When first heard about this singing soldier, I knew he was going to be special from the get-go, but I didn’t know just how special. I think there’s maybe once or twice in your life will you experience something so extraordinarily moving like this. You’re going to want to salute this US Marine and shake his hand by the time he’s finished his powerhouse performance Of course, you’ll feel mighty proud of our country, too.

“God Bless America” has a lot of history behind it. It was originally penned by Irving Berlin as a prayer. It was in 1938 when the “Cher” of the time, Kate Smith gave life to the prayer through song. If you don’t know about this amazing lady, you should. Kate was known as the First Lady of Radio. Wiki says, “She had a radio, television, and recording career spanning five decades, which reached its pinnacle in the 1940s. Smith became known as The Songbird of the South after her enduring popularity during World War II and contribution to American culture and patriotism. ”Irving Berlin needs no introduction. His name is synonymous with the song, but he has an amazing back-story, too. He was originally born “Israel Beilin”. He moved to America with his family from Russia when he was just five years old. Before the age of 30, he wrote hundreds of songs, many becoming major hits. During his 60-year career, he wrote an estimated 1,500 songs, including the pieces for 20 Broadway plays and 15 Hollywood films, with his songs being nominated eight times for Academy Awards. Knowing about that industrious and successful American makes “God Bless America” even more special I think.