Doug Smith

I have been working on the music for a CD that will be released later this fall.  Every time I sit down at the piano, my thoughts turn to Doug Smith.

 I have been inspired by Doug since I first heard him play.  I don’t yet know him personally.  The things I have read and heard about him tell a lot, but the music he finds in those 88 keys tells more. 

On the Ragtown Gospel Theater stage right after Doug’s accident, I shared this story, in the hope that someone  close to him and his wife, Debbie, might pass it on:

In 1973, one of my brothers was critically injured in a motorcycle accident.  His neck was broken; the same vertebrae crushed that actor Christopher Reeve would later suffer.   This was well before the helicopter medical services existed, so he was transported 80 miles by ambulance, to the hospital in Lubbock.   Soon after he arrived, our family was told that he had perhaps a one in a thousand chance of surviving.  If he lived 72 hours, he might survive, but he would almost certainly be paralyzed from the neck down. 

As I told that audience, “Tonight you are going to see that brother portray “Peter the Rock” on this stage.”  He too is a piano player, as good as he ever was.  God can do anything.

In West Texas, we seem to be gifted with musically blessed people.  I think people who can lift us up with music are gifts to us all, and that is a big part of the experience at Ragtown Gospel Theater.  We find those folks and give you an opportunity to experience that gift in beautiful surroundings, with impeccable acoustics.  We want the gift to be savored.  Similarly, the ability to bring a character to life on the stage is a rare and wonderful thing to receive.

When you see Glenn Polk portray the apostle, Peter as he faces his imminent death,  you now know that Glenn brings to this poignant characterization, his own experiences of physical agony, living through those days, having been told that he was going to die.  It gives depth to his portrayal that I believe audiences feel. 

Our prayers are with Doug and Debbie Smith and their family as they face this tribulation.  The news is that Doug is improving, and that gladdens our hearts.  We hope they are finding encouragement and are being reminded daily that God…our Lord Jesus Christ can do anything.  And does, all the time.

Bless Y’all,

    Chip