Chris Young has a personal connection to the military — his sister and grandfather both served in the Marines — but that’s not all: Throughout his career, he’s made it a point to uplift and connect with all those who serve.
“There’s so many people that I’ve met,” he says, explaining that his career has afforded him the opportunity to perform for and meet military service men and women of all description. Every one of them has an inspiring story, he adds.
“If I was going to pick one — my buddy Joe Bowser, who lost his leg while he was serving,” Chris continues. “He and I have been friends for years and years and years…I got to meet him through one of my very first trips over to Iraq and German and Kuwait.”
Chris leans on his fellow country stars for inspiration on how to best use his platform to support the military. In particular, he looks up to the late legend Charlie Daniels, whose Charlie Daniels Journey Home Project raises funds for veteran-focused projects.
“They’ve got a lot of different outreach for veterans, if they’re dealing with something, or they might need help,” Chris details.
“Seeing Charlie’s love for the military, getting a chance to help them raise money and knowing it’s going to help our veterans who might need a leg up,” he goes on to say.
“Having that military connection to my family, having been able to be lucky enough to go around the world playing for military,” he adds,” being able to offer some help to veterans, it’s really important for me to have a chance to do that.”
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