TWLOHA Teams Up With Hawthorn Heights
Scott & I are very passionate about To Write Love On Her Arms (TWLOHA) because it is becoming something bigger, something hopeful. It’s the realization of what life can be when we commit to meeting a need. This week Jamie the founder of TWOLA had the chance to hang with the guys of Hawthorn Heights. Here’s his amazing story of how together they’re bringing healing to the hurting through a t-shirt.
Hello Hello.
The guys from Bayside are on a list of friends who feel like family. It’s been one of our favorite parts of TWLOHA - the stories that we’ve been invited into and the friends that have become a part of ours, perhaps yourself included. Bayside has spent the last six weeks making a record in Los Angeles and i had the privilege of being there for the grand finale… So Anthony was handed a copy of the final mixes Friday night and we jumped in my little rental car to go meet some friends for dinner.
Anthony puts the CD in and i turn it up and he gives me a little intro for each song. We’re on the 405 north and the sun is low and bright against the hills. The songs are good and so i tell him and it crosses my mind that this is probably one of the cooler things ever to happen in a Dodge Caliber. We get a few songs in and it comes to a place where there’s a whole bunch of people singing. The part really stands out and so i ask him about it.
“How many people are singing there?”
“It’s actually eight, but there’s three tracks for each one so it sounds like 24.”
“Oh, wow, how did you guys pick them? Do you try to find people who can sing?”
“No, because we want it to sound more like a gang than a choir.”
i don’t know why but i really liked that answer… It made me think about the ideas behind those things, and the ways that they’re the same - both perhaps attempts at being less alone. Both made up of people and people made up of so many different things. We all fight and sing.
The friends we met for dinner were Hawthorne Heights, in town with a day off from the Projekt Revolution tour. It was really great to get some time with those guys, to talk about the tour and their new record and what’s new with TWLOHA. We spent some time talking about the Casey shirts - it was so cool to hear the HH guys say how much it means to them to see the shirts on the road every day. The shirts have continued to sell and our plan now is to invest the profit from those shirts into treatment and recovery in Casey’s home state of Ohio. Casey Calvert believed in TWLOHA because he lived with some of the issues we talk about. He wanted people to know about hope and help. This community was amazing in responding to a very real need when Casey died. Sales from the shirts literally covered the funeral expenses so that Casey’s family wouldn’t be stuck worrying about those bills. Your support helped his wife Ashley in a very difficult time. It’s exciting to think now that the initial need was met and it has become an opportunity invest in treatment and recovery in the place that mattered most to Casey. (Editors note - That’s Casey on the left in the picture on this post.)
On Saturday, i spent some time with a guy who’s been in treatment in Los Angeles for the last couple months. TWLOHA has invested over $16,000 in his treatment, and again, you guys have made that possible. This was my third time seeing him and it has been nothing short of amazing to witness the transformation in his life. i remember three months ago, his friends and family were worried for his life. i sat across from him on Saturday, and there was this new clarity and strength. Security. i’ve been thinking a lot about that last one - security perhaps an expression of freedom. Hope realized. The ability to say “i’m okay.” The ability to let go. The ability to keep going. It’s powerful stuff.
This guy is working again, two jobs at the moment. He’s working hard, he’s going to meetings, he’s finding community. He’s reading and writing, finding his own story, believing this is the middle. He’s talking to his kids again. In short, he is fighting the good fight and it’s beautiful to see.
On behalf of a lot of people who love this guy, thank you for making it possible. We’re in all these things together.
Peace to you.
jamie
Now, you too know why Scott and I are so passionate about TWLOHA. If you’re looking for a ministry to get involved with financially, with your time or even just praying for then we would encourage you to check into TWLOHA.
Comments
3 Responses to “TWLOHA Teams Up With Hawthorn Heights”
Leave a Reply
I just want to say thanks for supporting TWLOHA on this blog. I remember reading last year on the absolutepunk.net site when they first heard about Casey. I knew who Hawthorne Heights were but didn’t have any of their music. It just struck me how such an young, full of life person was gone.
I’m a huge supporter of this cause also. I work with the youth at my church and I just witness so much that I’m glad that there is hope out there. It’s just amazing how much this has grown. I make bracelets that have TWLOHA on them with different colors. I just made a huge batch for warped tour and gave them to the staff at the twloha booth. I’d like to make some for you guys.
Just let me know what colors you would like on them and I’ll start making some. Have a good weekend.
Thanks Darlene for being a part of the ST.net family since day 1. We’d love to give out the TWLOHA bracelets that you’re willing to make as part of our monthly comment contest prize pack. What do you think? You can pick the colors and we’d just only need 2 for every month.
That would be so cool. Thanks. I’d love to do that. What is the address to send them. I’m going to start making some this weekend. I want to have some for when school starts also because the students always ask me about them and they give them to their friends also.