SOPHIE SALVESON: How One Very Remarkable Young Woman Has Become 'Nashville's Daughter'

On Thursday, March 1, Sophia Salveson-at 19, a college student (at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago) and an aspiring actress-suffered a massive stroke that left her with little to no movement on the right side of her body and major damage to the speech and comprehension center of her brain. Taking her family and friends completely unawares, Salveson's sudden and unexpected medical dilemma sent feelings of shock, dismay and disbelief throughout the country, with its reverberations felt most resoundingly in her hometown of Nashville, where word quickly spread around town and among members of the city's music and theater communities that she had been stricken.

There were no physical signs to indicate she was prone to stroke or indeed that one was impending. She was the very picture of good health and youthful vigor, with a heart as big as the universe, to hear those people who love her so much talk about her and to respond to her life situation now.

"It was so shocking to hear this news at first," recalls Daron Bruce, who had been both mentor and teacher to "Sophie" at Hume-Fogg Academic High School. "Former students began calling and texting, wanting to know the details. When I finally got confirmation of her situation, Lisa Forbis (Hume-Fogg choral teacher) and I broke the news to the show choir. After we told them of Sophie's situation, there was a silence and a stillness in the room that is inexplicable. Lisa and I walked into her office and the students still could not speak or move. They just sat there, trying to process what just happened to someone they loved so much."

"Someone they love so much…" is a phrase that you hear over and over as you speak to people about Sophie Salveson and her family-mother Marabeth Quin (and her husband Casey) and father Paul Savleson (and his wife Angela)-who in the aftermath of that one life-altering, earth-shattering afternoon in March have come to realize that now, even more so than ever before, their darling daughter Sophie belongs to a family much bigger than themselves. As her recovery continues, Sophie Salveson has, quite easily and most definitely, become Nashville's daughter.

"We have known Sophie and her parents Marabeth Quin and Paul Salveson for almost 25 years," explains Mike Eldred, the singer/actor and Broadway veteran, who will be among the performers at next Monday night's Sophie Shines! benefit concert at 3^rd and Lindsley (the June 25th event is headlined by Amy Grant and Vince Gill, and Melinda Doolittle, Mandisa, Tim Akers & The Smoking Section, Larry Carlton, Etta Britt, Chris Rodriguez, Annie Sellick and Pat Bergeson, Michael Londra and Lisa Cochran are among the performers joining Eldred onstage), one of Music City's best-known performance venues.

"Tom [Patterson, Eldred's husband] and I were both in the hospital standing by the door when Sophie was born 19 years ago. Marabeth and Paul worked with me on my very first album in 1988-Paul as an engineer and Marabeth as a singer. I have spent countless hours in the studio over the years with them both. Lifetime friends! We have been through so much together over the years."

But nothing that all the Eldreds, Pattersons, Salvesons and Quins had shared over the past quarter century could have prepared them for life after March 1: "I have never in my life seen such a positive approach to moving through a crisis as I have with the Salveson/Quin family," Eldred says, wonder in his voice. "They all decided from moment one that there was no time to worry…only press on. It's been inspiring to watch, to say the least."

After 16 days at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and some 30 days at a rehabilitation center in the Chicago area, Sophie was brought home to Nashville by her parents (aboard a big touring bus provided by friends in the Nashville music industry, who throughout contemporary times have always gathered around their coworkers, associates, friends and family to provide support in such trying times). Just two weeks ago, she underwent surgery at Vanderbilt University Medical Center to replace the left side of her skull and her miraculous, if slow and painstaking, recovery continues. Her mother writes a blog (at www.sophiasalveson.com) in which she tells of the realities of this new and unexpected journey for her family.

According to Daron Bruce, as news of Sophie's stroke spread throughout the community, it became apparent that everyone felt a need to show their love and support in a more tangible way.

"Since she was in a hospital in Chicago, there wasn't much we could do for Sophie and her family. Since we were about to open our spring production, The Curious Savage, we decided to ask for donations after the show to help with medical costs. The cast went into the audience after the performances and collected money to give to Sophie and her family," he says. "The entire Hume-Fogg student body also organized a fundraiser for Sophie one week in March. Each morning, we played recordings of Sophie singing and then asked for donations in first period classes. I also organized selling blue 'Team Sophie' wristbands to help with her expenses."

With the help of representatives of Lance Armstrong's LiveStrong organization, Bruce said he was pointed in the right direction to get the wristbands ready to distribute to the public in a timely manner. Yet the receipts from sales of the wristbands are likely to be but a drop in the bucket of the expenses to be met during Sophie's recovery. "I can't even imagine the expenses that her family will have for her full recovery," Bruce says.

In the spirit of family and togetherness that exemplifies the music industry and the theater community in Nashville, the Sophie Shines! concert will give individuals a chance to show Sophie and her family some love.

"This fundraising event has reunited old friends and coworkers from all walks of life and belief systems," Eldred says. "Where some of the people involved have been at odds for decades now, the sense of need has mended broken relationships. Sophie has no idea what a light she is to so many around her right now. Everyone involved in Sophie Shines! has been inspired by the unrelenting optimism and courage of Sophie and her family. We have all been forever changed in our own lives, no question."

"I will be performing!" Eldred exclaims. "Because Tim Akers and the Smoking Section is an amazing funk band, several of us will be pushed out of our normal genres to tackle the great songs of Tower of Power, Average White Band, Stevie Wonder, etc. Imagine Vince Gill singing Stevie! I, for one, can't wait."

For Shelean Newman, one of Nashville theater's best-known names who has gained a following from throughout the USA thanks to her live performances and critically acclaimed recordings, Sophie Salveson is like a member of her own family and the impact of her medical condition has greatly affected her household. As a result, the community's response to the needs of Sophie and her family is not unexpected.