A Tribute to Jay Tuomey

     As one would expect in Connecticut, the afternoon of Saturday, January 19 was cold and snow was in the immediate forecast. At Lancraft Hall in North Haven friends from all over the country gathered to pay their respects to the great Jay Tuomey, one of the most highly skilled rudimental snare drummers of all time. Guests came from all over: Matt Flynn from California, Ken Mazur from Michigan, Bill Maling drove from Ohio, and this writer came from Pennsylvania. Jack O'Brien and others traveled from New York and New Jersey, and many, many more from various points of origin in New England arrived to honor Jay.
     Jay was born July 30 of 1925 in Brooklyn, NY and didn't wait long to get involved with drum corps. He joined St. Denis Fife, Drum & Bugle Corps (Yonkers, NY) when he was ten years old and 6 years later moved to the Yonkers City Fife, Drum & Bugle Corps. In 1943, duty called and he served in the US Army in the Pacific, including duty in Okinawa. After the war, he attended New York University and finished his B.S. degree at Roger Williams College. While attending school, he remained active with Yonkers F&D, but in 1950, he joined the Sons of Liberty Ancient Fife & Drum from Brooklyn, where he remained for 11 years. He then moved to Michigan. A spirited Ancient, he formed a corps in that state, the Frontiersmen and also taught a few M&M organizations.
      1950 was also his wedding year. It was then that he married his lovely wife, Jean, nee: Andlauer. After over 50 years of wedded bliss, they now have 3 children, who all attended the dinner, plus 2 grandchildren. Jay has always devoted himself to teaching and still does. Among his proudest achievements are teaching Ken Mazur, a National Champion snare drummer and many other State and Northeastern Champions, including Nick Clericuzio of Lancraft. The evening began with a jollification followed by a catered dinner. After dessert, there was an open microphone where a parade of Tuomey fans presented a litany of anecdotes and songs of praise for Jay. Jack O'Brien from the Sons of Liberty spoke of what a perfectionist Jay was then, and still is.
      Once, a drummer of Hibernian ancestry who never made it to many practices, told Jay, "I know I don't know the rudiments too good and don't practice much, but will you hold a place for me in the drum line on March 17?" Jay nearly blew a blood vessel!
      Numerous speakers added more personal highlights of their many years of knowing Jay. Offstage, Ed Olsen told a tale of how the Sons of Liberty were traveling from point A to Point B somewhere when nature called. They pulled over to the side of the road and Tuomey wandered into a small group of trees, wearing Revolutionary dress and tricorn. As it turns out, he had entered a small clearing that turned out to be someone's back yard. Just then, the occupant of the residence opened his door to let his dog out and thought he had seen a ghost! Jay beat a hasty retreat back to the vehicle and they all went on their way. A family ghost legend had been created!
      Jay is a warm, wonderful, kind and genteel man, but he can have a cutting edge when it comes to percussion. A few Tuomey quotations: "That was one of the better imitations of bass drumming that I've ever heard." (Phil McGovern). After a rather poor performance by the Sons of Liberty, "I hope nobody knows that I'm their instructor!" (Jack O'Brien). Among the gifts presented to Jay during the evening was a framed photograph of the snare drum that he played with Sons of Liberty.
      Finally, the man of the hour spoke of how important being an Ancient has been to him throughout his lifetime. His closing words were most meaningful to everybody in the hall. He said, "My greatest pleasure in drum corps has been playing alongside the legendary Hugh Quigley." Now, there's a man with a great deal of class. This writer knew them both and is certain that Hugh would have said the exact same thing about his dear friend and colleague. The tables and chairs were then moved aside and a jam session ensued, much to Jay's delight.
      The concert went on for hours.