Banding together: Omaha cancer patient, therapist form bond over love for music
OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - Music can often bring people together.
Last weekend, big crowds took in a neighborhood celebration. Open mic night brought out all sorts of backgrounds.
This weekend, music emanated from everywhere in the Gifford Park neighborhood of Omaha. Omaha musician Sarah Arnold played her first Porchfest.
“It’s part of your heart and sharing it with people. It’s hard, but really beautiful," Arnold said.
Porchfest is what it sounds like. Porches are turned into stages.
“It’s a really great idea for a cultural event," participant Shannon Seeley said.
And portable stages pop-up in parking lots. Strangers bring their lawn chairs to soak it in. For Mike Morgan and Shannon Seeley...
“I usually came here in a bad mood,” Morgan said.
Their musical alliance started in an unlikely place. Mike Morgan, the cancer patient.
“People don’t realize the side-effects you have for treatment,” Seeley said.
Shannon Seeley, his physical therapist. They bonded over their love of music, so they started a two-person band and went without a band name for over a year. The safe practice space of a living room couldn’t go on forever.
“We could have been called ‘The Empty Nesters’," Seeley said.
“I wanted ‘Sonic Boomers’," Morgan said. “I got rejected.”
The band’s name? “Deliberating Gloria.”
“When we played at the Down Under last month, I wrote the name of the band down and I had really bad handwriting,” Morgan said. “So, they called us ‘Deliberately Gloria’ instead of ‘Deliberating Gloria’."
Deliberating Gloria. What’s it mean?
“Gloria in Latin stands for greed,” Seeley said. “So, a lot of my songs are about social conscience things. That’s where the name came about."
No longer physical therapist and patient, Shannon and Mike get together for the music now. The duo currently has three songs on SoundCloud. Mike Morgan says they are varying quality.
They continue playing at open mic nights in Omaha.
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