NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Jamie Floyd and Pete Sallis are accomplished songwriters with many credits to their names. It's their life's work, their paycheck, but also a calling.
"Music touches a place in the heart that nothing else can reach — so this is kind of a way to get in the darkest places that only music can heal," Sallis said.
That is the mission of Operation Song, which pairs service members with songwriters to tell their story.
"I moved to town to write songs for the big stars and everything, but Operation Song is the reason I was given this ability," Floyd said. "I feel like one of the most important things that Operation Song does is give a voice to this community that a lot of times feels like no one is listening."
Operation Song got its start in 2012 with songwriter Bob Regan, a man who has written lyrics for some of country's music's best. But he couldn't shake the stories he heard when traveling the world entertaining troops, and knew country radio wasn't his target audience. Instead, he started at the VA Hospital in Murfreesboro as part of music therapy sessions. Now, this non-profit is serving the nation.
Most of the songs come to life within only a few hours. That was the case when Floyd and Sallis met with Carrie and Josh Brennamon, a married couple navigating the reality of war.
"There's two wars going on," Sallis said. "How do you go from fighting overseas, and then come back to a civilian life?"
This Life is now Carrie and Josh's song.
"This was kind of a way to celebrate their survival in every which way. Every odd was against them and they made it," Floyd said.
Operation Song is inspiring people with different stories to join the cause.
Mike Byer had just retired after 21 years in the Army and was torn, knowing his son wanted to follow in his footsteps and serve. At a 2013 Operation Song retreat, he met songwriters Travis Meadows and Marc Beeson. What happened next... came naturally.
"We sat down in a room and they said simply 'tell me about yourself,'" Byer said. "So I gave them my elevator pitch of my 21 years of service, and Travis had picked up on the fact that I mentioned my son, just coming back from my son's graduation from basic training, and asked me more about it. As we were going along, and I was describing, he started just writing things down."
In less than an hour, Meadows had penned a song with Byer's words.
"It was mind blowing. I started crying right there, afterwards I sent the song to my son...he was crying," Byer said. "It was a very emotional time, it helped me process a lot and I was very grateful for that opportunity."
Byer now serves as Executive Director for Operation Song.
Ready to tell your story? Visit Operation Song here.
