The Villages - June 2022 - 5

" I call myself a church piper, " Paul said; " For
churches, I play for Sunday services, church groups
and funerals, a lot of funerals. "
What a lot of people may not know about Paul,
however, is that if you told him prior to 2010 he would
be playing an instrument, let alone the bagpipes, he
would think you were insane. Even though he was
naturally gifted at music from a young age, Paul found
himself getting swept up by the workload of law school
and his career that followed.
" I just drifted away from (music), " Paul said.
Paul spent 25 years as an international tax attorney
for the United Nations before he retired and moved
to The Villages in 2010. Shortly after he settled in,
he decided to take a music class at the Enrichment
Academy and was taught by a bagpipe band from the
Sons of Scotland. Paul felt a special connection. The
bagpipes weren't just any instrument to him, it was an
instrument tied to his culture and his ancestors.
" I'm second generation Scottish, " Paul said.
Paul's talent with the bagpipes grew and picked up
the attention of the United Nations, his former employer,
seven years later. They asked him if he wanted
to travel to Africa, a continent he
was familiar with. Paul had previously
worked in Rwanda and Sudan
during his career, where he
tried to promote the recreational
sport of golf. He put himself in
harm's way just for attempting to
do so on several occasions.
" During the civil war there (Sudan), "
Paul said; " I was being interviewed
by a TV news crew about
teaching golf. Suddenly, national
security officers drove up and arrested
me for playing an unauthorized
sport. The crew kept filming,
and the video was shown on T.V. "
Paul was being sent to Liberia
to play the bagpipes this time.
" I was the only bagpiper in the
entire country, " Paul recounts.
" That's
hard work.
All
diplomatic events and the U.N compound. "
The hard work paid off when Paul was presented
with the greatest honor he ever received from playing
the bag pipes.
" I ended up playing music for so many events
there that the U.N issued a peacekeeping poster of me
playing, " Paul remembered.
The hot, Liberian climate also gave Paul an idea
while he was there. The heat was so unbearable on
weekends that Paul found himself wearing a kilt when
he went to play golf. He saw the potential for a trend.
those
churches want you to come to funerals,
a lot of funerals, weddings,
MAGAZINE
5
The Villages - June 2022

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