......Soulful Images and Stories
......Soulful Images and Stories
Clarinda, a small town in Iowa, where corn fields surround the town. There was an unexpected connection that occurred and changed many lives because of a long passed Glenn Miller.
Glenn Miller Festival takes place every year in a small town in Iowa called, Clarinda where Glenn Miller was born. With a fateful confluence, the festival has been hosting a fantastic band of players from a all girls high school in similarily small town in Kumamoto, Japan, called Tamana for the festival. The girls band has been coming in an entourage of about 50+ players every other year and mesmerizes the audience since 1990. Because there are not enough hotel accommodation in Clarinda, the families in the community open their home for the girls to stay, which spontaneously led the two cities to become official sister cities.
Clarinda, Iowa
It is the birthplace of American legend, Glenn Miller.
On December 15 1944, while traveling to entertain troops in Europe, Glenn Miller's plane disappeared, and the great bandleader vanished forever.
In February, 1945, Camp Clarinda became one of two primary facilities in the U.S. to hold Japanese Prisoners of War.
Meanwhile, in post-war Japan, the influence of the American Occupation left an indelible impression on a young Japanese boy.
Hide Aoki grew up dreaming of the place where the great music began....
and over 30 years later, all of these events came together, and a small town was transformed.
The lives of many were touched.