Chad’s Aunt Tracy first recognized his talent for music when he was a teen and bought him his first guitar. I remember being angry because I imagined screaming electric guitar sounds in my house. But from the beginning, Chad played so beautifully and performed songs that I really loved from groups that I enjoy like Collective Soul, Aerosmith, REO Speedwagon, and the Beatles. He loved the Beatles. Sometimes I would come home from work and just stand in the kitchen to listen to him play from his room.
Music came naturally to Chad. It was a huge part of his life and provided an escape for him in many ways. He had an ear for listening to a song and being able to play it on the guitar. He was learning the piano and could sit down to play a beautiful improvised melody. With the residents at the Rescue Mission as his audience, Chad loved performing on an old piano they had to use. He played the cajón (a Peruvian box shaped percussion instrument) for church services and Rescue Mission events. Just before his final relapse, Chad was excelling in school to become a Music Therapist at Salt Lake Community College.
