Cowboys rally to help one of their own

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Brenn Hill, well-known local cowboy poet and country music singer, with his 3-year-old son Briggs, who is in the hospital fighting cancer.

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When cowboy singer Michael Martin Murphey and cowboy poet Waddie Mitchell heard about the plight of Utah singer/songwriter Brenn Hill, whose son is battling cancer, they did what any cowboys would do: rally the rest of the family.

"Those of us who are cowboys and singing country music, we are a family. When someone has a problem in the family, we get together to help," said Murphey, a member of the Western Music Association Hall of Fame and author of six albums that went gold. "Brenn Hill has dedicated his life to cowboy music, and those of us who've done it for a long time really admire him for it. Now he's facing one of the hardest things one can face, and we're here to support him."

Last November, 3-year-old Briggs Hill was diagnosed with a rare cancerous tumor between his cerebellum and spinal cord. He is being treated at Primary Children's Medical Center in Salt Lake City, undergoing surgery to remove the tumor and several rounds of chemotherapy, complicated by a recent respiratory virus. Brenn Hill, his wife, Sylina, and their other children -- Quayden, 7, and new baby sister Cambridge, 11 weeks -- are never far from his side.

Hill, named Male Vocalist of the Year by the Academy of Western Artists in 2004, said his son loves the outdoors, just as he does. Ever since he can remember, Hill said Briggs has loved tooling around the family ranch in Hooper and hanging around the horses. One of Briggs' first words was Stormy, the name of a family

"Briggs is a kindred spirit with me. He seems to like all the things in life that I love," Hill said. "He's been in my shadow ever since he was born. He's just such an agreeable kid, and he has a way of working his way into the hearts of people there at the hospital. Many people are pulling for him, and we feel very fortunate that he's had so much attention."

Murphey and Mitchell are well-known among fans of cowboy poetry and song in Utah. While the purpose of the concert is raising funds to help the Hill family pay Briggs' medical bills, many of which are not covered by insurance, both artists said they will focus on the positive.

"My son is fighting a life-threatening illness, and sometimes I'm just speechless when I think about how great my friends are," Hill said. "It's just been phenomenal, the outpouring of support from the cowboy community. I don't just think of Waddie as my mentor, but as one of my closest friends. And Murph, he's an American legend. I can't imagine what the world would be like without him. It means a lot to my family."

"For those of us who have been lucky enough to know and to be introduced to [Hill] and see his family grow, it's just inspiring," said Mitchell, co-founder of the renowned Elko Cowboy Poetry Gathering. "He's not only thought of very highly by his peers, but he's just also a good man and big talent. And now to see what he's gone through, he's a hero to me -- a man that's half my age."

Hill says the experience has made him more appreciative of his music career, which has produced six albums. He's been inspired to write several new songs since Briggs was hospitalized; the arrival of baby Cambridge inspired another.

"The beauty of being a cowboy singer is that we're not ashamed to wear our hearts on our sleeves. My kids are the light of my life, and this experience has inspired a lot of my music," Hill said.

"He's doing an overwhelmingly great job of keeping everything going. Can't help but admire the man," said Murphey. "And I think this experience will produce truly inspiring music, because a true artist is influenced by things happening around him all the time, even in times of pain."