Steven Rogers, a stand-up comedian, performs in cities around the United States and Canada. He tours with famous comedians as an opening act. (Mindy Tucker)
If you’re searching for a patriotic comedian for the Fourth of July, Steven Rogers is the perfect choice. Sharing a name with Marvel’s Captain America, there’s more to him than just a clever coincidence.
Roots of a Patriot
His family’s story is a traditional patriotic one, with ancestors immigrating from England and Italy. His mother’s great-grandparents came to America, while his grandmother on his father’s side came over as a baby. “I do have a picture of their Ellis Island entry, which is pretty cool,” he said. Many in Rogers’s family have served in the military, supporting the country that has provided those citizens and later generations with opportunity. His maternal grandfather served in World War II. He says his paternal grandfather was desperate to enlist but couldn’t because of vision issues. Rogers had an uncle in the Air Force and has several cousins in the military.
Rogers expresses his love of country differently—by bringing back a bit of Americana from the golden age of comedy: clean jokes without a political agenda. He recognizes that comedy can unite in a time of political polarization. Many late-night hosts take political stances that drive away half their potential audience. “This is one of the reasons I stay away from it in my act. Everyone’s passionate about the subject, and it can get heated. For me, it never goes in a direction that’s humorous at all.”
Steven Rogers has created comedy specials for Nateland, Nate Bargatze’s company of clean comedians. (Jesse Chieffo)
After high school, he attended community college and worked at a grocery store, which he says wasn’t remotely challenging. “Bored out of my mind? Absolutely.” But there was a silver lining to the job—two, actually: some free time and the realization that he wasn’t cut out for a typical 9-to-5 job. His sense of humor helped him get through it. “I would take the receipt paper from the register and write ideas on the paper. In any free moment, I was trying to think of jokes. And I think it was good for me to be bored.”
Once he chose his career path, he decided to keep the jokes clean.
“First of all, I was heavily inspired by late-night sets, which were all clean. And, I also like the challenge; it forces me to be more creative with restrictions on myself.”
Rogers believes that humor can be found anywhere, even during a medical test. “I got an MRI. That’s where you tell your doctor, ‘Hey, I’m worried I’m gonna die.’ Yeah, don’t worry. We have a machine that looks like a coffin.”
Starting out, he learned not only from other comedians, but also from audiences, not necessarily which jokes worked, but what his true style should be. “I like being silly and cartoonish, and it kind of naturally went that way. It seemed more like my voice. Anytime I strayed away from it in the beginning, the audience let me know pretty quickly—that’s not who you are.”
There was a lot of trial and error in his early performances. “In the beginning, you’re trying all these different hats on, voices. … Who am I? And the audience is super helpful in what they think you are and who you are. And together, we realized clean is my route.” He’s gotten lots of positive feedback on his style. “I have people come up and thank me after, for being clean, and I’m always happy that they’re happy. I like that they can be comfortable and relax and not have to worry if I’m gonna offend.”
Rogers lives in New York City where he likes to celebrate July 4th with friends he’s met on the stand-up circuit. (Noah Stroupe)
A Holiday Tradition
As for the Fourth, you won’t find Steven Rogers on stage, nor many other comedians either. “Fourth of July is my favorite holiday. It’s one that I can always celebrate. … It’s one of the worst days to do stand up. Nobody wants to be indoors. So I can always celebrate guilt free.”
Now living in Queens, New York, he and other comedians have created a tradition.
“We’re from all over the country. We all moved to New York to be comedians. So we get together, go to a baseball game—usually the cheapest one. We do some sort of picnic or cookout, go to the game, and then we’re basically there for the fireworks at the end.”
In the future, Rogers anticipates reflecting on this time in his career and those Fourth of July gatherings with other comedians. “We’re just chasing our dream and doing the best we can, making all these friends along the way. So I love that day very much, and … I’m keeping those memories close.”
Retreating from the rush of his career and
the pressure to be No. 1, Chase Rice is embracing life’s simple joys. (Ben Christensen)
Relax, fans. Country music star Chase Rice isn’t retiring; he’s just slowing down. Way down.
“It kind of hit me on a tour bus last fall that I didn’t want to be on that tour bus. I haven’t taken a break from touring in 13 years. I’m taking one now, and I’m as happy as can be,” he said.
Rice talked to us by phone from his Tennessee home, where he spends his days playing golf and romping with his black lab, Jack. Tough life. “I’m still doing a handful of shows and writing songs.” But the grind of touring is behind him—at least for now.
Rice first came to prominence at age 24 in 2010 as a contestant on “Survivor: Nicaragua.” This kick-started his country music career, first as a songwriter of the diamond-certified single “Cruise,” performed by Florida Georgia Line. From there, he went on to release six studio albums of his own and two No. 1 singles on the Country Airplay chart: “Eyes on You” and “Drinkin’ Beer, Talkin’ God, Amen.”
Rice’s music honors his love for our nation’s freedom and what it means to be American. (Lauren Tucker)
Surely someone once that busy isn’t satisfied just playing golf, right?
“I’ve been renovating the house, and over the winter I hunted deer, elk, and duck with Jack. I got sad when the season was over, and there were no more deer to chase.”
When can we expect Rice to return to the tour circuit?
“I didn’t know how much I needed this break, needed to kick back and slow down. I can’t say I’ll be back with a full tour in 2027. I don’t know. I’m concentrating on living life again. But I’ll get back to full-time at some point.”
He’s in no hurry for “some point” to arrive.
(Ben Christensen)
Finding His Own Voice
Rice still does what he does best—make music—but he’s less pressured to be No. 1.
The change happened a couple of years ago, when he quit the Broken Bow label, went independent, and started producing albums that reflect what he wants to say, rather than what would please corporate headquarters somewhere. The ultimate product of this rediscovery of artistic freedom is the album “ELDORA,” released last year. Rice explained its origins:
“We”—Rice, producer Oscar Charles, and songwriter and friend Wyatt McCubbin—“went to a cabin in Colorado after playing Red Rocks and wrote 10 songs, plus I already had written two others. We didn’t think, ‘Will this be a hit?’ I got caught up in my earlier career with, ‘Where are the radio hits?’ Not that radio is a bad thing, but I think it slows your ability to write good songs when all you think about is hits.” The album’s name, all in capital letters, comes from a sign advertising an abandoned lodge they had passed by. Seeing the old hotel got Rice’s imagination going.
In 12 songs, Rice tells a dozen stories of sorrow, triumph, and lessons learned. The overall tone is nostalgic and a little melancholy with a dollop of hope. Among them: “Cowboy Goodbye,” Rice’s tribute to his musical hero George Strait, compares the life of a cowboy to that of a musician. “Mr. Coors” relates the tale of an immigrant who founded a certain brewery. “Naming Horses” contemplates the possibility of a lifelong relationship. “One Drink Long” is about the pull of returning to a former love. The tragic, fictional backstory of the title song involves an abortion.
Rice enjoys hunting, working in the great outdoors, and telling stories through his music. (Kaiser Cunningham)
Rice’s favorite song on the album, which he says is also his favorite of all the songs he’s written so far, is “Circa 1943.” The story of his grandparents’ meeting. It begins:
Harold met Berniece circa 1943 That bullet to the leg nearly took him but it took him to her He sure smiled when he came to, looking up into baby blues She said gunny you’re lucky it could’ve been a whole lot worse
“I love looking back on life, and I love that World War II generation,” Rice said. “I love thinking about other people’s stories. I don’t know what country music is anymore, but my music is about telling stories. Most are true-life stories; some mix in a little fiction.”
His new single release, “Connie Lou,” released in May, is a lively evocation of his mother. An old woman in the corner, knitting mittens? Definitely not. Rice’s mom was a “dance hall belle” with “that cowgirl thing.” His musical tribute to her is as upbeat and as drunk on life as the general tone of “ELDORA” is sober.
“Connie Lou” and his ongoing concert schedule show that Rice can still make music while taking it easy.
(Kaiser Cunningham)
Proud to Be an American
Rice’s newfound independence as a singer-songwriter is mirrored by his admiration for the greater independence of the United States.
“People get up in arms about politics and stuff. All this bickering is a shame. At the end of the day, what’s important is recognizing that this country is insanely special. And it’s important that we recognize the people who have fought for this country. We don’t have freedom without them,” Rice said.
A framed quote from Ronald Reagan hangs in his dining room. It reads: “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. … It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same.”
Rice added: “We need to keep fighting for freedom.”
For Rice, it means fighting for the right to express the ideals, goals, and history of Americans. It means telling stories that link us to the Americans who have gone before, a job Chase Rice intends to keep doing.
Matthew Spalding, professor and dean at Hillsdale College, is the author of "The Making of the American Mind: The Story of Our Declaration of Independence," among other books. (Courtesy of Hillsdale College)
Certain childhood events leave a lasting impact on our lives, with memories that stay with us. For Matthew Spalding, it was a birthday celebration. Not his own, but America’s.
On July 4, 1976, the United States celebrated its bicentennial, and Spalding, who was then a middle school student in California, felt swept away by the festivities. The tall ships, the parades, the Freedom Train rolling through his valley, all of it made a powerful impression on him. His mother even took him to the bank to get a special two-dollar bill, issued as a commemorative, which she later had stamped at the post office with that memorable date.
“I kind of liked history,” he recalled, “but that really got me interested in American history.”
The Path to Academia
His budding interest flourished a decade later during another historical milestone, the Constitution’s bicentennial, when he was in college. These formative experiences paved the way for his journey into studying the nation’s foundational ideas.
Today, Spalding serves as the Kirby Professor in constitutional government and the dean of the Van Andel Graduate School of Government at Hillsdale College. He also serves as senior academic adviser for America250 projects and has authored several works on the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, including his latest book, “The Making of the American Mind: The Story of Our Declaration of Independence.”
However, Spalding’s path to academia was not straightforward. Although he earned a doctorate in politics, he initially had no plans to pursue a teaching career. Rather, his goal was to “teach in the public square as a writer and speaker.” He took a job with the Heritage Foundation, where he led education initiatives focused on American history and constitutional thought. His first books recommended that the ideas of the Declaration and Constitution form the basis of contemporary political thought.
Teaching came to him later. Through his friendship with the president of Hillsdale College, he was recruited to help establish the college’s Washington campus. Spalding says the opportunity to teach and write was a perfect fit for his talents; the classroom became a fertile ground for his ideas to thrive.
The Ideas Behind the Founding
In “The Making of the American Mind,” Spalding takes readers through the Declaration of Independence, examining the political, legal, and philosophical ideas behind its most significant passages.
“I am not sure exactly when it was that I fell in love with my country,” he begins. “We each have our own story. I invite you to join me in falling in love with America again, or perhaps for the first time.”
The book explores the origins of the Founders’ ideas, tracing them back to the long history of British constitutional law, from the 1215 signing of the Magna Carta to the Glorious Revolution, as well as the impact of thinkers like John Locke, Edward Coke, and William Blackstone. These influences led the Founders to conclude that, by imposing taxes and laws without the Colonists’ consent or representation, Parliament had exceeded its powers. “The Americans concluded that Parliament had become the very font of the arbitrary powers England had rejected in 1688,” which permanently transformed the country from an absolute to a constitutional monarchy.
However, Spalding highlights that the Declaration surpasses mere British precedent. Its assertion that all men are created equal and endowed with unalienable rights is rooted in the “Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God.” The Founders, he argues, drew not only on legal traditions but also on the classical ideas of Plato, Aristotle, and Cicero, as well as on biblical teachings. They understood liberty as inherent to human nature.
“Scene at the Signing of the Constitution of the United States” by Howard Chandler Christy, 1940.
This grounding, according to him, sets the American Revolution apart from others. Instead of trying to dismantle society, as the French revolutionaries attempted, the Founders opposed what they perceived as genuine abuses of power, creating a system grounded in principles that have withstood the test of time.
Spalding also acknowledges the importance of religion in the founding process: “It is unfathomable that a Congress that publicly prayed together and worshipped together and issued proclamations calling for days of prayer and fasting would approve an anti-religious or even a purely secularized Declaration.” The belief in divinely granted rights reflects a worldview that is central to the Declaration itself.
For Spalding, these ideas are not just relics of the past. They remain crucial for understanding contemporary America. While today’s political discourse often emphasizes the immediate, he argues that both the Declaration and Constitution provide a profound framework that defines America as a self-governing republic based on universal principles of equality and liberty.
He sees the upcoming 250th anniversary of the nation as an opportunity to revisit these principles. “This is not just a one-off moment. We have the attention of a lot of Americans who might not necessarily be already engaged in these questions. … We might have the opportunity to try to teach them something.” That renewed focus, says Spalding, might spark a broader conversation about the country’s core values and their enduring relevance.
In this way, the book serves as both a historical exploration and an invitation to reconnect readers with the foundational ideas that shaped the nation, perhaps through a fresh lens.
Spalding still has that two-dollar bill, which features Thomas Jefferson on the front and the signing of the Declaration of Independence on the back. In retrospect, it’s a fitting keepsake for a scholar who has spent his career studying the ideas behind both.
A portrait of Dorothy Quincy before her marriage to Founding Father John Hancock, circa 1772, by John Singleton Copley. (Public Domain)
What I’ve come to appreciate in my own life is that family culture and behavioral traits are passed down through the generations. For as long as I can remember, I knew I was the five times great-nephew of John Hancock, one of the Founding Fathers and major financiers of our nation. My mother would make references to her ancestors and told me brief stories of our family’s past. John Hancock married into the Quincy family, my family.
I found unfathomable narratives in history books, reading them like heroic fairy tales: the Battles of Lexington and Concord, the Battle of Bunker Hill, and the Siege of Boston, just to name a few. Each conflict strengthened the Quincy and Hancock family bond. I marveled; why did John Hancock and his wife Dolly risk everything to help establish a nation rooted in liberty?
John and Dolly had two children who sadly didn’t survive to adulthood. Dorothy “Dolly” Quincy was the aunt, godmother, and namesake to my maternal great-great-great-grandmother, Dorothy Sewall May. Dolly was descended from a deacon, a reverend, a colonel, and a judge across the generations. The Quincys were a quintessentially New England family all the way to my mother, Margaret, who was born and raised in Massachusetts.
Today, when I read books and letters, both about and by my ancestors, I am reminded of the Quincy and May character that lived in my mother. Above all, it’s their integrity that stands out, and it’s undoubtedly a strength that’s founded on their Christian faith. The history behind my mother’s bloodline also reminded me that it wasn’t just the Founding Fathers who risked everything, but they did so with their wives supporting them in a plethora of ways.
I grew to appreciate that the American Revolutionary War is inextricably linked to the Colonists’ belief in God’s righteousness. Our Founding Fathers had two choices: to establish that all our rights come from men and man’s law; or to establish natural law, the idea that all our rights are God-given. From the fervent prayers at the first Continental Congress to the way natural law is the foundation of America’s legal system, God’s name has been invoked as our claim to freedom and liberty. This was established in the opening text of the Declaration of Independence, that our rights as citizens are not derived from the government, but rather “endowed by our Creator.”
Deep spiritual faith also endured in Dorothy Sewall May’s husband, Col. Joseph May. I actively searched for his will and last testament as if seeking a hidden treasure, a clue to the mysteries of my ancestors. In his final words, he movingly wrote, “I desire to record my gratitude to Almighty God for his singular favor to me through life … mercifully visited as it has pleased him, with a share of disappointments and bereavements: but always sustained by unwavering confidence in his wisdom, which cannot err, and in his goodness, which is unchangeable and everlasting.” Col. May outlived his wife and several children, so for me, this sentence sums up his steadfast faith in God. He dutifully led his family spiritually and supported his son, Samuel Joseph May, through his Harvard University education. Samuel eventually became a reverend, devoted abolitionist, and suffragist from the 1830s until his death in 1871.
Although my mother lived her Christian faith fully, she kept it private. She led by example. And as far as I know, my mother not once missed her right to vote her entire adult life, knowing what her ancestors had sacrificed.
After two decades as the wife of a U.S. Army colonel and diplomat, she was denied healthcare after an unwanted divorce. She fought the legal system all the way to the U.S. Congress and won. She led the way and had a determined courage for justice. I admire that about her. For all my ancestors, their Christian faith carried them through turbulent times.
Examining my mother’s handbag after her death, I was surprised to find a note written in her unsteady handwriting, where she had inscribed the Ten Commandments and the Seven Deadly Sins. I knew she wanted those reminders to strive to live a life worthy of honoring God. My mother always had a strong sense of right and wrong, an audacity for justice. I believe that was carried through her from her ancestors, who risked everything to help create a freer nation 250 years ago.
Today, all Americans are beneficiaries of this heritage, the idea that serving God faithfully is what championed our freedom. My mother didn’t tell me too much about our family history; it was already imbued in her life. It’s that part of her, woven into the tapestry of my family’s Christian heritage, that I cherish the most.
Holly Worthington, left, and Emily Jones, co hosts of “The Miracle Files” podcast. (Heather Guirrini/Artistic images by Heather)
True crime podcasts are incredibly popular. And almost all of them have one thing missing.
A happy ending.
Sure, depending on your point of view there’s often justice or closure. But what about those crimes that fall into a different category—because of what might be perceived as divine intervention?
‘The Miracle Files’
Sisters Holly Worthington and Emily Jones noticed this. Big fans of true crime podcasts, they realized that listening to those tales was beginning to feel dark and depressing. So they set out to find suspenseful, action-packed stories from real people with positive endings. Emily recalled the day they got the idea to do something different. “I called Holly, and she said she wasn’t listening to them anymore.” Holly said, “I felt like I needed to find some entertainment that was more uplifting.” They both searched for podcasts with a more positive tone, but they couldn’t find anything that fit their needs.
And like the old saying goes, when you need something done right, you do it yourself. So they set out to fill a void in the world of podcasting, but with a twist.
Emily wanted to add another element—gripping accounts that offered the possibility that a miracle was involved, that God somehow intervened in a crime or serious accident to make things right. The result is “The Miracle Files,” a regular podcast produced and hosted by the siblings since November 2023. Holly calls them “stories that end in a miracle instead of a murder.”
One recent podcast recounted the day San Francisco 49ers rookie wide receiver Ricky Pearsall was shot three times in a broad daylight mugging. The player escaped death and made a miraculous recovery. A guardian angel was nearby in the form of a police sergeant who held the bleeding football player in her arms, put pressure on the wound, and told him, “It’s not your time. God is with us right now.”
The bullets missed every vital organ and the spinal cord, which Pearsall’s doctor said was “a one in a million shot to miss all those.”
Worthington and Jones are sisters who have always felt close to one another. (Heather Guirrini/Artistic images by Heather)
Unseen Hands
So what “qualifies” as a miracle? Emily says, “It’s something that maybe shouldn’t have happened, and it’s clear that God intervened to change the outcome to His will. Extraordinary events that you can’t explain with science and you can’t explain with logic. That there’s a higher power at work.”
A young man fell 230 feet off a cliff in Australia’s outback, laid unconscious overnight, and survived with relatively minor injuries. Emily and Holly described each twist and turn of his events expertly; from a rescue call where cell service should not exist, to weather that seemed heaven-sent to preserve the boy’s brain from swelling, nearly everything about this episode seemed miraculous.
Holly thinks, “There are these amazing experiences that people have which show that God is real and they can’t deny it. There is some kind of divine intervention.”
It’s not like we hear of miracles every day. So how do the sisters find these inspirational stories? Holly says the stories find them. “Well, first off, we have an amazing audience who send us incredible stories. And of course, these are God’s stories. There are so many stories that never get reported in the news.”
All in the Family
Despite their 12-year age difference, the sisters have always been close. Holly is the oldest of five children while Emily is the youngest. Growing up in Idaho Falls, Idaho (which Holly calls “the frozen tundra”), Holly would do Emily’s hair when she was little. The bond continued when Holly went off to college. The sisters wrote letters to each other, and Emily would come and stay with Holly in her dorm.
While they had no experience producing podcasts, they did possess the necessary skills. Holly is a writer who has written for magazines while Emily was a wedding videographer who had a great deal of experience editing. Basically, they had the skill set of a television news crew.
So far, they’ve done more than 60 podcasts as it has turned into a full time job for both. Emily feels they’re very different from what you’d normally find online. “It’s not a typical podcast where you interview people. We produce it. We call it a movie in your ear. A theater for your mind.” The use of suspenseful storytelling, sound effects, and music heightens the telling.
(Heather Guirrini/Artistic images by Heather)
When putting the podcast together, Holly writes the script, then gets it approved by the people who experienced the miracle. Emily then edits the story while adding music and sound effects. They strive for a really powerful but also an entertaining experience. For the shorter Miracle in the News stories, they sort through the day’s news. Holly says if you want to see a miracle, you don’t have to go far. “They really are everywhere if we have eyes to see.”
Growing Faith
They’ve made it a point to not get into politics or specific religions because they want the podcast to appeal to everyone. Holly said, “No one religion has a monopoly on God’s miracles. People have told us our podcast feels like a safe place where they can come and hear about God.” Emily agreed. “Anybody who wants to come and see the goodness of God and celebrate His miracles, we want [them] to feel welcome.”
The response has been huge, as the podcasts get about 100,000 downloads per month and are often in the top 100 podcasts in the religion and spirituality charts. Globally, “The Miracle Files” ranks in the top 1 percent of podcasts with about 400,000 followers, with about a 30 percent growth each month.
Beyond the numbers, the sisters feel the podcast is making a difference. Holly feels loyalty is a key factor. “We see how people who are loyal to God are willing to be used as instruments of his hand in helping other people.” One of her favorite responses came from a viewer who told her, “I go back and forth about whether there is a God. But your podcast makes me want to believe there is a God. It brings me one step closer.”
Emily said, “If it can help people feel closer to God, that’s what our podcast is for.”
Jackson TerKeurst was adopted from war-torn Liberia after joining a Christian choir group. (Robby Klein)
In 1996, 7-year-old Cammue Mendawe Gweh was running through a jungle in war-torn Liberia to escape death after rebel soldiers attacked his village, burned the huts, and killed many of his neighbors. Rescued from certain death by his mother’s sister, Aunt Kemah, the pair spent months hiding and foraging for food. With his Liberian family scattered and likely dead, an uncle brought him to an orphanage in the town of Gbarnga.
There, a woman from his tribe renamed him Jackson Kofi after the trauma caused him to forget his own name. This new name had belonged to a pastor’s beloved son, who had drowned, and it was this man, Pastor Kofi of the African Christians Fellowship International, who would become one of the miracle workers in the boy’s life.
As a child, TerKeurst lived in an orphanage called Monrovia Home. There, he and other orphans prayed before their meals. (Courtesy of Jackson TerKeurst)
Today, Cammue is 36-year-old Jackson TerKeurst, living in Nashville, Tennessee. He recounts his remarkable story of surviving trauma and being adopted in the United States in his book, “The Only Way Forward Is Back: A Story of War, Adoption, and Finding Your Purpose in God’s Plan.” His faith grows stronger amid upheaval and change, allowing him to overcome his pain. “The civil war took everything—my home, my family, my childhood. I watched things no child should ever see. But even in the rubble, God preserved my life,” TerKeurst said. “That season shaped the foundation of my faith—not because I had all the answers, but because I desperately needed something to believe in. It was the beginning of a long journey from survival to purpose.”
How TerKeurst ended up in America was fortuitous. In the orphanage where TerKeurst lived, Pastor Kofi encouraged all his churchgoers to sing. With some friends, the teenager formed an a cappella choir. They seriously practiced their music, and they subsequently won the attention of an American mission group that arranged for them to visit the United States and raise awareness about the suffering in Liberia.
“One of my favorites from those days is a song called ‘Still Have Joy,’” TerKeurst recalled. “In the middle of war, loss, and heartbreak, that song reminded me of what Scripture teaches—that joy isn’t based on circumstances; it’s rooted in the presence of God. Even in the orphanage, when all we had to drink was warm water for a week at a time in place of a hot meal, we still chose joy,” he said.
New Family, New Land, New Story
In recounting his trip to the United States from Liberia, TerKeurst compared the poverty and hunger he’d endured with the comfortable lifestyle and amenities most Americans take for granted. He related these encounters—his flight on the airplane, being met with cold weather at the airport, his shock and surprise at all the buildings and highways—with humor and wit. When he first visited a Kentucky Fried Chicken, for example, “it smelled so good that at first we thought it was an African restaurant in America. And this guy just brought buckets and buckets of chicken to our table, and we just had the whole thing. I put some in my pocket and took it in the car with me.”
For nearly a year, the choir traveled across America singing in churches. But with their visas nearing their expiration date, this chapter in TerKeurst’s life seemed about to close.
TerKeurst got married in October 2016. (Courtesy of Jackson TerKeurst)
One evening, Christian author and speaker Lysa TerKeurst and her three daughters attended one of the Liberian Acapella Boys Choir concerts. One of her daughters was studying Liberia as a Girl Scout project, and Lysa thought it would be a good experience for her and her sisters to meet Liberians in person. That was the night her heart was moved. Urged on by her daughters, she and her then-husband Art began discussing adopting not just TerKeurst but his good friend Mark, too.
He called his adoption “one of the greatest miracles.” Back at the orphanage, “I prayed and cried to God for years, asking Him to give me a family. A second chance. A place where I could feel safe, loved, and chosen. That kind of hope felt impossible at times—but God heard every one of those prayers,” he said.
The miracle didn’t end there. Lysa brought the boys’ choir to her own church. With the help of her friends and the congregation, nearly all the young men of that choir found homes in Charlotte, North Carolina.
TerKeurst and his wife, Amanda, decided to pursue in vitro fertilization and, in 2024, welcomed twins. (Courtesy of Jackson TerKeurst)
More Blessings
With Lysa’s help, TerKeurst caught up on his education and graduated from high school at age 21. Art owned several Chick-fil-A franchises and employed TerKeurst at one of them. “Working behind the registers at Chick-fil-A taught me how to be a servant leader,” he recalled. Then, he applied to college and got accepted at Tennessee’s Union University, where he majored in business management. That’s where he met his future wife, Amanda.
That name derives from Latin and means “loving.” The nursing student, introduced to TerKeurst by a friend, became his biggest supporter. “She stood by me every step of the way, and she encouraged me to seek out help, to go to therapy, to find counsel and trusted friends. She is my wife and best friend. Seeing when I was going in the wrong direction, she was able to grab me and say, ‘Hey, sweetheart, you’re going to run in the wrong direction. This is where God wants you to go.’”
For years after their marriage, the couple longed for children, but they could not conceive. They finally pursued in vitro fertilization. Over six years passed before their prayers and tears were answered with the birth of twins, a boy and a girl. TerKeurst said: “The best thing about being a dad to Legend and Londyn is knowing that I get to give them what I never had: security, love, and a sense of belonging. Every time they run into my arms or call me ‘Daddy,’ it reminds me that God is using me to break generational curses.”
TerKeurst’s children, Londyn and Legend. (Courtesy of Jackson TerKeurst)
Lessons Shared
In addition to his commitments to God, his wife and children, and his professional work, he also spends time helping others who have suffered major trauma, which is one reason he wrote his book about his adoption journey. He advises them to “first, give yourself grace. Healing takes time to process your pain.” He urges them to seek help through sharing with a trusted friend or family. “Don’t suffer in silence. Trauma doesn’t define you. It’s part of your journey, but not the whole story. You are stronger than you think and hope is still possible.”
TerKeurst is grateful for how God has led him to be in America, where he is truly free. Through raising his family, “I’m building a new bloodline—one rooted in faith, wholeness, and legacy,” he said. “I get to witness the beginning of something brand new.”
Dr. Chauncey Crandall is the director of preventive medicine and cardiology at The Palm Beach Clinic in Florida. (Adhiraj Chakrabarti for American Essence)
One October morning in 2006, renowned cardiologist Dr. Chauncey Crandall made an unexpected decision that would ultimately save a patient’s life. It wasn’t his Yale medical training or experience that guided Crandall, but faith.
The patient was a heavy-set, 53-year-old man named Jeff (last name omitted to protect his privacy) who was admitted to a Palm Beach Hospital emergency room after he suffered a massive heart attack. Crandall was the senior cardiologist on duty. Medical staff had been working on Jeff for nearly 40 minutes and had shocked his chest with a defibrillator six times by the time Crandall responded to the Code Blue call. Despite several attempts to start his heart, Jeff had flatlined, and his fingers and toes were turning black due to the lack of oxygen. Crandall officially declared him dead at 8:05 a.m.
A nurse began taking out the tubes and IVs from Jeff’s body when Crandall said he suddenly received a command from God to shock him one last time. Staff questioned Crandall’s judgment, but he pleaded with them to try again. With one final shock (and prayers from Crandall for Jeff’s soul), Jeff’s heart soon beat a strong and regular rhythm. Within days, he was sitting up in bed and talking.
Prayer in Medicine
While the modern medical institution is one firmly rooted in science and solid evidence, Crandall makes room in his practice for divine intervention. He said God has spoken to him while working with patients many times over the course of his 40 years practicing medicine, and he has witnessed numerous miracles.
Crandall with Jeff, who was declared dead after suffering a cardiac arrest but was revived after Crandall prayed for his soul. (Courtesy of Dr. Chauncey Crandall)
“When I started praying with people in the medical clinics and in the operating rooms, I started seeing positive results: that people were coming back to life, that there was new hope, that anxiety and fear were disappearing,” he said.
While Crandall’s perspective may sound unusual for a leading modern cardiologist, doctors of the past often cultivated a connection with the divine. In many cultures, prayer and healing have had an ancient relationship that still persists today.
Crandall didn’t always observe this relationship, though. Before he was talking with God in the operating room, he had a pretty conventional medical career. He received his medical degree and a post-doctorate in cardiac research at the Yale University School of Medicine. Later, he continued studies at Harvard University.
After graduating, he landed a job at the Medical College of Virginia, where he ran a heart transplant program. It was here that Crandall discovered that there were healing forces far beyond what he had learned in medical school.
A patient in the critical care unit was doing so poorly for so long that staff anticipated pulling the plug on him. Crandall was sitting at the nurse’s station when he saw someone enter this patient’s room and say a prayer. “I was at a distance, but I could hear their prayers, and there was a sweetness and power about it. I felt the Holy Spirit in that room, and two days later, that man who was considered brain-dead woke up, and eventually he left the hospital alive. I believe it was because of the prayers,” Crandall said.
Crandall treating and praying for a young boy in Haiti. He fully recovered from a parasitic illness. (Courtesy of Dr. Chauncey Crandall)
Later, Crandall came across another seemingly hopeless case: A patient who had been waiting for a new heart for months was at the end of his rope. “He was so weak he couldn’t lift his head off the pillow,” Crandall recalled. “I walked into his room, and he said, ‘I want to die. Take me off the medicines.’” Thinking about the prayer that appeared to revive a brain-dead patient earlier that year, Crandall offered to give this patient a prayer of his own.
“I didn’t know what to pray. I just used the name of Jesus,” Crandall said. “But within just a short few days, that man was able to sit up in bed. And a week or two later, he was able to get out of bed and walk. Not before too long, that man was able to walk down the hallways, and he left that hospital not needing a heart transplant.”
Over time, Crandall added more prayer to his practice, and he later aimed to pray for each patient he saw. Eventually, this required hiring a couple of ministers to make it through the busy day. But Crandall said it has all been well worth the effort.
Over the years, Crandall has seen numerous cases of patients with end-stage heart disease recover. “About 99.9 percent of them all get better because we give them hope. I treat them with the best medicine that’s available out there. But we also pray for them. We tell them that God is real, that if they have faith and they believe that we can get over this difficulty, and they can see themselves victorious. That changes the whole dynamic,” he said.
Crandall in Haiti giving medical care to a patient who was crushed by a fallen structure during the major earthquake in 2010. (Courtesy of Dr. Chauncey Crandall)
Some of the miraculous stories from Crandall’s clinical experiences, as well as patient reports of the afterlife, can be found in his books “Touching Heaven” and “Raising the Dead.” “Many of my patients have gone ahead and have come back,” Crandall said. They’ve described brilliant colors and roads full of gold. They’ve seen flowers like they’ve never seen before.”
Medical Missionary
Crandall had his own spiritual reckoning years ago that put his faith to the test. His 11-year-old son Chad was diagnosed with a rare blood cancer in 2000, and although Chad received the best treatment that modern medicine had to offer and saw the best faith healers Crandall could find, he died four years later.
Crandall with his wife and two sons. Chad (second from left) died of cancer when he was 15 years old. (Courtesy of Dr. Chauncey Crandall)
“We saw many miracles in that time. I would pray over him, and the next day, a tumor that had been as big as a baseball would be gone from his chest, or the blood work which would be abnormal the week before, would return to normal after prayer. We saw many miracles in his life. They only gave him three months to live, and he lived four years,” Crandall said.
But after so many years, and so many glimmers of hope, Chad’s death at first felt like a betrayal from God.
“I wanted to turn from Him. I felt like I had such great belief in Him and faith that he could heal my child. I picked my son’s dead body up out of that bed, and I held it in my arms. I rocked that body for about an hour and a half, crying and calling out to God. I said, ‘Lord, You are so much greater than this disease, this death. You can return his spirit to his body. He can be alive,”’ Crandall said. “He was just the sweetest child.”
As he grieved his son’s death, Crandall said he found his calling. Through his own suffering, Crandall vowed to dedicate his life to giving hope to others who are struggling. He encouraged others to reconcile their faith amid any pain they’ve endured. “I think a lot of people run to God when there is a big problem. But they have no foundation in God before that time, no strength. So when the situation turns bad, they hate God because they don’t have any foundation to anchor them in the truth,” Crandall said.
Today, as the director of preventive medicine and cardiology at The Palm Beach Clinic in Florida, Crandall sees many wealthy patients who seek out his holistic, spirit-centered approach. But as a medical missionary, Crandall has also traveled to some of the poorest regions of the world to help treat people. He said in these places, he has to rely on faith even more.
The doctor in Haiti giving medical care to a patient who was crushed by a fallen structure during the major earthquake in 2010. (Courtesy of Dr. Chauncey Crandall)
“When I go to the third world, where we have no medicines, really, we deeply depend on the Lord and the supernatural in these situations,” he said. For example, in 2010, a massive earthquake in Haiti led to a cholera epidemic a year later. Crandall said God called him to go and help. “I arrived in Haiti at a camp where there were 12 huge military tents that held about 16 people each. The man running the camp was part of an NGO out of California, and he had to go away for two weeks, so I took over the camp.”
Conditions at the camp were bleak, and resources were scarce. Everyone in the critical care tent was on the edge of death. But Crandall’s faith remained strong. “I stood inside that tent, which was about 110 degrees, and I looked up to heaven.” He prayed for his patients. “Over a period of two weeks, not one person died in that camp, whereas before, two and three people were dying a day.”
The doctor has been on many medical missionary trips to help treat the less fortunate. Here, he prays for and treats a woman with heart failure in the British West Indies. (Courtesy of Dr. Chauncey Crandall)
For the Health of America
Despite compelling reports of the power of prayer, Crandall said that very few of his colleagues openly support its role in medicine. Some actively discourage it. He added that some of his fellow physicians have even stopped giving him referrals because they felt his praying for patients was not appropriate behavior for a medical professional.
“The thing is, every doctor has seen a miracle. They don’t know how to explain it. They don’t know how to even talk about it,” he said.
It wasn’t always this way. It was common belief during ancient times that illness and recovery were guided by unseen forces. More recently, Crandall recalled that when he first began medical school, some of the older nurses told him they could tell when a patient was ready to die. They would sit in the room, wait by the body, and watch the spirit leave. Then, they would get the patient ready for the morgue. “We don’t talk about it much anymore, but God is real,” Crandall said.
(Adhiraj Chakrabarti for American Essence)
In addition to his faith-based way of practicing medicine, Crandall has also recently focused on the more practical aspects of health, by addressing the current chronic disease epidemic in America. In November last year, he published “Make America Healthy Again (MAHA): A Blueprint for a Thriving Nation,” providing suggestions to people, communities, and local governments on how to motivate people to make better lifestyle choices and alleviate the current burden on the healthcare system.
“I think doctors and hospitals have gotten away from that, and we need to get back to the basics of taking care of people, instead of throwing all these medicines and vaccines at them,” Crandall said. “I can give you a new heart. I can open an artery with a stent. I can prevent heart attacks by putting you on medications, but I started realizing that we needed to look more at prevention.”
When it comes to improving health, Crandall recommends all the things you would expect from a doctor, such as eating a healthy diet, getting regular exercise, improving sleep, and reducing stress. But he also believes that things like gratitude and prayer can benefit our physical health. He said, “I find that people of faith seem to navigate better through life and live longer and happier.”
(Adhiraj Chakrabarti for American Essence)
Dr. Crandall’s Prescription for Better Mental Health in the Modern World
Create a Daily Mindfulness Practice
Incorporate meditation, deep breathing, or gratitude exercises into your routine to reduce stress and improve mental clarity
Recognize the Impact of Digital Overload
Set boundaries for social media and screen time to prevent information fatigue, anxiety, and negative mental health effects
Prioritize Work-Life Balance
Establish clear boundaries between work and personal life to prevent burnout and maintain emotional well-being
Recognize the Connection Between Diet and Mental Health
Consume nutrient-dense foods rich in omega-3s, magnesium, and B vitamins to support brain function and mood regulation
Develop Emotional Intelligence
Improve self-awareness and interpersonal relationships by actively managing emotions, improving communication, and practicing empathy
Engage in Regular Physical Activity for Mental Health Benefits
Exercise has been shown to reduce depression, anxiety, and stress, making it a crucial tool for overall mental well-being
Build a Support Network
Surround yourself with positive relationships, seek community engagement, and maintain social connections to foster resilience against mental health struggles
Set Healthy Boundaries in Relationships
Learn to say no, limit exposure to toxic individuals, and prioritize interactions that contribute positively to mental well-being
Jessica Ronne created a group home in West Michigan for children with special needs. (Courtesy of Jessica Ronne)
When Jessica was pregnant, she got tough news from her doctor: Her unborn child would either not survive, or have severe special needs. Fortunately her son Lucas did survive, though he faced many physical challenges: level 3 autism, intellectual disability, Chiari malformation, hydrocephalus, scoliosis, low muscle tone, and low vision. He would require round-the-clock care for the rest of his life.
Five years later, Jessica was slammed with another challenge: Her husband Jason, age 30, passed away. The Michigan-based widow accepted life as a single mom of four children. At least, until a prayer at her husband’s funeral: “My mother-in-law, Jason’s mom, actually pulled me aside at the funeral and said, ‘Jess, I just want you to know I’m praying for your next husband.’ I thought, I don’t think I’m anywhere near even thinking about that, but you know, that would be great someday.”
Apparently, some prayers go to the top of the stack.
Shortly after the funeral, Jessica started posting about her experiences on her blog. A reader reached out, telling her about an Oklahoma man named Ryan Ronne with three children, who had recently become a widower. The reader suggested they get in touch to share experiences. They started swapping emails, then met.
Though Lucas has severe physical and mental challenges, he has impeccable timing in matters of the heart. He only has about 30 words in his vocabulary, but he used the perfect one when he met Ryan for the first time: “Dada.” The kid was a matchmaker! Jessica and Ryan were engaged a few months later and now share a life together as husband and wife. They later welcomed a child of their own.
Ronne, her husband Ryan, and their entire blended family. (Courtesy of Jessica Ronne)
Caregiving 24/7
As Lucas got older, the Ronnes started experiencing the physical and emotional toll of taking care of him 24/7. “We weren’t made to live in survival mode year after year,” Jessica said. Their other children would take over and give them an occasional date night so they could recharge.
Looking back on her journey as a caregiver, Jessica recalls her original discussion with her first husband Jason before Lucas was born. “My husband and I went out for dinner, and I saw a 20-year-old, profoundly disabled young woman in a wheelchair with her parents, and she was drinking from a sippy cup. I said to Jason, ‘I don’t want that. I can’t handle that. I even went home and wrote that in my journal. ‘God, if that’s your plan, that’s not the right plan. I can’t do that.’ That’s exactly what I got.”
It turned out she could do that. What she “got” was a child who simply needed some extra care as he fit right into the family. “I just accepted Luke as Luke and thought, we’ll fight for him to have the best life he can have.” She has relied on her faith over the years. “The Lord did sustain me for 20 years and continues to change me through the blessing of being able to raise Lucas.”
Ronne speaks at events to raise awareness about the challenges caregivers face. (Courtesy of Jessica Ronne)
She hopes to address the shortage of caregivers, both paid and volunteer, who are willing to help parents of children with special needs. “It would be wonderful if people became aware of the problem and wanted to help by volunteering, but the issue with the caregiver shortage is really a problem with the wages the caregivers are paid.” It’s a hard, high-responsibility profession, with poor retention and high turnover, that earns little respect and pays a low wage—about $14 an hour.
The Way Forward
Deep concern still plagued Jessica and kept her awake a night: “The question that haunts parents like me is, what happens to my child when I die?”
So the Ronnes worked on a solution. Recently, they opened a group home for those with special needs. Lucas, now 20, shares it with three others, while two of their older children live close enough to monitor the situation. A home health care agency provides care 24/7, while church volunteers organize activities for the residents. Jessica said Lucas enjoys going on outings with the others. While she and Ryan visit often, they now have time for themselves and their other children.
The experience raising Lucas left Jessica with something she never expected—her son with a 30-word vocabulary turned out to be a teacher. “I often say he has taught me more than any man or woman behind the pulpit ever has,” she said. It has dramatically transformed her perspective about caregiving. “I thought for years that it was the lowest work you could do, very monotonous, very mundane, and I now view it as the holiest work I can do. This side of eternity is caring for somebody who cannot care for themselves.”
The Secret Santas are of different ages, all inspired to spread holiday cheer. (Courtesy of Derek Brown)
Fifth-grade teacher Derek Brown of Phoenix, Arizona, wants his students to remember that he taught them how to become better people, not just better at academics. “Nobody comes to me and says, ‘Hey, Mr. Brown, remember that math test we did?’” he laughed. “No, they remember the things that had a deep impact on them as human beings.”
He loves teaching precisely because kids are moldable, like clay. “Kids grow up to be a product of their society. They are who they see, hear, and watch,” he said. He aims to teach by example behaviors of respect, kindness, generosity, and humility. “When they are around those behaviors,” he said, “they become that kind of person themselves.”
Brown also shares with his students impactful stories of people doing good, nearly every single day of the school year. Specifically, he shows them video stories from CBS reporter Steve Hartman’s “On the Road” TV series, which highlights people who have done inspiring acts of kindness in their communities.
Craving Real Human Connection
During the pandemic lockdowns of 2020, Brown saw a drastic decline in the effort his students put into schoolwork, as well as their general aspirations for learning. He was alarmed how his students seemed to be set back by the lack of meaningful in-person interactions. Once in-person classes resumed, Brown noticed that daily viewings of “On the Road” seemed to be having a greater-than-ever emotional impact on his students. “We would talk about them and cry,” he said.
He decided to reach out to Hartman. “I wanted to let him know how often I showed his stories and the impact they had, just to let him know how appreciative I was,” he said. To Brown’s astonishment, on November 1, 2022, Steve Hartman and his film crew walked into his classroom for a surprise visit. “My knees buckled,” Brown recalled. “ The kids went crazy. It was like Michael Jackson had just entered the room.”
Derek Brown wants to be a positive example of kindness for his students. (Courtesy of Derek Brown)
More inspired than ever, Brown decided in fall 2023 that it was time to take action. “I felt it was time for us to get out of our seats and do something—some act in our community, where our kids could go through a project, put in the leg work, and see it through,” he said.
The “On the Road” story that resonated most with his students was about an anonymous wealthy businessman in Kansas City, Missouri, known as “Secret Santa” because every Christmas, he hands out $100 bills to people he thinks need extra cheer. Hartman has been covering the Secret Santa story for years.
Brown gathered a group of former and current students and their parents and suggested replicating the Secret Santa story in their own community. His idea was met with instant enthusiasm.
Brown’s school did not want to be associated with the project., so entirely outside of class time, Brown and his group of 18 recruits hit the phones, calling their friends and family to ask for donations. Brown set up a GoFundMe account for “Operation Secret Santa,” as they called it, and to everyone’s amazement, they raised $8,000.
Brown contacted Hartman to tell him what they were doing, and Hartman reached out to the original Secret Santa, who was astounded. Secret Santa then called Brown, saying, “I want to be part of this.”
One day in October 2023, Brown gathered his group after school, and Secret Santa visited them and spent an hour coaching the kids on how to approach people and what to say. As a parting gift, Secret Santa gave each student $100 toward their fundraising.
Students Charlotte, Riley, and Evangeline on their Secret Santa mission. (Courtesy of Derek Brown)
Spreading Holiday Cheer
Operation Secret Santa took place on December 4, 2023. Brown, his students, and their parents went into their community and, one $100 bill at a time, spread warmth, kindness, and Christmas cheer around town. Hartman and his film crew came for the event, documenting everything, and the story aired on CBS later that month.
“Nobody will ever forget that day,” Brown said. “It might have been the most meaningful day of my life.” Recipients and givers hugged and cried together, sharing their stories.
Looking back on his experience, student Cooper Herzog said, “When you genuinely take the time to check in on someone, they feel seen and appreciated and they often respond with so much love and kindness in return. It’s a beautiful reminder of how powerful human connection can be. And let’s not forget all the hugs we shared. That closeness made it even more special.”
Brown said it was wonderful seeing his former and current students genuinely connect with people. “Seeing them put down their phones and video games and actually communicate with somebody … It’s a skill that’s been lost: to look somebody in the eye, shake their hands, to converse and inquire and care about them.”
Brown’s chief reason for wanting to do Operation Secret Santa was to empower kids to be more empathetic, compassionate, patient, and caring. “I want to build better kids who will grow up to be better adults,” he explained.
Francisco hugs a stranger during an Operation Secret Santa mission. (Courtesy of Derek Brown)
Student Madelyn Herzog said the experience has changed her life. “I now realize how being kind to others can make you feel better. I also now know how kindness is contagious.”
Student Austin D’Agostino agreed. “I saw while we were working how vulnerable people became and how what we were doing affected them in a positive way,” he said. His sister Evangeline said, “The most amazing thing I experienced was seeing other people’s joy.”
Not only was Operation Secret Santa memorable and meaningful, it was addictive. Brown and his group could hardly wait to do it again the next year. In 2024, the group grew. Brown turned it into a registered nonprofit called “The Kindness Club.” Thanks to Hartman’s coverage of their story in “On the Road,” Brown received hundreds of emails from people as far away as Singapore wanting to donate. In 2024, the group raised $10,000 and Operation Secret Santa took place on December 7.
Brown hopes the group can expand into other kindness ventures in the near future. He wants to include more people beyond his school. “My goal is to expand this into the other schools in our district. … I’d love to reach a greater student body in the neighborhood.” Operation Secret Santa will occur again in December 2025, and it makes Brown smile from ear to ear because he knows it will keep having a huge impact on his students and his community.
The mezzo-soprano star at the 2011 tribute “Celebrating Frederica von Stade,” which honored her work on and off stage, at the Herbst Theatre in San Francisco. (Courtesy of Frederica von Stade)
Frederica von Stade has had a decades-long career singing on the world’s greatest opera stages. She has performed with every major conductor of her lifetime, she boasts more than 4 million views on a video of her singing an aria from the opera “Rusalka,” and she single-handedly discovered a composer, who recently had an opera produced at the Metropolitan Opera.
Not bad for a singer who couldn’t read music at the age of 20.
Now 80, von Stade spends much of her time helping the disadvantaged young earn scholarships to universities using their musical talent.
“It’s called the Young Musicians Choral Orchestra, and it addresses the needs of children who would never otherwise be able to afford music in their lives. We have 65 kids ages 9 to 18, and I love it,” von Stade told American Essence.
A Broadway Gal at Heart
Von Stade hails from a well-to-do background scarred by tragedy. Her parents were Sara Clucas von Stade and U.S. Polo champion Charles Steele von Stade. Her father joined the U.S. Army in 1942 and was killed when the jeep he was in ran over a landmine in April 1945, just a month before the European war’s end and nearly two months before his daughter was born. Frederica was raised in Washington; there, she received a Catholic education while her mother worked as a secretary for the CIA.
During this time, she came to be known as “Flicka,” borrowed from a favorite pony owned by her polo-playing dad. The nickname stuck with her through the decades and into her professional life.
“I was named after an Aunt Frederica and there were Uncle Fredericks on both sides, so there were a couple too many Freddies. I became Flicka.”
Classical singer Frederica von Stade. (Courtesy of Frederica von Stade)
At 20, Flicka wanted to perform on Broadway, which was at peak form in those days. In 1964 alone, “Hello, Dolly,” “Funny Girl,” and “Fiddler on the Roof” opened. She had the voice, she had the charisma, and she had the ambition, but somehow her extensive education had failed to teach her how to read music. Von Stade applied and was accepted at New York’s Mannes School of Music, where her sole goal was to be able to read scores by the likes of Richard Rodgers and Jerry Herman. She ended up singing Mozart. “I went to Mannes to learn to read music with Sebastian Engelberg.” She credits Engelberg with supporting her pursuit of a musical career.
“He encouraged me to enter the Met Opera auditions. I thought, ‘There’s not a chance, big deal.’ But I won a prize, which amazed me. With the prize came a contract, so my course of action was decided for me.” The operatic stage and classical song became Flicka’s future.
“This may sound odd, but it happens that opera is an easier life than Broadway. We don’t have eight shows a week like they do. And when a show closes, they’re up a creek.”
But what about her love for those songs of the Great White Way? “I’ve never lost my love for Broadway,” she said, pointing for proof to studio cast recordings she’s made of “The Sound of Music” and “On the Town,” as well as CDs of Rodgers and Hart standards.
An Opera Phenomenon
Her discography is nothing short of breathtaking. As a mezzo-soprano starting out circa 1970, von Stade at first played numerous “pants roles,” men’s roles meant to be performed by mezzos. These included Cherubino in “Le Nozze di Figaro” and Sesto in “La Clemenza di Tito,” both by Mozart. Then, she blossomed into a vast repertoire of opera, concert, and recital works by Claudio Monteverdi, Jean-Philippe Rameau, Gioachino Rossini, Jules Massenet, Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann, Richard Strauss, Hector Berlioz, Joseph Cantaloube, Gabriel Fauré, Claude Debussy, Vincenzo Bellini, Gustav Mahler, and Maurice Ravel. Her performances of most of these composers are available on CDs.
Asked which one recording of her own she would take along to that proverbial desert island, von Stade named the Mahler Symphony No. 4 that she recorded with conductor Claudio Abbado for Deutsche Grammophon. She called the text and the music set to it “an ideal depiction of heaven” that appeals to her Catholic background.
And her favorite role? “It would have to be Melisande,” she said, from Debussy’s opera “Pelleas et Melisande.” “What girl who’s played boys much of her career doesn’t enjoy getting into a beautiful long dress, with hair down to the floor? It was make-believe.” Along the same fairy-tale line were not one, but two different operatic retellings of the Cinderella story: Rossini’s “La Cenerentola” and Massenet’s “Cendrillon.”
Von Stade in the role of Elena in “La Donna del Lago” by Rossini in 1985 at The Royal Opera at Covent Garden, London. (Donald Cooper/Alamy)
Promoting and Encouraging Young Artists
But no recounting of Flicka’s repertoire would be honest and complete without mention of the new music she has championed. Most notably, she discovered and promoted American composer Jake Heggie, whose “Moby-Dick” was produced at the Metropolitan Opera earlier this year.
A publicist for the San Francisco Opera when von Stade was appearing there in the late 1990s, Heggie presented the singer with a set of folk-song arrangements that so impressed her, she put him in touch with playwright Terrence McNally. McNally, who was looking for a composer to collaborate with him on an operatic version of “Dead Man Walking,” based on the book by Sister Helen Prejean, brought Heggie on board at von Stade’s suggestion. The opera, produced in 2000, was a major success, and Heggie went on to compose many more operas and other works.
(L-R) Mario Cantone, Ailyn Perez, Elina Garanca, Lidia Bastianich, Nina Stemme, Frederica von Stade, Jose van Dam, Waltraud Meier, Placido Domingo and Joseph Calleja attend the 11th Annual Opera News Awards at The Plaza Hotel in New York on April 10, 2016. (Milene Fernandez/Epoch Times)
Living a Full Life
In the midst of her emerging career in 1973, von Stade married bass-baritone and photographer Peter Elkus, a union that produced two daughters: Jenny, born in 1977, and Anna in 1980. Mixing professional life with a family had previously been frowned upon in the opera world. Flicka’s generation of singers changed that. In an interview with Classical Singer Magazine in 2020, Flicka noted:
“We made it OK to be singers and to be women who were singers who wanted to have children and who wanted to work. And because of that, most of us did have children. And most of us did work. That’s the best thing that ever happened, because I loved singing, but I also loved being a mother.”
Now a grandmother, Flicka has a few words for young operatic hopefuls out there:
“Don’t give up. I have a little gold bracelet that says, ‘Don’t give up.’ Because there’s no pattern. You never know when the break will happen. It’s show biz and show biz is based on a lot of good luck. There’s a lot of talent out there that’s never been recognized. It isn’t always just, it isn’t caring, but if you love it, don’t give up.
“And be kind to yourself and love your voice. Thank it daily for what it does for you.”
He’s dyslexic in a profession where reading is a daily requirement.
He calls ADD his superpower.
He’s been a computer nerd, a T. Rex, an upper-class thug, a paranormal investigator, a reckless criminal, a disgraced inspector for the San Francisco PD, and, most famously, a Navy SEAL.
In case you’re wondering, the movies and TV series attached to those characters are (in order) “CSI: NY,”“The Good Dinosaur,” “Disturbing Behavior,” “Supernatural,” “Justified,” “Murder in the First,” and of course, “SEAL Team.”
His friends call him “the chameleon.” He’s okay with that.
Buckley in the role of Ed Zeddmore, an aspiring ghost hunter, in “Supernatural.” (MovieStillsDB)
“I disappear into the characters,” the chameleon said in a telephone interview with American Essence.
“People will meet me and say, ‘You were great as Sonny Quinn on “SEAL Team,”’ and then they’ll go, ‘Oh, you were also that guy, and that guy, and that guy.’”
“That guy” in the real world is AJ Buckley and all the earlier characters just scratch the surface of the work he’s done over nearly three decades of steady employment. Suffice it to say, if you watch television or go to the movies, avoiding AJ Buckley (sometimes “Alan Buckley” in older credits) is harder than checkmating a chess grand master blindfolded.
Buckley as U.S. Navy SEAL Sonny Quinn (in the back) in “SEAL Team.” (MovieStillsDB)
Although “SEAL Team” ended its seventh and final season last year, you’ll be seeing Buckley again soon, this time on the big screen, in a film that pits him against Mel Gibson. “Hunting Season” is set for international release in September.
“Mel Gibson’s character has a daughter who gets mixed up with the wrong crowd. Mel comes looking for revenge, and I’m on the wrong end of that stick,” Buckley said.
He’ll be a bad guy to Mel Gibson’s good guy?
“Being bad feels so good,” he said, with a grin you can see over the phone.
Buckley said he went “totally fanboy” while working with Gibson.
“What an amazing man Mel is. I was star-struck. I thought, I’m working with William Wallace! ‘Braveheart’ and ‘Apocalypto’ and ‘Passion of the Christ’ are three of my favorite films.”
(Samira Bouaou for American Essence)
Being Sonny
Shooting “Hunting Season” came on the heels of Buckley’s farewell to his most iconic role. Playing Sonny Quinn in “SEAL Team” (2017–2024) garnered Buckley a huge fan following. It also taught him a lot about the men and women of the American military:
“I learned from the show how selfless the people who serve our country are,” he said. “We wouldn’t have the country we have without their ability to sacrifice. That these young men and women would see the country’s promise and put their life on the line for it—that’s incredibly admirable.”
“SEAL Team” told fictitious tales of the famous Navy unit in such locales as Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, and North Korea. Without a military background of his own, Buckley relied on real veterans who served as advisors on set.
“There was one guy named Goldie. I was told my character was based on him. He’d hang around a lot and I absorbed from him as much as I could. Sonny Quinn will always be one of my favorite characters, if not my favorite of all time.”
Sonny Quinn, also known as Bravo 3 or B3, is a gung-ho SEAL who loves a good firefight and courts danger as if she were a desirable woman. This lands him in all sorts of predicaments, like in episode 13, season 2, when he gets stuck in a submarine torpedo tube during a clandestine operation off the coast of North Korea. He was extracted safely in time for episode 14.
Sonny is as unlucky in love as he is lucky in combat, but that’s where the character and the actor are about as far apart as can be. Buckley lives in Charleston, South Carolina, with his wife, Abigail, and their three children.
To play Sonny Quinn in the series “SEAL Team,” Buckley had an intense workout regimen. (MovieStillsDB)
Family Life
“I’ve got an amazing wife,” he said. “I’m very lucky to have her. We make it a priority to be together, and when possible, with the kids. Every second I can get back home, I’m there. I’ve passed on some good paying jobs because they didn’t allow me time at home,” Buckley said.
Becoming a father added a side job to his acting career: the design and marketing of high-end diaper bags. (What would Sonny Quinn think?)
The story goes like this: AJ was out with his newborn baby daughter when she suddenly needed a diaper change. But mom was at home and men’s public restrooms are notoriously short on changing areas. The idea of a diaper bag that turns into a fold-out changing station was born. Founded in 2017 with friend and fellow actor/parent Artie Baxter, the Paperclipcompany flourishes today under the energetic leadership of Baxter and his wife, CEO Sara Baxter. It also offers other parent-friendly baby products, such as a high chair-booster combination.
(Samira Bouaou for American Essence)
Buckley was born in 1977 in Dublin, Ireland, and moved at age 6 with his family to British Columbia, Canada. His first acting experience came in an episode of “The Odyssey,” a Canadian fantasy series for children that ran from 1992 to 1994. He credits director David Nutter for offering him his big break and bringing him to LA at age 17. Buckley played the role of thuggish “Chug” Roman in the teen science-fiction thriller “Disturbing Behavior,” which also featured a young Katie Holmes. Buckley got an agent, and his career was off and running.
“Now that I have kids of my own, I have no idea why my parents let me move to LA at 17! But hey, times were different back then.”
Buckley and family left Los Angeles five years ago because of what that city has become.
“LA is like a beautiful, deadly flower that will lure you in and eat you up and get rid of you really quickly,” Buckley said.
‘It’s Always Been My Path’
Buckley the actor delivers his lines with surety and power, so it’s a surprise to know that Buckley the man struggles with reading. He’s been dyslexic all his life, and yet all his life he’s wanted to be an actor.
How does he cope?
“There’s an app called Speechify. I drop a script in there and it’ll read the script to me. When I hear something even once, I can memorize it.”
Buckley in “Supernatural.” (MovieStillsDB)
Before the convenience of an app, however, dyslexia made scripts challenging.
“Most times I had to have the script read to me. It was incredibly frustrating and disheartening at times,” he said.
Last-minute script changes were especially difficult. They continue to be a challenge.
The inability to read a script might have stopped most people cold in their ambition to be an actor. Not Buckley. Acting is the only thing he’s wanted to do since he can remember.
“I’ve had an overwhelming passion for this job and career that has outweighed everything else,” he said.
It’s outweighed his dyslexia and his Attention Deficit Disorder, too.
Buckley played the role of crime lab technician Adam Ross in “CSI: NY.” (MovieStillsDB)
“I consider ADD my superpower,” he said. “I can balance 15 thoughts in my head at once. When that works for me, I feel unstoppable.”
“SEAL Team” changed Buckley from a semi-comedic type, like his nerd character in “CSI: NY” and the silly paranormal investigator in “Supernatural,” into a tough guy. It’s a persona he keeps viable with a morning exercise routine that starts at 4:35 every morning.
“I plan to stay in shape and get more opportunities to play action characters,” he said. “Acting is the only thing in my life that makes sense. It’s always been my path. By the grace of God, it’s working out.”
Shemane Nugent’s most recent book is “Abundantly Well: Bible-Based Wisdom for Weight Loss, Increased Energy, and Vibrant Health.” She is currently at work on a novel. (Julie Renner)
Shemane Nugent wears many hats, including author, fitness expert, and documentary filmmaker. She hosts the podcast “Faith & Freedom,” and recently wrote “Abundantly Well,” a Bible-based guide for good health. She and her husband, rock musician Ted Nugent, live on a ranch in Texas.
American Essence: What’s your morning routine like?
Shemane Nugent: I love getting up early before the sun rises. I check the news, I have my coffee, and then my dogs and I will go out and check on my garden. Listening to the birds, breathing fresh air, and getting that first sunlight in the morning really helps me to reset and refocus my day on positivity.
There are so many things in this world to be stressed about, but when you can grow little baby tomatoes, squash, strawberries, peppers, or carrots from your garden, like, “Oh, I can’t wait to see what God’s going to give me to eat today,” it puts everything in perspective.
We live a very different lifestyle. We have traveled all over the world, of course, with my husband’s touring, and we both really love being at home. We both love living off the land, growing a garden, and we hunt. I’m a bowhunter, so it really makes us appreciate God’s design. I’ve been a health nut all my life. Especially when I got sick and almost died from toxic mold, I became a label reader. I can’t eat certain things because they make me sick and give me headaches. The closer I get to the ground, the dirt, the tree, or the hoof, the better I feel.
AE: What daily wellness practices keep you grounded?
Ms. Nugent: For sure, gardening, getting my hands dirty, getting my hands in touch with God’s great design. I live by the 80–20 rule: Eighty percent of what I eat is clean. Twenty percent—I like Fritos, pizza, and chocolate chip cookies, but I don’t have them every day. I also work out a lot. I’m fortunate that when I was growing up, I was an athlete. I was a two-time state champion swimmer, I raced motocross, and I was in pretty much every sport—track, volleyball, basketball, and gymnastics, and that kept me active. I’ve been teaching group fitness classes since 1980. I just love the way that our bodies are designed to move. When you get sick and almost die, your life changes. The first thing I do when I wake up in the morning is I say a prayer, thanking God for a body that moves, for eyes that work, and to be able to hear my husband tell me he loves me or my dogs whimpering, and to be able to dance again. It really makes you appreciate the little things.
Shemane Nugent with her husband Ted Nugent and their dogs (L–R) Coco Sadie, and Jaxon at SpiritWild Ranch in Texas. (Bell Nugent)
AE: What inspires you and keeps you going on tough days?
Ms. Nugent: If I really take a look at my life, how grateful I am to have my health. If you wake up in the morning and you have an attitude of gratitude, it changes everything. And having faith. The most grounding thing for me is to have faith. Every time I open the Bible, it speaks to me. I hear a phrase that I really needed to encourage me to get through the day or to help deal with a relationship issue or whatever seems to be stressing me out.
AE: How do you wind down in the evenings?
Ms. Nugent: We are blessed to live on a ranch. It’s not a big ranch, especially according to Texas standards. We have a 300-acre fenced-in ranch. Right now, I’m looking at scimitar-horned oryx—they’re big, white antelopes—and blackbuck antelope. In the evenings, Ted and I sit on our deck, which overlooks this big field. We call it the Serengeti. We’ve been to Africa many times, and it reminds us of the Serengeti. We put a feeder behind our house, just so that we could see the animals come in at sunset. Watching the sunset, watching the animals come in, having our dogs right next to us, and having a glass of wine, that’s the perfect evening.
AE: What has motherhood taught you?
Ms. Nugent: Patience and selflessness, that your child’s needs come before yours, no questions asked. During those times, I remember when my son was a year old, he didn’t sleep very well when he was a baby. He was born in July. I remember Ted asking me what I wanted for Christmas that December, six months later, and I said, I just want to sleep through the night.
The little things become so big because if you don’t get your sleep, you don’t feel well; if you don’t feel well, you can’t show up for people who need you in their life, and you can’t continue to do God’s good work. Motherhood has taught me patience, selflessness, kindness, and the art of giving without wanting anything in return. The joy of seeing my son happy and healthy is such an incredible blessing and gift. That’s what I believe life is really all about. The Bible does tell us, the greatest of all these things is to love. Motherhood has taught me to love.
AE: What’s a favorite family tradition?
Ms. Nugent: We celebrate Christmas, but to the extent we’re all grown and we’ve got grandkids and one on the way. I’m excited about having family, and wrapping paper on the floor, and having big meals together, and exchanging stories and catching up. The days, weeks, months, and years just fly by and suddenly, I’m 62 and my son is going to be 35. Where did the time go? I really do cherish those moments where we can get family together.
AE: What’s your proudest moment?
Ms. Nugent: There are so many. One just happened today. There’s a young Christian artist named Forrest Frank. He’s blowing up on the Christian music scene. My son is in one of his videos. My son’s a musician as well. I happened to run into Forrest and his wife in a grocery store today in Waco, Texas. I will say a lot of people know me because I’m Ted Nugent’s wife, but I introduced myself as Rocco Nugent’s mom, not Ted Nugent’s wife. Rocco is the perfect combination of Ted and me. He is strong and strong-willed, a hard worker, but also highly sensitive. I think that’s a gift.
Also, I developed a program for Zumba. I traveled the world as a Zumba fitness instructor, training other instructors. I’ve probably taught thousands of fitness classes over the years, and that was pretty cool for me.
AE: Do you have any new projects that you’re really excited about?
Ms. Nugent: In January, I published a book called “Abundantly Well.” That was a great moment for me. But I’m doing something now that I’ve never done that I’m excited about. I’m writing a novel. I love to write. I’ve written a few books, and I am very creative. I can envision things. I have a degree in radio, TV, and film, and I’ve been producing a television show with my husband called “Ted Nugent: Spirit of the Wild.” It’s been on air for 35 years. I love being behind the camera.
I never thought growing up I’d be known as the Mold Lady, but I got sick and almost died from toxic mold. No doctors could help me. I had to become my own investigative sleuth. I researched a lot before the internet and found out a lot about toxic mold. I put it into a book called “Killer House” and then a documentary called “Killer House.” This year, I’m going to release a docuseries. I’m just looking for a network that’ll carry it. Today alone, two separate people have reached out to me needing help with toxic mold, and this happens every day. People desperately need help.
(Julie Renner)
AE: What do you love most about America?
Ms. Nugent: When I’m at a concert or one of President Trump’s rallies or any veteran get-together, and I see the American flag and hear the “Star-Spangled Banner,” it tears me up, because I know what our Founding Fathers went through. I know how brave and bold they must have been to do what they did.
America is strong. America is brave. We have the First Amendment, mostly. We still have the Second Amendment, and we need to fight for it. We are the last best place on Earth.
And funny story—the first time I went to South Africa, we went on safari, and we had our big, fancy cameras, and we’re taking pictures in nice clothes. We were actually at the ranch of our son’s namesake, Dr. Rocco Gioia. He had a ranch in Hoedspruit, South Africa. He had a lot of workers on this ranch, and they didn’t speak any English. They wore the same clothes every day. We’d be there for a month at a time, and Rocco had been coming with us since he was 18 months old—that was the first time he went. He would play with the kids, and they didn’t even have to speak English. They would play together, play ball, or dig in the dirt. I said to Dr. Gioia, “Do the workers look at us with our fancy clothes and things, and are they jealous? And he said, “No, they feel sorry for you because you need so many things.”
Going back to losing everything—our house that was on “MTV Cribs” is no longer there. We demolished it. We walked away from it with just the clothes on our backs, and then got rid of those. We were living at a Holiday Inn and had nothing. We had to start all over again with everything from sheets and scissors and knives and plates. It’s very humbling. It makes you really appreciate the significance of how fragile life is. When you don’t have your health, you’ve got nothing.
AE: What life advice would you give to a young person these days?
Ms. Nugent: Have a relationship with God. You can say, “Be strong and bold and follow your heart” and all that. But I don’t often think you should follow your heart. Sometimes our hearts mislead us. We can have all the plans we want, but God might have a different plan for us that’s even bigger and better. It’s important to have a foundation and get a good education if you can. It’s important to follow your heart in the sense that we all have gifts, and my gifts might be different than somebody else’s. I know people who love numbers, and they are great accountants, and the world needs accountants. If they want to be a singer and they don’t have the gift for that, then they might not end up being successful. So don’t do what the world wants you to do. Do what God wants for you.
(Bell Nugent)
3 of Shemane’s Favorite Things
Favorite Book:
I love to read. My favorite author is Charles Martin. He’s a fiction writer, and he writes with intrigue, and it’s adventure. There’s a little bit of a romance in there, which I like. Number one, the Bible, for sure. One of my best possessions is a Bible from the 1700s.
Favorite Movie:
A couple. This is going to be a huge contrast, and they’re pretty much neck and neck. The first movie that ever made a huge impact on me is “The Sound of Music.” And “Man on Fire” with Denzel Washington. I love the cinematography of that movie. The storyline was great, too.
Your Superpower:
Making darn good chocolate chip cookies. I’m a chocolate chip cookie-aholic, I’ve tried them all. I’ve experimented with a lot of cookies over the years. I used to make cookies and sell them to a bakery when I was in my 20s.
