Let me tell you about a dear friend of mine, Ret. Police Chief Ken Harker.

Devoted husband, loving father, and a Brother Law Enforcement Officer to many.

 

Ken has a long history of always supporting his fellow LEO brothers and sisters and military personnel while on duty and retired.  From partaking in an advisory capacity with individuals needing counseling or guidance, as well as being involved in both Law Enforcement and Military organizations.

One of Ken’s objectives in life has been finding people that need support and giving it to them.  Be them involved in some group or background like his, or just another person who has had some form of trauma or loss in their life, Ken has willingly stepped in to extend a hand of support, and in some cases gone well beyond just being a support mechanism or a shoulder to lean on and voice pain to.

Ken’s passion for reading and his appreciation for good music and meaningful lyrics have inspired him to transition from simply reading books to writing song lyrics. His lyrics capture and reflect the key themes and messages of some of his favorite books.

 

Ken and I found each other in a mental awareness support group, there we actually ‘connected’ because we both have construction adhesives in our background, I use them extensively in my work, while Ken was a representative for a manufacture after he retired from his days as a Police Chief.  We started chatting and from that we found a much stronger bond in other areas.

 

Both of us have a solid foundation in our own faith as well as being supportive to others trying to find their own way in their faith.  With his decades in law enforcement and being a Police Chief, Ken has first-hand life altering and ending experiences as well as dealings with the aftermath and PTSD.  Having suffered a traumatic brain injury, and the PTSD with that and a few other close calls, we shared a lot and quickly became close friends and Brothers in our paths in faith.

 

Ken found the story of ‘Beckett’ as well as the history behind it both moving and motivating.  The fight to find oneself through trauma, tough circumstances and the pain of loss, he found inspiring, and his own creativity came out, again for him.

 

The book “Relentless Courage: Winning the Battle Against Front Line Trauma” by: Shauna ‘Doc’ Springer PH.D. and Michael Sugrue and Dave Grossman, compelled Ken to sit down and write…. a song.  “I was inspired to write a song for all of my Police Brothers and Sisters in Blue, and to all the First Responders, Dispatchers, Firefighters, EMTs, Nurses and even Doctors, I wanted to write something that told them, they are all Heroes.”

“Angels in Blue” – written by Ken Harker & Tina Neumann – Performed by Lisa McEwen

 

“Home to You” – written by Ken Harker & Tina Neumann – Performed by Lisa McEwen

Ken found inspiration for this song after several books by a Navy SEAL friend, Brian Heaphy’s book “Crystal Vision”, “Warrior” by Shauna ‘Doc’ Springer and “Beckett” by Jon T. Oswell II.

“I felt compelled to write another song, for all Military personnel active and retired, as well as the many other people suffering the consequences of a traumatic injury and duty related events post-traumatic events (PTSD) or traumatic brain injury (TBI).  These events can be so life altering, I just found words to try and say something positive from the amount of emotion the stories generate within you just reading them, especially if you experienced anything similar.  I hope those that get into all these situations find some comfort in the support I tried to give to them in the songs.  God bless you all.”