Early in September, a couple of Broadjam members contacted me and asked if we could do something special for Nashville Joe. So a bunch a folks got together and bought his downloads on the Broadjam site. We sent him a check in September and his spirit was lifted, but his battle with cancer continues on.

I was traveling to see my mother, who lives a couple of hours from Joe and took a day to drive to Port Charlotte, Florida to see him. I had called, texted and emailed, but didn't receive a response in the few days prior, it was unlike him. So I reached out to a few of ourSusan Witzelmutual friends on Broadjam. Susan Witzel had contacted his sister through Facebook and she forwarded the number of Joe's friend Peter.

Peter has been helping Joe cope on a daily basis and is assisting with the insurances, paperwork and all of the other "life" things that have to be dealt with during times like this. He met Joe a few months back and immediately warmed up to him as well. Peter was thankful that I was coming to see Joe, but after being there, I am so thankful for him. It's people like him that make humanity great. He doesn't have to do this. But he does.

Joe certainly looked like he'd been through the ringer and maybe at times, his mind wanted to throw the towel in. But deep inside, one could still see his heart and soul still fighting the battle. His personality continues to shine and his spirit is as strong as ever. He loves talking about songwriters and the friends he has met along the way. On occasion, I have the opportunity to meet a member who has been on the site for years and sometimes they are a little different than I expected. With Joe, it was exactly as I knew him to be online. There are no pretentions, he is who he is, all the time.