Sacramento-based music fan Kim Alexander sent a letter to folk icon Pete Seeger last August as a way of honoring her late father on his birthday. According to a heartwarming article from Fretboard Journal, what happened next was pretty incredible.

Like many other music lovers around the country, Alexander was saddened by the news of Seeger’s passing earlier this week, and she spent most of Tuesday listening to the folk icon’s music and thinking about his life. However, when she went to her mailbox that afternoon, Alexander was surprised to find a letter from Beacon, NY that was postmarked January 25, 2014.

Alexander opened the envelope to find a reply from Seeger, who had written his response in the margins of the letter she had sent him. The folk icon gave her a few words of encouragement and suggested that she publish her “20 Tips for Making Music With Friends,” which she had included in the letter she originally sent him. Seeger also signed as “94-year-old Pete” and left a sketch of a banjo.

As previously reported, Seeger passed away on Monday night at the age of 94. The legendary singer/songwriter and social activist helped popularize folk music in the 1940s and 50s before dedicating much of his time to various labor, civil rights, anti-war and environmentalist movements, including his successful effort to clean up the Hudson River. An effort is currently underway to name the new Tappan Zee bridge, which traverses the Hudson, after Seeger.