COMMERCE, Texas - The 16th Annual Veterans Vigil will open on Wednesday, Nov. 7, with keynote speaker Shirley Melton Johnson, wife of Congressman Sam Johnson of Plano.

The free program will start at about 2:55 p.m. in the Founders Lounge of the Sam Rayburn Memorial Student Center. The public is invited.

Other Vigil activities include the United States Navy Commodores Jazz Ensemble concert at 7 p.m. Wednesday and the United States Air Force Band of the West Concert Band concluding the veterans celebration at 2 p.m. Friday, Nov. 9.

"We are excited and honored to have Shirley Johnson as the keynote speaker," said Connie Mears, Veterans Vigil Committee chair and student center staff member.

While Sam Johnson was a Vietnam Prisoner of War, Shirley became a member of the League of Families, a group dedicated to writing letters and lobbying government officials for information on prisoners of war. Her dedication enabled her to send 12 letters and receive 32 from her husband while he was held in a northern Vietnamese prison camp.

Soon after his return from Vietnam, Johnson became Wing Commander at Homestead Air Force Base. Along with his new title, Shirley also acquired new responsibilities. While at Homestead, she served as honorary president and adviser to the Officer's Wives Club, NCO Wives Club, Airman Wives Club, the Red Cross Chapter at the base, and the Hospital Auxiliary.

When he retired from the Air Force in 1979, they started a home building company in Plano. Their lives turned again to politics in 1984 when he was elected to the Texas State House of Representatives where he served for seven years.

In May of 1991, Johnson was elected to the U.S. Congress in a special election and is currently serving his sixth term in Congress.

As a Congressional wife, Shirley divides her time between Texas and Washington.

When at home in Texas, she is involved in her husband's campaign activities and spends time with her friends and family.

Also speaking at Wednesday's program will be Betty Bryant, daughter of a World War II era POW.

Following the program, everyone will go to the West Lawn for the lighting of the Vigil Flame. The flame will burn in memory of POWs and the Missing in Action in all wars.

There will also be a military aircraft flyover, weather permitting.

Military personnel are needed to stand guard at the Vigil Flame. The guards will work one-hour shifts and get Vigil shirts.

At 7 p.m. Wednesday, United States Navy Commodores Jazz Ensemble will present a concert in the Ferguson Social Sciences Building Auditorium. Admission is free, but tickets are required.

Tickets are available at the Candy Corner, second floor of the Memorial Student Center. For group tickets, call Mears at 903-886-5819 or email connie_mears@tamu-commerce.edu.

A specialty unit of the Navy Band in Washington, D.C., the group features 18 of the Navy's top jazz and "big band" musicians.

Under the leadership of senior chief musician Phillip M. Burlin, the Commodores combine the best of jazz and popular music.

Since their founding in 1969, the Commodores have become one of the most acclaimed jazz ensembles in the country. Many jazz legends have appeared with the group, including Ray Charles, Louie Bellson, Terry Gibbs, Bruce Johnson, Bob Mintzer, James Moody, Clark Terry, and Eugene "Snooky" Young.

At 9 a.m. Nov. 8, there will be a youth program in the American and Texas Ballrooms. Four hundred fifth graders from Sulphur Springs and Commerce are scheduled to attend and get to talk with area veterans.

The students and their teachers will also visit the Vigil Flame.

The closing ceremony will be on the West Lawn at 1:30 p.m. Nov. 9. Guards will represent the U.S. Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Navy, and Marines.

Following a moment of silence and the playing of "Taps," the Flame will be extinguished.

At 2 p.m., the United States Air Force Band of the West Concert Band will play in the Concert Hall of the Music Building.

Stationed at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas, the Concert Band is the largest ensemble within the Band of the West organization. Its repertoire consists of music from the Renaissance to the present day, ranging from serious symphonic band literature to Broadway musicals, from Sousa marches to Top 40 hits.

The band travels thousands of miles every year and performs at numerous events on military bases and media-sponsored tours throughout Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, and Louisiana. It is also active in the San Antonio arts community and is featured in regular presentations of "Fiesta in Blue," for San Antonio's annual "Fiesta" celebration and "Holiday in Blue," during the Christmas season.

VETERANS VIGIL SPEAKER - Shirley Johnson, wife of Congressman Sam Johnson of Plano (right), will be the keynote speaker at the 16th Annual Veterans Vigil on Wednesday, Nov. 7. The free program will start at about 2:55 p.m. in the Founders Lounge of the Sam Rayburn Memorial Student Center. The public is invited. Congressman Johnson was a prisoner of war in Vietnam.  (Courtesy photo)