Gibson partners with Guitars For Vets to support U.S. military veterans

Gibson has teamed up with non-profit organisation (NPO) Guitar For Vets to provide guitars and strings to returning US military veterans.

This partnership, which is a part of the industry titan’s Gibson Gives initiative, will see it donate 48 guitars and 19,000 sets of strings in support of Guitar For Vets’ cause. Gibson recently debuted the donation at its Custom Shop in Nashville, where Sully Erna of Godsmack presented Custom Shop Les Pauls and Masterbilt Epiphones to vets. The LPs in particular, were decked out in an army green finish as a nod to the veterans’ service.

Co-founded by Patrick Nettesheim, Guitar For Vets recognises the growing issue of suicide among veterans, and aims to provide them support through music. Since its launch, the NPO has gifted over 80,000 guitar lessons and 3,000 guitars.  “When I started Guitars For Vets it was 18 suicides per day,” Nettesheim shared at the Custom Shop event. “It’s getting worse, but it’s my belief we’re making progress and we hear this through testimonials all the time, ’this guitar saved my life.’”

Gibson CEO James “JC” Curleigh also weighed in: “Gibson Gives is an opportunity to play it forward and this is what matters. We are pleased to join Guitars For Vets. When veterans come home, we should have solutions for them and we have solutions through music.”

Learn more about Guitar For Vets here.