CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A Utah veteran sang the national anthem and threw out the first pitch at a Corpus Christi Hooks game Friday night — the result of a bond formed nine months ago over a song about veterans mental health.
The connection began when Sam Torres, a former Marine Corps sergeant, heard Adam Kelley, a former Army staff sergeant, singing a song called "Grandpa My Hero."
"I was listening when Jenny played it... that song Grandpa My Hero. I was very close to my grandfather and me being a marine and his grandfather being a marine that really just hit home with me. It just really hit me hard," Torres said.
Kelley writes music to raise awareness for veterans mental health, drawing from his own experience. His music is available on Spotify and Apple Music under Adam Kelley.
"As a veteran, I suffer from PTSD just like a lot of veterans do, and I went to a very dark place one time... When I wrote that song, it pulled me out of that hole, and I said if it could pull me out of the hole, imagine another veteran that's out there that can listen to that song and maybe it'll pull them out too," Kelley said.
After hearing the song, Torres felt compelled to act.
"Something inside me lit up and I said we can't just leave this alone, Jenny we have to do something for him... So I made a goal that day. I said, you know what? I'd love to see Adam sing the national anthem somewhere so people can hear his voice and get him out there," Torres said.
That goal became reality Friday night at Whataburger Field, where Kelley performed the national anthem and threw out the first pitch at the Hooks game.
For Kelley, the moment didn't feel real until he arrived in Corpus Christi.
"I really didn't believe it till I got down here, to be honest... I couldn't thank him enough like I still, there's not enough. He's done so much and I just don't know how I could ever thank him and repay him," Kelley said.
Up until the night before the event, the two men had never met in person. Their first meeting at the airport felt like a reunion between old friends.
"When we first saw each other at the airport... it was like two brothers who hadn't seen each other in years. We just hugged each other like, hey man, you made it. It was awesome," Torres said.
Both veterans say the friendship that grew from a single song is one that will last a lifetime.
"It's lifelong friends now, for the rest of our lives we'll be very good friends, you know, knowing that we can be there for each other," Torres said.
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