Don Schlitz is the newest member of the Grand Ole Opry! The songwriter, credited with penning hit songs like “Deeper Than the Holler,” “He Thinks He’ll Keep Her,” “Strong Enough to Bend” and more, was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry on Tuesday, August 30, by Vince Gill.

“Well, I’m proud to say welcome to the newest member of the Grand Ole Opry, my dear friend, Don Schlitz,” Gill said.

“It’s such an honor to be here, to represent and to be a part of this family,” Schlitz said. “I especially want to thank the people who supported me, and believed in me through this journey.”

Schlitz also thanked his children and his wife, Stacey, for their role throughout his lengthy career, spanning more than 40 years.

“Thank you so much for always saying, ‘It’s okay. You can do this,'” he added.

Schlitz began the monumental night by performing two of his biggest hits, both Kenny Rogers‘ “The Gambler” and Keith Whitley‘s “When You Say Nothing At All.”

“Since Kenny and Keith aren’t here, I get to represent what you and they had together,” Schlitz said. “I get to be a bridge for them. That’s why I get to be a member of this special place, because I’m representing these artists.”

Randy Travis was also on hand, seated at the side of the stage, to watch Schlitz perform “Forever and Ever, Amen.”  The performance was followed by a video of several artists performing some of Schlitz’s songs.

“Don Schlitz’s songs have had a home on the Opry stage for years, and we are all thrilled that our friend Don is now officially home here as well,”  Dan Rogers, Opry Executive Producer, says. “The Opry will outlive all of us, and I have faith that generations from now, great artists will still take to the Opry to sing Don Schlitz songs, all of them gifts that keep giving to music fans.”

Schlitz was invited to join the Grand Ole Opry by Gill in June, along with Charlie McCoy, who was inducted in July. The double invitation marked the first time in Grand Ole Opry history that two people were invited to join on the same night.

Read ’10 Country Artists Who Should Be Grand Ole Opry Members’ here.