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The President Carter Legacy Collection

demetriosdemetrios Canada Posts: 87,827
edited October 2020 in The Porch

https://worldtree.info/presidentcarterlegacycollection/



Thanks B! :)

During his time in the White House, the 39th President of the United States was a strong advocate for both environmental sustainability and music, hosting Willie Nelson, the Allman Brothers, and Cher, among many others. He famously said, “If you have a voice and an instrument, you are welcome in my home.”

This year, with COVID restrictions curtailing President Carter’s plans to celebrate his 96th birthday, a select group of musicians returned the favour with a truly unique birthday tribute. Unable to be welcomed into his home, they filmed themselves in their homes playing instruments made from the Empress (Paulownia) trees President Carter planted 15 years earlier.

Empress is the world’s fastest-growing hardwood; a tree that reaches maturity in 10-12 years and, remarkably, regrows from the stump up to 7 times after harvesting without replanting.

President Carter was an early proponent of this renewable timber resource.

In the fall of 2018, he contacted World Tree, the largest grower of Empress trees in North and Latin America. Together they decided to recruit independent luthiers (artisans skilled in the building of string instruments) to build a unique collection of instruments that would then be auctioned for charity.

To honor the man who first put solar panels on the roof of the White House, who pioneered the growing of Empress trees, and whose solar field powers half the town of Plains, Georgia, the collection has been named The President Carter Legacy Collection.

The President Carter Legacy Collection is comprised of: 4 acoustic guitars, 2 mandolins, 2 ukuleles, and 4 electric guitars. They were lovingly handcrafted by luthiers: Bryan Galloup (Big Rapids, MI), Jason Kostal (Phoenix, Arizona), Jake Maclay (Wheeling, WV), Bernie Funston (Sidney, British Columbia), Beau Hannam (Grand Junction, CO), T. Drew Heinonen (Grand Marais, MN), Silvan Küng (Relish Guitars, Switzerland), and Emerald Guitars in Ireland.

The instruments were then paired with a select group of artists to create a birthday tribute like no other. Chosen for their championing of environmental causes, Eddie Vedder (Pearl Jam), Tom Dumont (No Doubt), Amy Ray and Emily Saliers (The Indigo Girls), Jake Shimabukuro (ukulele virtuoso), Duff McKagan (Guns N’ Roses), Jerry Cantrell (Alice in Chains), Sierra Hull (bluegrass singer-songwriter, mandolinist), and Kristian Bush (Sugarland) filmed themselves each playing an instrument in the collection.

For his 96th birthday, President Carter got to hear what a renewable resource sounds like.

Happy birthday, President Carter. Thank you for your undying commitment to building a sustainable future and a better world for all of us.



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