Veterans living in memory care units in Pittsburgh are getting treated to karaoke.<\/p>\n
Volunteers noticed the impact the music is having on them right away. <\/p>\n
The volunteers are part of a local non-profit called Herd of Turtles. They sing, dance, and pull out all the stops to make karaoke events a party every time.<\/p>\n
They do it in honor and memory of Dr. Dave Johnson.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne day he said to me, \u2018hey, I wanna learn how to sing,\u2019\u201d said Dave\u2019s daughter-in-law, Anissa Johnson.<\/p>\n
So she made good on the request of the 82-year-old who had recently been diagnosed with dementia due to Alzheimer\u2019s.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe had the tambourine on one hand, the microphone on the other, and he just bellowed out some of his favorites,\u201d Anissa said.<\/p>\n
Anything from Elvis and Johnny Cash.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just brought out everything that I think he was holding inside of him,\u201d said Paula Johnson, Dave\u2019s wife. \u201cBecause he couldn\u2019t express himself very well verbally, but to sing a song, he just let it go.\u201d<\/p>\n
It offered glimpses of the man Paula married 53 years earlier. The man who served as a dentist in the Navy and was a Hall of Fame wrestler at Pitt.<\/p>\n
The disease progressed quickly and a few short months after he started his singing lessons, Dave passed away.<\/p>\n
But his family and his vocal coach saw the impact the music had on him, and they wanted others living with memory diagnoses to experience it too. So they created the non-profit, Herd of Turtles, to spread the joy of music. It is named after a phrase Dave always said, never losing his sense of humor.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnytime he was about to leave a room, before he got up, he\u2019d say, \u2018I am off, like a herd of turtles.\u2019 He was sort of poking fun of himself for being slow,\u201d Anissa said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey might have a hard time telling you what their name is, but they know how to sing the Star-Spangled Banner front to back and they\u2019re smiling,\u201d said Melody Molinaro, president of Herd of Turtles and Dave\u2019s vocal coach.<\/p>\n
During a recent karaoke session that Channel 11 was invited to, we asked veteran Danny Schlegal what music means to him.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo me it\u2019s the reason for why my life exists,\u201d he told us. \u201cWhen I was in the army in Vietnam, I would sing. Me and my buddies would sing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI definitely feel Dave\u2019s presence (at Herd of Turtles events) because he would just be overjoyed,\u201d Paula said. <\/p>\n
Herd of Turtles has several sing-alongs planned for the fall. For more information visit https:\/\/www.herdofturtlespgh.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n Download the FREE WPXI News app<\/a> for breaking news alerts.<\/p>\n Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook<\/a> and Twitter<\/a>. | Watch WPXI NOW<\/a><\/p>\n TOP STORIES FROM CHANNEL 11 NEWS <\/p>\n \u00a92026 Cox Media Group<\/p>\n