Man with no arms plays guitar with his feet; will perform Oct. 14 in Virginia Beach
BRANSON MO NEWS: Tony Melendez captured the attention of Pope John Paul II in 1987. What transpired since has been “life-changing,” he said.The musician/songwriter will share his message and music Friday at St. Nicholas Catholic Church.In 1962, Melendez was born in Nicaragua with no arms. His mother and many other pregnant women back then were prescribed thalidomide for morning sickness. The drug caused myriad deformities in countless children born in the U.S. and the world.The 54-year-old and his wife, Lynn, live in the small town of Branson, Missouri. They have three children ages 19 to 22.Tony Melendez was raised in Los Angeles within a close knit Catholic family, including his parents, two sisters and a brother.“People think I struggled a lot, and was in a lot of pain,” he said.Not so.“Without arms, I lived pretty normal,” he said.He became proficient in the use of his feet for daily care, and began playing the guitar and harmonica. His dad was a musician.“I somehow picked up that musical gene,” he said.
Melendez considered going into the priesthood, but said he didn’t qualify because priests at the time were required to have an index finger and thumb. …
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