Jennifer Nettles
Oct 24, 2011
Jennifer Nettles - lead singer of the Mercury Records/Nashville duo Sugarland, has begun a new phase of her longstanding partnership with the Nashville-based Shalom Foundation. Jennifer recently completed her third trip to Guatemala in support of Shalom's mission in the region.
"Shalom likens their service initiatives to a four-legged table: Education, nutrition, homes, and health care," said Nettles "That initial visit, she says, "was my first time being in direct contact with that degree of poverty on a massive level. I connected on an emotional and spiritual level."
This past June, Nettles visited Shalom's new charitable hospital, The Moore Pediatric Surgery Center in Guatemala City, whose construction was made possible thanks to monies collected via Sugarland's four-year-old practice of donating one dollar per ticket to Shalom. She also renewed friendships with local families receiving housing and education assistance from Shalom, and worked alongside Sugarland documentarian Valarie Allyn Bienas to shoot footage of the community for a forthcoming documentary short, a preview of which is available now at www.Sugarlandmusic.com. "I don't want this to be in my words, cause it's not my story," she said. "I wanted to interview these people whose lives had been affected. It's their story to tell, and I feel like we are honored by them sharing it. I just want to be the person who goes, Listen."
Nettles' current focus is Shalom's Medical Program. She is currently working with Shalom to launch a women's health initiative project, and hopes to share more details with the public in the months to come.
Visit www.theshalomfoundation.org to learn more.
By Jim Asker
