| God’s call said nothing about not singing | ||
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By LES STEWART Staff Writer Lebanon Daily News Monday, September 22, 2008 |
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IONA — Franklyn Schaefer can consider himself something of a rarity.
The South Lebanon Township man is among the few ministers who are also contemporary country-music singers. He recently released his first CD, but it wasn’t something he took on solely for himself. The 46-year-old minister-musician wanted to produce something to share with his children and maybe even his grandchildren when they grow older. Along the way to completing the CD, he also got to share his musical adventure with his congregation. Earlier this month, Schaefer held a party at Zion United Methodist Church of Iona, where he is minister, for the unveiling of his first CD, “Keep On Smiling.” |
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| The Rev. Franklyn Schaefer feels the music at a recent CD-release party for Keep on Smiling at Zion United Methodist Church of Iona, where Schaefer is pastor. (Les Stewart / Lebanon Daily News) |
“My dad gave me my first guitar,” he said during a recent interview in his
pastor’s office.
It was a classical guitar with nylons strings, he recalled — |
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not a surprising gift, considering Schaefer’s father was a classical concert guitarist. “He showed me the first chords,” Schaefer said. Schaefer and his brother, Uwe, who also played guitar, started their first band when Schaefer was just 13. They played in the lobby of the high-rise building where they lived in Germany. They set out a bucket and collected change from the residents going in and out of the building.
Born and raised in Wuppertal, Germany, Schaefer came to the United States in 1990. Following studies at Valley Forge Christian College and Princeton Seminary, he became an ordained minister in the United Methodist Church in 1996. He has served several United Methodist churches, all in Pennsylvania, and also worked as a resident chaplain at the Hershey Medical Center. Earlier this year, he became a U.S. citizen at a ceremony in the Lebanon Municipal Building. “I’ve been writing songs all my life,” the minister said. “I always thought of myself as the second fiddle. I never though of my voice being good enough to be a solo voice.” Schaefer said he has started worship bands at four different churches, but he always sang harmony and stayed in the background. In addition to a traditional service each Sunday, Iona also has a contemporary service. About two years ago, Schaefer decided he wanted to share his songs with others and took the step to have them professionally recorded. He met Chris Pati, a record producer from Long Island, N.Y., and they started on one song and took it from there. They decided to record an entire CD of 10 songs. The CD is on the JavaCasa label, which describes Schaefer’s first CD as a collection of contemporary country-gospel music. One of the songs, “I Promise to Cherish,” is dedicated to his wife, Bridgitte, with whom he has four children. On his days off, Schaefer drove to Pati’s Modern Voices Recording Studio in Long Island to work on his CD. At first, he didn’t want his flock to know about the project. “I thought it was kind of odd that I did this,” he said. “Because as a minister, you’re there to serve. You’re not there to perform.” At one point, Schaefer realized he had to tell his congregation. He also decided to incorporate the church’s Cherub Choir on his CD. He used his own equipment to record the children singing backup to the tracks that had been recorded already. —————— Each Monday, “Just Folks” tells the stories of ordinary people who live, work and play in the Lebanon Valley. |
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