FOR THE SENDER

Alex Woodard

5.0 (4)
Performing Arts

Your stories. With a soundtrack.

09/04/2016

Episode 12 - Love Letters from Vietnam

Over the last couple of months, you've heard words and music weaving together into the true story of For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam. You've heard the love letters Sergeant John Fuller sent to his wife decades ago when he was stationed in Vietnam. You've heard his daughter answer those letters back in time, after finding them buried in a closet during a recent move. You've heard about how Sergeant Fuller's escape from his demons got him killed in the driveway of a house he was renting for his lover, and you've heard the letters his daughter wrote to him and from him in her heart to work through his death. And you've heard the songs inspired by those letters. You've met veterans from the Vietnam War to the current conflict in the Middle East, who are struggling with PTSD and traumatic brain injuries. They've told you about using heroin and darkness to cope, and then trading the drugs and depression for the joy of the ocean. Or the spirit of a therapy horse. Or the support of a psychiatric service dog. Because there is joy on the other side. There can be something post-traumatic other than a disorder. And now, the last waltz is here. Join me on the dance through this final exchange between a daughter and her dad, who was stationed in Vietnam in 1968, and is now stationed in her heart. And hear how this correspondence shifts, from the daughter who imagines these words to the woman who really needs to hear them: her mother.
08/28/2016

Episode 11 - Love Letters from Vietnam

In this serendipitous, full-circle episode of For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam, I meet a dog trainer who rescues dogs from shelters and trains them to be psychiatric service dogs for veterans. I realize that the three things I depend on also ease the burdens carried by the veterans I've met with PTSD and traumatic brain injuries. And what inspired the For The Sender project is the same force that will bring it to a close: The love of a dog.
08/22/2016

Episode 10 - Love Letters from Vietnam

In this episode of For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam, I'll take you with me as I walk through the barn doors of Idaho's Swiftsure Ranch and into a world where PTSD and traumatic brain injuries wilt in the shadows of some very special horses. You'll meet a Vietnam veteran who's never spoken about his time in combat and a veteran of multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan who depends on a makeshift cane to walk. But that changes after they meet these horses. Join me on this adventure that the Huffington Post is calling 'important, enlightening, and ultimately inspiring.' Proceeds from the For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam book and album (you can check that out at forthesender.com) go to veterans causes featured in the story, including the ranch I'm going to take you to now. Let's go.
08/14/2016

Episode 9 - Love Letters from Vietnam

Here's Episode 9 of For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam, which is the true story with a soundtrack of an incredible correspondence into the past between a daughter in the present and her dad, who was a sergeant stationed in Vietnam in 1968. This story has been unfolding week by week, so if this is your first time listening, you can go to forthesender.com/podcast to check out all the previous episodes just by going to forthesender.com, scroll down to podcast, and click on it, and you can listen to everything. We're pretty deep in the thick of things now, with Jennifer writing her dad letters in heaven and imagining what he'd say back to her, with these songs we wrote woven through the letters, and taking over the letters… so I really hope you'll go back and check out those previous episodes, because I think this is a story of service and sacrifice and redemption and forgiveness worth telling and hearing. Also woven through this father and daughter correspondence is my own journey of discovery, and in the last few episodes, I've walked you through the creative process of writing the book and songs, and what I was thinking at certain points. And you seem to dig that, so we'll keep it going. We'll start with the next letter that Jennifer has written to her dad, wherever he is, and the song about that letter. In this letter, Jennifer starts to hit her stride in her healing process but still has some pretty big questions that she hopes her dad can help answer. And we'll end with me almost losing what I love more than anything.
08/09/2016

Episode 8 - Love Letters from Vietnam

For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam is the true story with a soundtrack about an incredible correspondence into the past between a daughter and her dad, who was an Air Force sergeant stationed in Vietnam in 1968. I'm going to take you behind the curtain again in Episode 8 and show you my thought process as I wrote this story of service, sacrifice, redemption, and forgiveness that the Huffington Post is calling 'important, enlightening, and ultimately inspiring.' In this episode, the narrative will start to shift ever so slightly toward an ultimate redemption... the last few episodes have brought some darkness, but the dawn is coming. This story has unfolded week by week, so if you want to get caught up and check out the previous episodes, just go to forthesender.com/podcast and you can listen to the whole series. An audiobook will be available very soon with the whole story uninterrupted, and I'll let you know where to find it. Proceeds from the book sales (the print edition was released on Veterans Day) go to veterans' causes featured in the book, and thanks to your help, we were able to fund a surf camp for veterans earlier this month! If you'd like to support the project, you can find the book and album packages on Amazon (just search For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam). Thanks for listening.
07/31/2016

Episode 7 - Love Letters from Vietnam

For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam is the true story with a soundtrack about an incredible correspondence between a daughter and her dad, who was an Air Force sergeant stationed in Vietnam in 1968. As the story unfolds here in Episode 7, I'm going to take you behind the curtain and show you my thought process as I wrote this story of service, sacrifice, redemption, and forgiveness that the Huffington Post is calling 'important, enlightening, and ultimately inspiring.' Proceeds from the book and album sales go to veterans' causes featured in the book, and thanks to your help, we were able to fund a surf camp for veterans earlier this month! Thank you... the next surf camp is September 11th, so stay tuned for more details about how you can volunteer if you're interested, or head over to forthesender.com to check out the books.
07/24/2016

Episode 6 - Love Letters from Vietnam

This is the true story with a soundtrack of an incredible correspondence between a daughter, Jennifer, and her father, who was a sergeant stationed in Vietnam in 1968. As the story has unfolded, Jennifer has been answering letters that her dad wrote to her mom decades ago, which have been buried in a closet until now. In the last episode we heard a couple of real newspaper articles detailing why she was answering these letters from 1968 back in time in the first place: her dad isn't here to write letters anymore. A dangerous cocktail of drugs, alcohol, and other women that he used as an escape to outrun what he brought back from Vietnam finally caught up to him, in the blood-stained driveway of a house he was renting for a lover other than his wife. But is he really gone? If you're just now joining this true story for the first time, this is a great place to jump in. You'll get the whole premise in a crumpled piece of paper that I pull out of my pocket in the first few minutes. And we'll take off together on a journey of service, sacrifice, forgiveness and redemption that the Huffington Post is calling 'enlightening, important, and ultimately inspiring.' You may be surprised at the beautiful turns this story will start to take, even after the darkest hour. Maybe what they say is true: it's always darkest before the dawn. Join us.
07/14/2016

Episode 5 - Love Letters from Vietnam

Welcome to Episode 5 of For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam, a true story told about an incredible correspondence into the past between a daughter, Jennifer, and her dad, Sergeant John Fuller, who was stationed in Vietnam in 1968. If this is your first time listening, you may want to check out the previous episodes first, since the story unfolds one episode after another. You can find those by going to forthesender.com, scrolling down, and clicking on 'podcast.' Or you can subscribe to the For The Sender podcast on iTunes. So far you've heard this story evolve from a decades-old correspondence buried inside a box with the words Love Letters from Vietnam etched on top. You've experienced some of those letters, which were sent from Sergeant Fuller stationed in Da Nang to his young wife in East Texas, as read by his son decades later. You've heard Sergeant Fuller's daughter, Jennifer, read in her own words her response to those letters, which she found buried in a closet almost 40 years after they were sent. And you've heard how that correspondence was given to me, and even heard me sing a few songs from Sergeant John Fuller's heart, based on the letters he sent to his wife. In this episode, as I make my return to burn-scarred Idaho, the shift really happens. We find out why Sergeant Fuller isn't reading his own letters in this broadcast series… why his son has to read them instead. We start with the last letter sent from Sergeant Fuller's daughter, Jennifer, to her dad. As you've heard her do before, she's answering one of the letters her dad sent to her mom decades ago when he was stationed there in Vietnam. This exchange hints at what happens to Sergeant Fuller, and those hints become brutal facts later in the episode, told through a real-life newspaper account. You're going to find out why Jennifer was broken wide open, and why she started sending letters to her dad back in time in the first place. And why she has to send letters to heaven now.
07/10/2016

Episode 4 - Love Letters from Vietnam

Welcome to Episode 4 of For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam, a true story told week by week about an incredible correspondence into the past between a daughter, Jennifer, and her dad, Sergeant John Fuller, who was stationed in Vietnam in 1968. If this is your first time listening, you may want to check out the previous episodes first, since the story unfolds one episode after another. You can find those by going to forthesender.com, scrolling down, and clicking on 'podcast.' Or you can subscribe to the For The Sender podcast on iTunes. In this episode, I take you on my own sort of time travel, as I start learning more about one of the most tumultuous eras in our history by putting myself into the hearts of several different major characters from 1968. I literally drop down into the huge important scenes from our history and show you through these characters eyes what the landscape looks like. Whoever posts to the Alex Woodard Facebook page or the For The Sender Facebook page first, with who these characters actually are (their names), will get a signed copy of For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam. So stay with me through this as I become these different characters, because in this episode I also really become Sergeant John Fuller and put myself in his heart and behind his eyes and sing one of my favorite songs from the For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam album. And yes, there is an album. I've gotten a few emails from folks who have just started listening and are wondering if the songs that they're hearing are available. This is story with a soundtrack… it's a book and album package that has already been released. It's called For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam and it's available at. Proceeds go to veterans causes featured throughout the book, which you're listening to right now. So you can also just keep on listening. Onward to Episode 4, which starts with Jennifer answering another letter back in time that her dad sent to her mom, Rebecca, in 1968. And in this letter, her dad references an 'offensive last January', which is the Tet Offensive, and that inspired me to learn more about that era and put myself behind the eyes of these different characters in history. So… I'll see you on the other side.
07/03/2016

Episode 3 - Love Letters from Vietnam

For The Sender: Love Letters from Vietnam is a true story told week by week about an incredible correspondence into the past between a daughter, Jennifer, and her dad, Sergeant John Fuller, who was stationed in Vietnam in 1968. If this is your first time listening, PLEASE check out the previous episodes first, since the story unfolds sequentially, one episode after another and things will make a lot more sense once you're into the flow. You can find those episodes by going to forthesender.com, scrolling down, and clicking on 'podcast.' You can also find them at Facebook.com/forthesender, or subscribe to the For The Sender podcast on iTunes. So why was Jennifer sending these letters back in time? Why not write to her dad now, in the present? Did something happen to him? I start to uncover some answers to those questions in Episode 3, which begins with another letter sent back in time from Jennifer to her dad. You'll hear her real voice, just like the other episodes, and the voice of her brother as her dad. But why isn't her dad reading his own letters for this podcast? You're going to find out over the next few episodes. But first, we need to get two veterans who are wars and decades and countries apart into the water together. One veteran you've already met, the other one is knocking on the door now, surfboard in hand.
06/26/2016

Episode 2 - Love Letters from Vietnam

Episode 1 found Alex sorting through an old box of love letters sent from a soldier stationed in Vietnam in 1968 to his young wife in East Texas. He also discovered another incredible letter sent back in time from the soldier's daughter, and took his first steps on an adventure that Huffington Post calls 'important, enlightening, and ultimately inspiring.' In Episode 2, Alex meets a veteran from the Vietnam War and hears about his journey from heroin to healing. This is a true story with a soundtrack, told in sequence week to week, so we strongly suggest checking out Episode 1 if you haven't already! Just go to forthesender.com, scroll down, and click on the image of the podcast. Thanks for listening.
06/19/2016

Episode 1 - Love Letters from Vietnam

Join Alex as he takes his first steps toward discovering what's hidden in a black box with the words 'Love Letters from Vietnam' etched on top. There is much more than letters laying in wait.

12 Episodes

5

out of 5

4 Ratings

Loved it!

01/19/2016

SableRose8

What an amazing project! I have the first two books and loved them. Ordering the third now and can't wait to hear what is next on the podcast!

Your stories. With a soundtrack.

Creator

Alex Woodard
Years Active

2016
Episodes

12
Rating

Clean
Copyright

© 2016
Show Website

FOR THE SENDER