9 months ago
WASHINGTON (WUSA) --- Her cheery disposition may not prepare you for the power of her lyrics and voice.
With hints of rock combined with American folk, singer and song-writer Catie Curtis says during a performance she stays motivated by interacting and connecting with the crowd.
Curtis found some of that inspiration years ago when a stranger encouraged her to play the guitar.
"A woman gave me the guitar, she said if you promise me you learn to play this, you can have this and I walked away with it an I never saw her again," shares Curtis.
That stranger's name was Lynne or as Curtis calls her, "Lynney".
Lynney would never know just what an impact she had on Curtis's success.
Curtis explains,"Just in my last record I dedicated the record to Lynne.Lynney died the next day."
Later on, Curtis did connect with Lynney's brother and discovered more about the stranger who would go on to become part of her life's inspiration.
She walked away from their visit knowing just how much one person could make a difference.
Curtis explains, "She was an artist, she painted, she cared about connecting with people and so I still feel that it's my role to pay that forward."
And so today she does. Not only with her music but through her organization, "Aspire to Inspire" She places guitars and what she believes is hope in hands that may not realized their full potential.
"There are a lot of kids that don't have someone in their lives. I hope when they play music they'll see that their talent for music is a gift, the guitar was a gift and because that, they need to share that with the world," says Curtis.
Catie Curtis will perform at Birchmere this Friday.
Written By: Lauren Vance WUSA 9NEWS NOW
