// Stories
Behind the Song – Lucky Man
I signed up for SongwritingWith:Soldiers because I’m a good writer - of stories. But I didn't think I could write a song. The email a friend sent said, "come to the Nashville retreat," but I am not a songwriter? I almost didn't go, until a last minute phone call...
Behind the Song – El Camino
Years after Don Navor retired from his 21-year military career, he and his wife, Kathleen, decided to walk El Camino -- the 500-mile pilgrimage draws those hungry for clarity, or a sense of meditative purposefulness, particularly as you write down your ‘porque’ at the...
Breathe in and Exhale
All life happens between an inhale and an exhale… Admittedly, I did not come up with that quote. I found it printed on the inside of a chocolate wrapper at a SW:S retreat. I saved the wrapper, thinking I’d add it to my journal, but months later, I found it at the...
The Strength Of Sharing
The power of music is undeniable. Sharing music with others gives it even greater power, and using it to create an emotional connection between returning service members and civilians is critical to what we do. At every retreat, participants leave with their own...
Connections Help Pay it Forward
One of the most powerful things about making connections is that they continue to bear fruit long after the seeds are sown and can crop up in unexpected places. A remarkable example of this is how longtime SW:S supporter, Danette (Kelly) Smith, reconnected with her...
Our Partnerships Make Us Stronger
There is strength that comes with working collaboratively. It requires opening your mind and heart to different realities and possibilities. This requires comfort with uncertainty; in its essence, building partnerships is a creative process. This is at the core of...
Amplifying Lives
"This profoundly changed my life and I can't put my finger on exactly what it was. I guess maybe just knowing that I could express myself in a way that's musical, or you know, just taking that layer of sludge off the top...and that just wears it down until you're able...
Winner Again
Tyler Magerkurth, West Point Class of 2010 Graduate, Division 1 College Tennis Varsity Letter Winner, High School State Champion, social club leader, and my son, came back from his US Army deployment in Afghanistan in 2013, a changed man. Why? Why would one of the...
Encore!
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...
From The Very First SW:S Retreat, The Story Continues
Nikki Shaw landed at the first SW:S retreat on her Harley, just days after returning from a long deployment in Iraq. No idea what she was in for, just agreeing to go with a friend. She could have backed out when he canceled, but she believed in honoring her word. Jay...