Name: Karen Popelak
Location: Mt. Ephraim, New Jersey
Santana Fan Since: 1969
How Many Times You’ve Seen Carlos Live: At least fifteen to twenty times – I will have to pull out all of my old ticket stubs.
Why You Love Santana’s Music: In 1969 I was sixteen years old and the sound of “Soul Sacrifice” filled the air as a generation of youth watched Woodstock transform the nation. Carlos Santana!!!!! Who could help but fall in love with him and his music. The early 70’s brought more albums and more songs to inspire. My younger brother and I spent many hours listening to Carlos’s guitar. In 1977 I met my husband and we fell in love listening to Moonflower. It still gives me chills when I hear the first rifts of “I’ll Be Waiting”. It seemed like the song was made for us. In 1981 when our daughter was born the sound of “I Love You Too Much” filled our small apartment. The 80’s brought two more children and lots of Santana albums. As the kids were growing up, our “quiet time” always included Carlos and still does. By 2000 we were celebrating our twentieth anniversary and the Supernatural album had just come out. What a phenomenal compilation of talents! We played the songs over and over again and shared them with our friends and family. It was great seeing a new generation appreciate his music. Fortunately we are now able to see Carlos every time he visits the area. I can’t count the number of times we have seen him in Atlantic City and the Philadelphia area. We were very excited to see that he will be playing in Las Vegas for two years and plan to travel there specifically to see him and we already have our tickets for July 20 in Atlantic City. I was going to say that Carlos is like family, but he is more than family – he is the spirit that has inspired us through the years. Through good times and sorrow, his music never fails to soothe the soul. Thank you, Carlos, for being such a big part of our lives. Peace and love to you!