FOURTH ANNUAL CHARLIE DANIELS PATRIOT AWARDS DINNER SET FOR OCT. 26

The fourth annual Charlie Daniels Patriot Awards Dinner will be held on Oct. 26 at 7 p.m. at Nashville’s City Winery. All proceeds from the evening will benefit the late Country Music Hall of Fame member’s veterans non-profit, The Charlie Daniels Journey Home Project (TCDJHP).

Multi-platinum, global entertainer Chris Young, a previous recipient of the Patriot Award, will perform live. The War Hippies (combat warriors Scooter Brown and Donnie Reis) will open the evening with the national anthem and a few tunes. Special guest speakers will include former New York City Police Commissioner Bernie Kerik, decorated military veteran Mark “Oz” Geist (Benghazi survivor and co-author of 13 Hours / U.S. Marine Corps, retired), and Col. Jay Powers, former Commanding Officer, 5th Group (U.S. Army Green Beret – Fort Campbell, KY). SiriusXM’s Storme Warren will host the event. The dinner ceremony will also include a silent and live auction. Daniels’ wife Hazel and son Charlie Daniels, Jr. will be in attendance.

“As the world continues to change and evolve, we as a community must not forget the men and women who have sacrificed so much in the past decades, as well as our future warriors and their families,” says TCDJHP co-founder and Daniels’ longtime manager David Corlew. “The Charlie Daniels Journey Home Project exists to honor and to provide much needed support in their time of transition.”

The Charlie Daniels Patriot Awards provides an opportunity to celebrate the U.S. military and the extraordinary individuals who have contributed to TCDJHP as it continues its sacred mission. Two very special guests will also be honored at this year’s dinner event: 97-year-old WWII Navy vet Mathias Gutman and 99-year-old WWII Coast Guard vet Gladys Hughes.

Mathias Gutman came from a military family and joined the U.S. Navy shortly after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He became a coxswain on LST 553, delivering men and equipment under fire on several amphibious landings. He was part of six island invasions in the Pacific and battled Japanese forces coming from the land, the sea, and the skies.

At a young age, Gladys Hughes felt the call of duty and left college as a junior to enlist in the U.S. Coast Guard during WWII, serving as a HA1C medic. She appreciates beauty at every stage and in every avenue of life, winning 2nd runner-up in the 2012 Ms. Veteran America competition, which works to promote issues of homeless female veterans. She earned the crown of Ms. Mississippi Senior America in 2003, where she emphasized children’s theater.

“We have so many distinguished guests, stories, and above all, the presentation of our three award recipients who most represent patriotism, commitment and giving back in this critical time,” explains Corlew. “Our live auction will feature two of our most honored guests, Mathias Gutman and Gladys Hughes, as we auction a guitar signed by ten Medal of Honor recipients in order to complete a project of erecting a statue that will honor the men and women of World War II and Vietnam. Come join us. You won’t regret it!”

This year’s Patriot Award honorees will be revealed during the evening ceremony. The criteria for the award is based on the mission of the organization: to support veterans in their return, rehabilitation, and reintegration back into civilian life. The award honors a person, persons, or group that fulfills and exemplifies the efforts and dedication of TCDJHP’s purpose to continuously care, support and encourage the men, women, and families who have served our great nation. Previous recipients include Young, Darryl Worley, Mike Huckabee, Jude Seale, William Horton, Donnie Mingus, The Shepherd’s Center and more.