LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – A Lubbock singer-songwriter is paying tribute to three first responders who gave their lives for the community.
“555 Lubbock (A Tribute to Eric, Nicholas and Matt)” was recently released by Natalea Sharp. The song honors Eric Hill, Nicholas Reyna, and Matt Dawson.
All three were hit by a car while responding to a crash along I-27 back in January of 2020. Hill and Reyna were killed, and Dawson suffered a traumatic brain injury. He later died from complications in 2023.
Hill’s family created 5-5-5, an organization dedicated to protecting first responders. It calls for people to plan 5 daily options for trip safety, act on 5 daily trip safety considerations, and hug 5 loved ones daily.
“We want people to have fewer accidents, fewer people hurt, and to of course keep our first responders safe,” Mark Hill, Eric’s father and the president of 5-5-5, said.
5-5-5’s mission is also inspiring people like Sharp who do not have direct ties to first responders.
Sharp said she first discovered the organization when she spotted its billboard on a road trip to Amarillo.
“I was bawling my eyes out all the way up to Amarillo and on the way back I thought ‘I’m going to write a song’. I’m going to write a song for these boys,” Sharp said. “At the time, I didn’t even care if it went anywhere or not. I just wanted to write a song because I have the ability to do it.”
After writing ’555 Lubbock,’ Sharp shared it with the Hill, Reyna, and Dawson families.
“We just sat in the car and cried for a little while,” Hill said.
Together, they decided to share it with the public. Sharp listed it on her website and is donating all of the money from the song’s sale back to 5-5-5.
“The more money they can raise, the better the foundation can help other people,” Sharp said. “They have the same mission I do – they want to help other people. And it’s an unfortunate situation that they lost their boys for that to happen.”
Hill says 5-5-5 is now primarily dependent on donations, which is why contributions from the song are so appreciated.
“It’s things like what Natalea has done that warms your heart to know that someone out there is thinking about you and there are things bigger than you,” Hill said.
But it’s more that just the song’s support for 5-5-5 that touched Hill’s heart. He says it’s how it carries the legacies of Eric, Matt, and Nicholas.
“It touched someone’s life so much that they opened up and wrote this beautiful song about that day and the things that happened,” Hill said. “We’re just so thankful that people still relate to that and still feel a small amount of our pain.”
Sharp says she hopes to work with the families to create a full album honoring their sons. In the meantime, you can purchase “555 Lubbock” on her website: nataleasharpmusic.com.
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