the way we get by

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The Way We Get By comes to POV on PBS

Posted on November 6, 2009 by CJ| Leave a comment

The Way We Get By, the awesome documentary that we publicized on our radio show a few months ago, will have its national premiere on PBS Veterans Day November 11th at 9pm.

On call 24 hours a day for the past five years, a group of senior citizens has made history by greeting nearly 900,000 American troops at a tiny airport in Bangor, Maine. The Way We Get By is an intimate look at three of these greeters as they confront the universal losses that come with aging and rediscover their reason for living. Bill Knight, Jerry Mundy and Joan Gaudet find the strength to overcome their personal battles and transform their lives through service. This inspirational and surprising story shatters the stereotypes of today’s senior citizens as the greeters redefine the meaning of community.

You can view the trailer here: http://www.pbs.org/pov/waywegetby/

This film already has support from a number of organizations, including Serve.gov, the USO and Operation Homefront. The film demonstrates how important it is to support our troops, and puts a very human face on those who are deployed and returning. I hope that you will tune-in to the PBS broadcast or watch the film online. You won’t be sorry!!

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Tagged the way we get by, USO

Posted on June 27, 2009 by CJ| 8 Comments

Back in February, Troy and I interviewed Aron Gaudet, Director of the stunning documentary, “The Way We Get By.” When I redeployed, I came through Bangor, Maine. These people are true patriots and they deserve this recognition.

The movie opens in New York City at the IFC Center on July 17th, 2009 and I wanted to take a moment to remind you a little about it if you didn’t catch the interview.

The SXSW Special Jury Award winning The Way We Get By is a deeply moving film about life and how to live it. Beginning as a seemingly idiosyncratic story about troop greeters – a group of senior citizens who gather daily at a small airport to thank American soldiers departing and returning from Iraq, the film quickly turns into a moving, unsettling and compassionate story about aging, loneliness, war and mortality.

When its three subjects aren’t at the airport, they wrestle with their own problems: failing health, depression, mounting debt. Joan, a grandmother of eight, has a deep connection to the soldiers she meets. The sanguine Jerry keeps his spirits up even as his personal problems mount. And the veteran Bill, who clearly has trouble taking care of himself, finds himself contemplating his own death. Seeking out the telling detail rather than offering sweeping generalizations, the film carefully builds stories of heartbreak and redemption, reminding us how our culture casts our elders, and too often our soldiers, aside. More important, regardless of your politics, The Way We Get By celebrates three unsung heroes who share their love with strangers who need and deserve it.

Here’s a quick trailer for the movie:

The Way We Get By – Trailer from The Way We Get By on Vimeo.

This documentary will bring tears of joy, sadness, and patriotism to your eyes! The hardest thing in the world to hear is when that gentleman says, “My life doesn’t mean a whole lot to me, but if I can make it mean something to somebody else…that’s my endeavor.” He sort of sums up the entire movie right there.