KUDOS TO A SHOW OF HEARTS

A woman called the other day, scolding this scribe for "killing trees" to cover the inaugural Rockin' River Music Fest.
Seems this crusty gal is not a fan of "stupid country music” and wanted me, editor and author, to smarten up ASAP.
She snapped, before returning to Jerry Springer's latest educational program: "How do you guys make your decisions to cover stuff anyway?"
Fair question, really.
Once upon a time when newsrooms had bodies, we used to play Spin the Bottle, darts or cards to determine newsworthy events. Now, we either go where there's swag, free food or where the boss's pals are staging functions.
Being editor and making those life-or-EI decisions can be painstaking. People scream, threaten your life or promise to torture and humiliate you. And that's just the staff. Readers can be less forgiving.
Editors used to meet for brewskis and group hugs. It's tougher to do these days because most of the retired ones are in padded cells with arms locked in the cover-thy-butt position, muttering such silly things as HST, Olympic shortfalls, gas taxes, health-care cuts and on time, on budget. Poor souls.
As you read this, I'm in the early stages of a stay-cation. I'm exploring where I'd eventually like to build that padded cell. Several staffers even volunteered to help (wink, wink). But I digress.
While some went to Music Fest last week to listen, to drink, to try out cowboy pick-up lines – "Got eight seconds?” – or to avoid weekend chores, this scribe went out of respect for the artists who do much more than play weekend music in dim-lit honky-tonks.
Take Ken McCoy of Mission. Dude plays some awesome, dirt kickin' music. His songs Georgia on a Fast Train, Praying for Rain and Mexican Jail are solid gold. Larry Delaney, the editor of Country Music News, writes: "How this man's music remains ‘undiscovered’ at a national level remains one of Canadian country music's unanswered questions."
More pure than McCoy’s music, however, is his heart.
When his band played the 2007 West of the Rockies Rodeo in Prince George, McCoy met grief-stricken father Ron McCully, whose 25-year-old son Cpl. Matthew McCully was the 55th Canadian soldier killed in Afghanistan.
Ron couldn't sleep at night and, while never questioning the cause, struggled with the loss. He set up the Matthew McCully Foundation to keep his brave son's name alive and organized groups to send upbeat messages to soldiers unselfishly fighting for our freedoms.
McCoy returned home, hit the studio and wrote Right to be Free, which he performed at Mission Raceway Park to a standing ovation. He has donated proceeds of that passionate song to McCully and has since received letters from all corners of the world for his paying it forward spirit.
Rick Tippe of Maple Ridge, limited to just six songs at Music Fest, is celebrating his 30th wedding anniversary on Monday. His love for wife Bonnie is understandable, given his loyalty to making a difference in this challenging world.
In early 2000, Tippe was asked to write a song for cancer survivor Norma Curzon. The result was Keepin' the Faith, a terrific song of encouragement to fight the good fight one day at a time. Proceeds of the hit have gone to the Canadian Cancer Society as it tries to find a cure for a nasty disease.
So, to the gal who suggested my judgment is whacked, tell Ron McCully or Norma Curzon, or other soldiers and cancer survivors, that I'm wasting time covering a "stupid country music" show.
I can live with that "mistake."