Our son Todd Bryan Eckhardt died on 14 November 2001. We have been looking for a way to keep his memory alive. Gary's sister, Carol Fischer, who at one time worked on the Prince's Youth Business Trust in London, UK (now part of The Prince's Trust) researched the possibility of setting up a charitable trust in Todd's name. Unfortunately, the expense involved in creating a 501c3 is out of our reach and the yearly tax filing for such and entity is not practical. Brian, when we spoke to you, you said we could start a scholarship fund so that the money would be given to some deserving student in Todd's name. If this is possible, there are others who will contribute in Todd's name. At present, we would like to entertain the idea of an annual scholarship for something in excess if $1,000.00. We know this may not seem like much money, but Todd was a professional musician and I think it would be interesting for aspiring musicians to learn about his career.

Todd loved music and comedy from the time he was a small child. In elementary school he would tell his classmates and the teacher that he wanted to be a standup comedian. At the age of 10 he became mesmerized with the band Kiss. At twelve he said he wanted a guitar for his birthday. We got him a used electric guitar. We thought this would be one of those passing whims of youth; it wasn't. Todd spent more time practicing than anything else. He had a passion for music. As he progressed, he found that he had a real affinity for the electric bass guitar. In High School he continued to play the guitar and formed a Punk band, 'The Opposition'. The band practiced in our basement. Their music was not easy to listen to, but Todd refused to play any music that he or a band member did not write. They performed at a band night at Woodbridge High School and were the only band playing original music. I could tell from the looks on other parents' faces that they hated it. On the other hand, a number of students loved it, and much to the horror of the faculty, started slam-dancing.

After graduating from Richard Millburn High School at 18, Todd worked in a funeral home and played music at night. He also linked up with friends, who were attending Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia. His friends had formed a Ska band, which became known as 'The Pietasters'. The Pietasters started as a frat band playing for free beer, but as their talents and reputation increased they started getting bookings for clubs and larger venues.

Todd began playing with the band as the second guitarist, and sometimes played bass guitar. The Pietasters feature Steve Jackson as the singer; the instruments consist of trombone, saxophone, trumpet, keyboard, drums, guitar and bass guitar. Eventually, Todd became the band's full time bass player and songwriter. The Pietasters have produced numerous CDs, which are available on-line and nationwide in stores such as Border's Books.

They performed nationwide and numerous times in Europe including venues on the Warp tour. Their music is particularly popular in Holland and one song that Todd wrote, "Wasted" has been translated to Dutch and played by cover bands and a High School marching band. The Pietasters are still performing.

The Pietasters' most recent release, 'Turbo' is dedicated to Todd. Turbo was a comedic persona that Todd would sometimes adopt at shows and at parties. His view of life and the world was so out of step with the norm that he could always be counted on to make people laugh. One of the tracks on 'Turbo,' 'Mellow Mood', was one of the last things Todd recorded.

People who inspired Todd were Sammy Davis Junior, James Jamerson, and Linton Kwesi Johnson. Todd carried a picture of Sammy Davis Junior in his wallet for years. On one of the Warp tours, Todd was eating lunch with 'Ice T' and he asked him to autograph a picture of his father. Ice T said sure. Todd handed him the picture of Sammy Davis Junior. Ice T looked at it and said, "Yo man, that ain't your father." Ice T laughed and autographed it just the same.

Todd also admired Joe Strummer, and was blown away when Joe complimented Todd on his bass playing. After Todd's death, one of the Pietasters told me that Todd had related to him that he could die a happy man after receiving an accolade from Joe.

One of Todd's songs, 'Bitter' is played in the movie "Never Been Kissed" starring Drew Barrymore. Todd and the Pietasters also made music videos that have been played on MTV.

In the last couple years of Todd's life he was very upset about Napster. The music that he wrote appealed to the college crowd, and that is the group that used Napster the most. A girl from Cornell University once told Todd he should be thrilled that all the Pietasters' work was on Napster. Todd asked her how she would like someone coming over to her house to steal all her stuff; that is what Napster was doing to him. Todd had to quit touring and take on an Information Technology job with his mother and me at Simulation Technologies, Inc. to pay his bills. He continued to perform locally at some venues, but his full time music career was essentially over.

Todd was a wonderful person. He was generous to a fault. On one occasion when a friend's father died, Todd organized a show in DC to raise money to pay for the funeral. The show raised several thousand dollars, enough to save his friend's mother from losing her house. Todd never had any money because he shared what he had with those he thought needed it more.

He was also a loving son and brother who enjoyed the company and emotional support of his family.

If you want more information about Todd and The Pietasters, you can do an Internet search on 'Todd Eckhardt' or the 'Pietasters'. There is a website under construction, which is devoted to Todd's memory, www.toddeckhardt.com.

With respect to this music scholarship, please delay the award for two or three months because family and friends will be sending in additional donations to honor Todd's life.

In closing, I think you see why Todd is worth remembering. He loved music and poetry, and he loved people. He was talented and kind, and that is a winning combination. If you needed twenty bucks and Todd had it, he would give it to you. One of his friends told me that Todd gave him his last twenty on one occasion. That is the kind of person our son was.

Sincerely,

Gary & Eileen Eckhardt