp Foxes". That was Dick's last active duty assignment so naturally they bonded right away.

Add to that that Cage was a member of the Juvats and what more can be said.....

Luke AFB, 22 Jan 2016

Dick was invited by the 309th FS to perform at the Haboob Havoc on 22 Jan. Unfortunately, a student pilot from the 21st FS crashed near Bagdad, AZ on Thursday, 21 Jan. The powers that be decided Haboob Havoc would have to wait and a memorial for the Taiwanese pilot would be more appropriate. Here are some pictures from the memorial.

The shot glasses are filled with Kao Liang for the toast to "Gold" 

Dick prepares to sing Nickel on the Grass

The Piano - Ponch explained the WW II story
behind burning a piano when a pilot doesn't return.

Then they did.

Evening with San Antonio Ralph Parr Pack

November 6th found us in San Antonio at the Randolph AFB O'Club. 

The Ralph Parr River Rats had asked Dick to perform for them. It was a great evening.

Mary & "Goldie" Goldfein were there. Good to see them again.

Dick sang the songs.

Charlie Huff told the stories.

 After the evening with the River Rats, word got down to the Auger Inn and the active duty pilots down there decided to join us for some "after hours" fun.

A standing ovation for the Rowdie songs.

Some of the pilots were from Poland on an exchange tour. 

34th FS "Rude Rams" Reactivation Celebration

     

     The 34th FS "Rude Rams" Reactivation Celebration was filled with memories. Many of the old & new squadron members were in attendance. Stories of Rosco and others were shared. The memorabilia from the squadron that had been "kept safe" was brought to the event so that it could be returned to the squadron for display.

     

     Ralph Rothstein joined Irv & Dick for the 

performance on 17 July. A good day was had 

by all. 

Sentry Eagle 2015, Kingsley Field, OR

Sentry Eagle was a great weekend. Dick & Irv Levine met new and old friends and shared many stories. Slick Harper hosted us and as usual did a superb job. Dick and Irv sang for the group and received many Thank You's for coming.

Irv & Dick performing on Friday, 31 July.

At the Open House on Saturday, 1 August, several Air Guard units were present. This one from AZ was getting some engine work done.

Upcoming Events - San Antonio River Rats - November 6th

The San Antonio, Texas River Rats Parr Pack have organized a show with Dick Jonas at the Randolph Officer's Club for Friday November 6th. Charlie Huff has agreed to help Dick tell stories {and lies}.

For more information about the location and time, contact the Parr Pack in San Antonio.

Album 29 "The Hooch Tape"

More information about this new Erosonic Album can be found
at the Erosonic website:
This information was cut/paste from Dick's website.
It is much easier to read there.

Upcoming Events - 173rd Fighter Wing of the Oregon Air Guard - Sentry Eagle

July 31st will find Dick Jonas and Irv LeVine participating in the 173rd Fighter Wing of the Oregon Air Guard Sentry Eagle 2015 at Kingsley Field.

Dick and Irv will be performing during the 50th Anniversary of the Vietnam War program on July 31st.

The Sentry Eagle 2015 open house is August 1st from 9 AM to 3 PM. So if you are interested in attending the Vietnam Anniversary program including Dick Jonas & Irv LeVine, be certain to mention their names and July 31st when you contact the 173rd Fighter Wing at Kingsley Field, Klamath Falls, Oregon.

Upcoming Events - 34th FS Hill AFB Reactivation

July looks to be busy for Dick Jonas & Irv LeVine.

They have been invited by the 34th FS "Rude Rams" of Hill AFB to participate in the squadron's Reactivation ceremony in anticipation of the arrival of the F-35.

This is special to Irv because he was a Rude Ram during the Vietnam War.

Dick & Irv will be performing at Hill on July 17th. For more information about their performance place and time contact the 34th FS at Hill AFB.

358th Fighter SQ Final Roll Call

Dick was immensely pleased to be asked to perform for the 358th Fighter SQ of A-10s stationed at Davis-Monthan AFB, Tucson on February 20, 2014. The occasion was the squadrons Final Roll Call as they were scheduled to be inactivated. It was a bittersweet evening full of all the pageantry of the A-10 tradition.

Cudos to Runz and all who put the evening together. 

A-10 jocks know how to do it right!

Thanks Gentlemen for an evening to remember.

Upcomming events

Our schedule of events is beginning to shape up for 2104. Dick and the Cool Water Band continue to perform every month on the 4th Wednesday at the Prescott VA hospital for the patients in the CLC. The hospital is also honoring the veterans in February, so the Cool Water Band has agreed to perform in the Domiciliary on the VA grounds on Feb. 12th from 12:00 to 1:00 PM.

Our friend, Bridget Bradshaw, graduates from the NAU Nursing program on May 10th so we will be among the throngs in Flagstaff, AZ that weekend.

Dick and I will be attending the River Rats Reunion in Fort Worth, Texas May 29 - 31. No show has been requested by the River Rats as yet. Time will tell.

From Ft Worth we will head East to visit the Jonas clan in Florida and meet up with friends along the way.

We hope that 2014 finds you enjoying life and staying healthy.

All dressed up for the 310th graduation dinner at Luke AFB Nov 2013.

Dick continues his Legacy efforts.

2012 - Dick performs for Prescott Embry Riddle Cadets at their Dinning In. They held the event on November 3, 2012, in one of their hangers at the Prescott Airport.

Dick and  Trip Raymond entertain the Luke Chapter of Daedalians  on November 16, 2012.

Dick stays busy getting the word out about the importance of preserving the warriors story for every generation.

Dick Performs for the AZ Chapter of MOAA

On Saturday, October 20th, Dick performed for the Arizona Chapter of MOAA at their annual picnic. Here he is telling one of his fighter pilot stories.