Neither was Sam
Bierstock. It was around 1 a.m., and
Bierstock, a Delray Beach, Fla. , eye
doctor, business consultant, corporate
speaker and musician, was bone tired
after appearing at an event.
He pulled up in his car, and the parking
attendant began to speak. "I took two
bullets for this country and look what
I'm doing," he said bitterly.
At first, Bierstock didn't know what to
say to the World War II veteran. But he
rolled down his window and told the man,
"Really, from the bottom of my heart, I
want to thank you."
Then the old soldier began to cry.
"That really got to me," Bierstock says.
Cut to today.
Bierstock, 58, and Joh n Melnick, 54, of
Pompano Beach - a member of Bierstock's
band, Dr. Sam and the Managed Care Band
- have written a song inspired by that
old soldier in the airport parking lot.
The mournful "Before You Go" does more
than salute those who fought in WWII.
It encourages people to go out of their
way to thank the aging warriors before
they die.
"If we had lost that particular war, our
whole way of life would have been shot,"
says Bierstock, who plays harmonica.
"The WW?II soldiers are now dying at
the rate of about 2,000 every day. I
thought we needed to thank them."
The song is striking a chord. Within
four days of Bierstock placing it on the
Web, the song and accompanying photo
essay have bounced around nine
countries, producing tears and heartfelt
thanks from veterans, their sons and
daughters and grandchildren.
"It made me cry," wrote one veteran's
son. Another sent an e-mail saying that
only after his father consumed several
glasses of wine would he discuss "the
unspeakable horrors" he and other
soldiers had witnessed in places such as
Anzio, Iwo Jima, Bataan and Omaha Beach.
"I can never thank them enough," the
son wrote. "Thank you for thinking
about them."
Bierstock and Melnick thought about
shipping it off to a professional
singer, maybe a Lee Greenwood type, but
because time was running out for so many
veterans, they decided it was best to
release it quickly, for free, on the
Web. They've sent the song to Sen.
John McCain and others in Washington.
Already they have been invited to
perform it in Houston for a Veterans Day
tribute - this after just a few days on
the Web. They hope every veteran in
America gets a chance to hear it.
GOD BLESS every EVERY veteran... and
THANK YOU to those of you veterans who
may receive this !
CLICK THE LINK BELOW TO HEAR THE SONG
AND SEE THE PICTURES:?
Http://www.managedmusic.com/Music/PlayBeforeYouGo.php
NewtonHighAlumni.com