thedrifter
08-15-07, 01:14 PM
Aaron Tippin, a renowned country music performer with five gold albums and one platinum under his belt, came to Headquarters, MarForRes on Aug. 10 to meet with Marines and discuss how he can officially support the Marine Corps Toys for Tots program. After speaking with Col. Lionel J. Rotelli, the MarForRes vice chief of staff, Tippin received an overview brief on the Toys for Tots program and had a teleconference with the Toys for Tots Foundation in Quantico, Va.
An avid supporter of the U.S. military, Tippin visited troops in Saudi Arabia during the Gulf War on a USO tour with Bob Hope in 1990 and has entertained U.S. service members in Afghanistan and Iraq numerous times since the beginning of the Global War on Terror. As national spokesperson for the Paralyzed Veterans of America, Tippin performed a benefit concert in December 2006 to raise funds for the family of Marine Cpl. Jeff Landay of El Dorado Hills, Calif., who was severely injured in Iraq when his vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb in May 2005.
"I just feel like this is a requirement,” said Tippin in a 2006 ABC interview. “We got somebody that went to bat for us and made quite a sacrifice and it's time to stand up and recognize and help out where we can with this family.”
In addition to his personal donations, Tippin raised thousands of dollars for the victims of Hurricanes Rita and Katrina by passing buckets through the crowds at his concerts. He played a free concert in Spanish Plaza in downtown New Orleans the evening of Aug. 10 as part of the opening ceremony for the Disabled American Veterans annual conference. He also cited this performance as his support for “the rebuilding of New Orleans.”
Tippin’s musical hits include "Working Man's Ph.D.," "You've Got to Stand for Something" and “Where The Stars & Stripes & The Eagle Fly,” a song which honors those who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001.
An avid supporter of the U.S. military, Tippin visited troops in Saudi Arabia during the Gulf War on a USO tour with Bob Hope in 1990 and has entertained U.S. service members in Afghanistan and Iraq numerous times since the beginning of the Global War on Terror. As national spokesperson for the Paralyzed Veterans of America, Tippin performed a benefit concert in December 2006 to raise funds for the family of Marine Cpl. Jeff Landay of El Dorado Hills, Calif., who was severely injured in Iraq when his vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb in May 2005.
"I just feel like this is a requirement,” said Tippin in a 2006 ABC interview. “We got somebody that went to bat for us and made quite a sacrifice and it's time to stand up and recognize and help out where we can with this family.”
In addition to his personal donations, Tippin raised thousands of dollars for the victims of Hurricanes Rita and Katrina by passing buckets through the crowds at his concerts. He played a free concert in Spanish Plaza in downtown New Orleans the evening of Aug. 10 as part of the opening ceremony for the Disabled American Veterans annual conference. He also cited this performance as his support for “the rebuilding of New Orleans.”
Tippin’s musical hits include "Working Man's Ph.D.," "You've Got to Stand for Something" and “Where The Stars & Stripes & The Eagle Fly,” a song which honors those who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001.