Taps For Veterans Co-Founder Mark Paradis Is On A Mission

In sixth grade, Mark Paradis found a passion for the trumpet. Today, he’s playing all over the country — but for a greater cause. 

Paradis grew up in Vermont, surrounded by military men; his father, grandfather and uncle all served in the Air Force. At a young age, he knew he would follow in their footsteps and enlist, but he was set on becoming a member of an armed forces divisional band. 

“My original plan was to join the Air Force,” he said. “But they really couldn’t guarantee me that I would be in the band.”  

After high school, he decided to enlist in the Marines, which provided more of an opportunity to join the band. Once he completed boot camp in Vermont and a six-month advanced training course on music education at a military music school in Norfolk, Va., he relocated to the Marine Corps Recruit Depot on Parris Island in South Carolina. 

“I spent six years at the division band with the Marine Corps,” he said. “And our Corps mission was to provide military support to the recruits’ graduations, changing commands and all those things.”

After leaving the armed forces, Paradis admitted that he didn’t touch his trumpet for years. Although he knew he wanted to continue playing, he was burnt out from his time in the band and didn’t know what his next move would be. 

Paradis and his wife, Rhonda, moved to New Jersey where he started a job in data analytics. One day, he stopped by a Walmart in the area and ran into members of the Marine Corps League, a congressionally-chartered organization for Marine Corps veterans. 

“[They said] we’d love to have a trumpet player to help us with military funerals,” he said. “And that sparked a new interest in getting back involved with the veteran community and giving back.”

By the early 2000s, Paradis was an active member of the league, attending veterans funerals in and around New Jersey. Around the same time, he met his friend and bugle mentor, Jari Villanueva, who is an Air Force veteran and expert on military bugle calls. 

In 2000, congress passed legislation that said veterans had a right to at least two uniformed military people, folded flags and the playing of “Taps” at their funeral. “Taps” is a traditional military bugle call that marks a fallen soldier or service member and signals the end of a day on a military base. It is played at veterans’ funerals and military ceremonies to honor their service. 

While participating in the honor, Paradis realized that most of the bugle calls played at veterans’ funerals were through a digital method, like a boombox or over a PA system. Eventually, a digital bugle was used, which he said sounds terrible. 

Paradis called the practice disrespectful. 

“As a military veteran and musician, both Yari and I were like, there has to be a better way of doing this,” he said. 

And so was born Taps For Veterans. Paradis and Villanueva co-founded the organization with a mission to provide an opportunity for buglers or trumpet players to sound “Taps” for military veterans’ funerals and ceremonies. Today, they have roughly 3,000 volunteers across the country. 

By this time, Paradis had gotten a job in healthcare as a pharmaceutical business manager. He and his wife also purchased a second home in Harwich in 2009 because they longed to revisit their New England roots. 

When COVID-19 hit, Paradis and his wife decided to sell their New Jersey home and were shocked by how quickly it was sold. They scrambled to find a new place to land, deciding to move to the Cape full time. He started working remotely, tried to retire and ended up back at the hospital as a pharmaceutical business manager part time. Today, he still works for the company while also facilitating all the needs for Taps for Veterans. 

In 2013, Paradis was selected to play “Taps” at Arlington National Cemetery, at the eternal flame honoring the 50th anniversary of the assassination of John F. Kennedy. He calls the opportunity one of the greatest honors of his life. 

He also had the honor of playing “Taps” at his father-in-law’s funeral. 

“That was probably the hardest so far,” he said. “To sound ‘Taps’ for somebody that you know, that you love.”

Paradis said that playing at funerals for veterans who have died by suicide is also a hard experiences for him. 

Aside from his musical service, Paradis also plays his trumpet for fun. He is a member of the Harwich Town Band and started a brass quintet called the Harwich Brass. 

In 2023, Paradis became the executive director of Taps for Veterans and has been focused on recruitment, awareness and partnerships. He wants to make sure funeral homes and military families know their options. 

“A lot of people don't realize that when you go to a military funeral, nine times out of 10, they're going to be bringing out this digital bugle,” he said. “Most of the veteran service organizations have one of these because they don't have a live bugler. You know, it's kind of an anomaly or a special occasion, and so my main mission going forward has been just bringing awareness to the situation, helping people understand that we want to honor our veterans the best way that we can. A digital bugle is just not going to cut it.” 

For the last six years, Paradis and Villanueva have been hosting an event across the country called Taps Across America. It takes place on Memorial Day and is a nationwide event where volunteers play “Taps” as a national moment of remembrance. 

With the little amount of down time Paradis has, he enjoys traveling with his wife and visiting Cape Cod beaches. He is a true ocean lover and said he is fortunate to now live full-time in an area close to water. 

“I can't believe that my wife and I have the opportunity to live on Cape Cod,” he said. “It's the most magical place. I love the ocean, so being on the Cape is extra special for me.”

Taps for Veterans is a nonprofit organization run by donations and volunteers. To learn more, visit tapsforveterans.org.