Today is Peter Seeger’s birthday, and he would have turned 100. Pete Seeger is one of my heroes, and it is with sadness that I recall that he passed away six years ago at the age of 94. An inspiring folk singer and daring activist with a deep love and concern for our world, he inspired children and adults around the globe. As a boy, I listened to the record ‘Birds, Beasts, Bugs & Fishes Little & Big: Animal Folk Songs’ until it could be played no more.
It was always special for me to see Pete Seeger perform over the years, and it was a privilege to meet him when my daughter and the Lower School Chorus at Moses Brown School (a N-12 Friends school in Providence, RI) joined him to sing a new song that he had written to honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
“The key to the future of the world is finding the optimistic stories and letting them be known.” (Pete Seeger, 1994)
Pete Seeger has been called “America’s tuning fork.” (President Barack Obama)
More about the life of Pete Seeger can be found at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/29/arts/music/pete-seeger-songwriter-and-champion-of-folk-music-dies-at-94.html?hp&_r=0
What a lovely tribute! Thank you for sharing this!
We got to sing with Pete in a small group of about a dozen at a fracking protest 8 years ago in Albany NY. I will never forget that experience!
I remember a night in Maine, many years ago when we sang Pete Seeger songs while waiting for a group of peace activists to return from spending many years in China. His music and our voices floated over the very dark sea, filling the night with love and hope. Pete was a man who built bridges, and so many of us have walked across them! How grateful I am for remembering.
Thank you the message was the most pleasant I found in my emails today. Peace Mary Starrs
Pete Seeger was a sincere human being. He was a founder in the movement to save the Hudson River from ecological devastation and an ardent advocate for peace during the Viet Nam era. A fair banjo picker too!
So many wonderful songs, a joy for children and adults alike. Thank you for this tribute. We sang his songs on the first BFS trip to Ecuador, way down in the forest in Rio Blanco!
I listened to many of his songs, some of which bring tears. I believe I saw in concert several times one of which was with Arlo Guthrie. Wow what memories