Songwriting With Soldiers

A chance meeting with a soldier after performing in a hospital in Germany inspired songwriter Darden Smith to work with members of the military to turn their stories into music. Smith now runs Songwriting With:Soldiers, a non-profit organization which pairs veterans and troops with professional songwriters in a peaceful environment. The service members share their stories and the songwriters mold them into lyrics and set them to melody. "We all have a story," Smith says. "When we listen, and listen well enough to take the solders' words and turn them into art, and sing it back to them, something happens. What it is, I don't know. I'm a songwriter, not a therapist. But something happens, and it's powerful."

http://www.dailygood.org/story/844/songwriting-with-soldiers-david-conrads/