Kelly Carpenter

about

Sometimes the thing you gave up for a lifetime of happiness comes around again. This might be the perfect epitaph, in time, for Kelly Carpenter. A natural musician from childhood, Kelly was writing songs by the age of five, and performed live in various ensembles throughout his school years. After high school Kelly tried college, but one year in he walked away to pursue music full time. Along the way, he played in bands with some people who went on to have solid careers in the music business, but Kelly eventually returned to the safety and security of a college education. The path ahead was the American dream: A computer programming degree, a successful career, marriage to his best friend Merrilyn (30 years and counting), and music as an increasingly successful hobby. Kelly also discovered a new depth to his spiritual life, and channeled his talents into worship music. This eventually led him to the Vineyard Church and a music community in the 1980’s and 1990’s that significantly influenced the popular revival of Contemporary Christian Music. His songs have been recorded by some of the biggest names in CCM, with “Draw Me Close” (Michael W. Smith, John Tesh, The Katinas, Kathy Troccoli) the biggest of them all. Kelly also did significant session work during this time, as music stayed an essential part of his personal essence. In retrospect, it seems almost inevitable that Kelly Carpenter would one day be called back to music full-time. His inner voice began to exhort him in

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