// Stories
Gaining Strength from our Peers
At retreats, past participants join the team as peer support to welcome new SW:S participants to their first retreat and after, into our community. These peers let them know that they were once there as a first-time participant as well and they understand. Going back...
Sparking Connections
"I don't think these pieces are lost on those who haven't served in the military... Writing and expressing these things has a whole lot more to do with getting through things, using good tools that are there. Expressing is so helpful."- John Wall, US Army SW:S staffer...
Finding Strength In Shared Experiences
As a Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer with a long history with SW:S, Rick Loomis had always dreamed of bringing together a group of fellow photojournalists who had served alongside veterans. Those men and women who embedded themselves with soldiers, sharing the...
A Note from a SW:S Songwriter
This is a picture taken at a recent SW:S retreat. I had just written with a father who carried so much pain. My job was to collaborate with him and get that pain down on paper so he could get it out of his body and be able to look at it from a distance. Something...
Back To The Future
Celebrating 10 years of serving veterans had to be a momentous occasion! So, in October 2022, SongwritingWith:Soldiers headed back to the site that started it all - Cedarbrake Retreat Center in Belton, TX. Celebrating 10 years of service around the country, with our...
Community Support
"Just wanted to let you and the team know that one of the participants from the retreat, Jeff Dawson, was injured in combat about four weeks ago. He is currently at Walter Reed recovering and his wife Trish is by his side, along with other family members. He is making...
Out of the Chair (Into the Spotlight)
"Before coming to the retreat, I had the date, the time and the way I was going to end my life," Joshua Geartz told SW:S Co-Founder, Mary Judd in 2015. "Writing my song with Mary Gauthier gave me hope—something I had lost." He had arrived a quiet somber man, with his...
Moving from Invisible to Invincible
"When I attended SongwritingWith:Soldiers back in 2015, my PTSD was so severe that I did not want to be seen..."— Sandi Primous, US Army Veteran "As a 20-year Army Combat Veteran, I led 197 soldiers into a hostile combat zone in Iraq during the war on terrorism. By...
Teens With A Mission
One of the most common feelings among service members and their families is, "nobody understands what it's like." They often feel disconnected from others within their families and beyond. SongwritingWith:Soldiers has held several retreats over the years to help...
Igniting Change
"When I attended the SongwritingWith:Soldiers retreat in Belton, I found my voice. I found the courage I needed to share my story. I realized how much I could help others." — Brandy Davidson, US Army Veteran Brandy Davidson, a US Army Veteran attended our first...