On August 1, 2019, many of our songwriters gathered on stage at Nashville’s War Memorial Auditorium to sing “I Am a Soldier,” a song written at one of the first SongwritingWith:Soldiers retreats. The song was one of 18 performed at a concert filmed for a PBS special about our program that was broadcast nationally in October 2019.
This concert was funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and generously underwritten by Sweetwater Sound. We offer special thanks to PBS and presenting PBS station WCTE, and producer Todd Jarrell and his excellent team who brought this opportunity to us. We also send a special thank you to our friends at American Airlines for providing American Airlines AAdvantage® miles for veterans to travel to attend the show and see their songs and stories shared with so many.
The performance brought the audience to its feet and beautifully acknowledged the bravery and generosity of those who shared their stories through song. We feel that this combination of the veterans’ courage and the songwriters’ ability to transform the stories into song, then perform them with such passion and respect, makes for a lasting gift to humanity.
These are the war stories of our time—with the power to teach, uplift and heal.
One song, one connection at a time, we are changing lives.
On stage at the Nashville War Memorial Auditorium (from left) Gary Burr, Gary Nicholson, Georgia Middleman, Maia Sharp, Bonnie Bishop, Radney Foster, James House, Mary Gauthier, Darden Smith and Jay Clementi. Photo: John Partipilo