Bay Ridge

McKinley grad offers trumpet tribute to mom

Matthew Windsor plays ‘The Best Is Yet To Come’ at ceremony

June 30, 2016 By Paula Katinas Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Matthew Windsor displays his virtuosity on the trumpet before a packed house at the McKinley Intermediate School graduation. Photo by John Quaglione
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As president of the Community Education Council of School District 20, Laurie Windsor attends dozens of graduation ceremonies at Southwest Brooklyn schools each June. But she had never before gone to one like the commencement she attended for McKinley Intermediate School on June 27.

For one thing, her son Matthew was one of the members of McKinley’s Class of 2016. For another, Principal Janice Geary and the school’s music teachers had a special treat in store for her.

To her surprise and delight, Windsor sat on stage in the auditorium of New Utrecht High School in Bensonhurst, where the graduation ceremony took place on Monday, and watched as Matthew, a trumpet player, played a song in her honor. The mini-concert had been planned by Geary and the school’s administration.

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A poised and confident Matthew Windsor played the Frank Sinatra classic “The Best Is Yet to Come,” with the school band backing him up. The rendition of the Sinatra hit won him wild applause from the 1,500 people in attendance, including his mom and dad, Laurie and Andrew Windsor.

Geary, who introduced Matthew to the audience, announced that he would be playing a song as a tribute to his mother, who has served on the Community Education Council for several years and is one of the city’s leading education advocates.

Windsor was touched by the tribute.

“And it was a surprise! The music teachers, with the principal and assistant principal, did all of this and didn’t tell us. I was amazed! Both Andrew and I were,” she told the Brooklyn Eagle.

She marveled at her son’s poise. “I’m so proud that he played in front of over 1,500 people! And he did it beautifully too; not one note off. It was really very special and I was so touched that they did this,” she said.

McKinley Intermediate School is located at 7301 Fort Hamilton Parkway in Bay Ridge.

Like his wife, Andrew Windsor was blown away by his son’s talent.

The proud dad even wrote a note to his son on Facebook.

Your mother and I can not be more proud of what you have accomplished to date and the many more achievements that we know you’ll have in the future. Of all the things I’ve seen you do to date, standing in front of 1,500 people and rising to the occasion and hearing the accolades of your teachers and music instructors was one of the greatest for me!” Windsor wrote.

Matthew has been a trumpet player for five years. “He started playing when he was going to P.S. 229 and he kept up with it,” Laurie Windsor told the Eagle.

Matthew will be attending Xaverian High School in the fall, where he has already been asked to join two of the school’s bands.

Sinatra turned “The Best Is Yet to Come” into a hit song in 1964 when he included the tune on his album “It Might as Well Be Swing.” But the song, which was written by Cy Coleman and Carolyn Leigh, was first recorded by another great singer, Tony Bennett, who included it on his album “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” in 1962.

Andrew Windsor, who shot a video of his son’s performance of the song, posted the video on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/andrew.windsor.56?fref=ts.

 


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