FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: WORLD TREE AND MUSIC INDUSTRY VETERANS DELIVER LEGACY COLLECTION GUITAR TO OLDEST LIVING U.S. PRESIDENT JIMMY CARTER
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Media Contact:
Tracy McCormick
tracy@lightfinderpr.com
310.766.7560
WORLD TREE AND MUSIC INDUSTRY VETERANS DELIVER LEGACY COLLECTION GUITAR TO OLDEST LIVING U.S. PRESIDENT JIMMY CARTER
(Phoenix, AZ) May 21, 2020 -Before the COVID-19 pandemic gripped human civilization (Mother Earth is just fine – it's humans who are in bad shape), World Tree announced a creative, captivating collaboration. The initiative, known as the “President Jimmy Carter Legacy Collection”, recruited talented custom guitar makers known as "luthiers" to handcraft instruments from the truly sustainable Empress Splendor Tree. The project would utilize and highlight Empress Splendor hardwood that World Tree harvested from President Carter's Empress Splendor Tree plantation in Plains, GA, in 2019.
During his time in the White House, the now-95-year-old President Carter was a strong advocate for both environmental sustainability and music, hosting Willie Nelson, the Allman Brothers, Cher, and many others — and famously said, "If you have a voice and an instrument, you are welcome in my home."
In addition to inviting talented musicians into his longtime home in Plains, Georgia, this unique partnership was created to help shine a light on environmental challenges as they relate to guitar craftsmanship and production. Massive facilities, primarily in Asia, are typically used in much modern guitar production, and precious tropical woods like ebony and rosewood are rapidly being depleted. Sustainable materials, such as the Empress Splendor Tree hardwood, the core of World Tree's driving mission, can help prevent further depletion of these precious trees and forests.
Thanks to a beautiful collaboration between three longtime guitar and music industry veterans during a deeply challenging time for our country, the project is off to a singing start.
Project producer Todd Lunneborg, the founder of Todd Lunneborg Guitars, was thrilled to present President Carter with the first handcrafted guitar, made by luthier and Kostal Guitars founder Jason Kostal — himself a "veteran" in more ways than one. The beautiful instrument was carved from Empress Tree wood from President Carter's plantation, married with a German spruce top. The rosette and end graft, as well as the custom case made for Kostal by his friend and Hoffee Cases founder Jeff Hoffee, reflect the Blue and Gold colors of the U.S. Navy (where Carter served for 16 years before his Presidency). Kostal, himself a West Point graduate and 13-year U.S. Army veteran, also added the Army's signature Black and Gold to the guitar's body, binding, and neck as a reminder to President Carter of the age-old rivalry between the two branches of the armed forces.
Kostal had hoped to deliver the guitar to President Carter at his home personally, but the pandemic made that visit impossible. Kostal was able to enjoy a FaceTime call with President Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, along with a live look-in at a private in-home concert performed by Lunneborg — an experience that moved him deeply.
"There are so many things about this project that resonate with me," said Kostal. "From using sustainably grown wood from President Carter's farm to build the guitar and create awareness of the wood itself and its potential uses in the future, to creating something on behalf of a man that has dedicated his entire life to serving his community, his nation, and humanity as a whole. Speaking with him allowed me to experience firsthand a kind, compassionate man who still maintains his strength of character and his desire to make the world a better place. "I am honored to have been able to create this guitar on behalf of Jimmy Carter, the Naval Officer, Jimmy Carter, the United States President, but most of all, for James Earl Carter, Jr., the man."
The hope is that this first instrument can kickstart this highly ambitious project — and help provide a ray of lyrical light during a trying time for everyone in America and the world.
About World Tree: Headquartered in Phoenix, AZ, World Tree pairs investors with farmers to propel sustainable farming centered around the Empress Splendor Tree. This fast-growing hardwood tree reaches maturity within ten years, consumes massive amounts of carbon during its growth cycle, produces beautiful wood for finishing, and regenerates from the same root system after harvesting. More than 1,000 investors and 100 farmers have already joined the equally fast-growing Eco-Tree Program. You can learn more about World Tree by visiting www.worldtree.info.
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TM McCormick
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