Just For Him is a ladies gospel trio. We sing all kinds of gospel music but mainly sing Southern, Praise and Worship, and hymns. The original group met in Choir in 1991. The original members were Vickie, Carrie, Carol and Mary. Carol dropped out to pursue a college degree. When Mary developed nodes on her vocal chords, Carol came back into the group. Not long after, Mary moved out of the area.

Our first project was due to a threat from Gordon Harris. He did the "tape" ministry to our nursing home and shut in members. He said, "If you girls don't make a 'record', I'm going to edit all the pastors' tapes and make one of my own". Those tapes were voice only, not musical quality and they warbled when you listened to them. Shivers ran up my spine to think at how awful that would sound.

We didn't think much of it until Carrie was diagnosed with breast cancer. We had a great sound, and felt God was telling us to go and do a project.

A dear supporter, Jo McCroy, gave us $250 to get us started. Some of the other members in the church gave us upwards to $500 donations too, so we were off to the recording studio.

 
 

Our first project was finished at The Fourth Creation Studios in Conroe, Texas. Carry is the sound engineer and owner. He gave us some of the most valuable advice we have ever received on vocalization. In The Arms of Sweet Deliverance was finished and ready to sell February 1997. Naming the CD turned into a more difficult decision than we expected. We were down to our 10th and last song before we all had a peace on what to name it.

We waited until Carrie finished her chemo treatments before we started the project. During our recording, she was receiving radiation treatment. She was getting pretty tired, but we honestly felt it was an anointing to her voice. The recording session kept her going and gave her something to focus on other than fighting for her life. The last song we recorded acappella and it stated just how Carrie felt about the cancer. She was so grateful for all the prayers on her behalf for she truly was IN THE ARMS OF SWEET DELIVERANCE.

In 1998, the group entered the Lone Star State Country Music Competition. In the preliminaries and finals, we won Best Vocal and Best Entertainer of the year. The group is not only known for its close, tight knit harmonies, but we are very funny. Most of the material is impromptu and unrehearsed. Ah, is there a comedy video in the making?

In the fall of 2000, Carrie's husband retired from Shell Oil and they returned to their roots in Chicago. Vickie and Carol were uncertain whether to dissolve the trio or to audition for another alto. We prayed and asked the Lord for guidance as to what do to". Again we had loving friends urge us to go through the audition process.

After 9 long months, God brought us Ann. Ann had a rich voice and a long history of singing with her family. She also was a grandmother and just seemed to fit right in the group. We began our 2nd project at the same recording studio. More Than Harmony was released in May of 2004. The local Christian bookstores also carried this for sale. Videos of 5 of these songs were made in Tomball, Texas.

KJIC out of Santa Fe, Texas picked up this project and plays it almost daily on their station. Ellis Manly has graciously helped our group. We are also played on KJOY here in the greater Houston area. If you live near Hereford, TX the local Christian Radio station there plays our first project. Our music is also played in Mississippi, Indiana, Europe and the Netherlands.

November of 2004, Ann informed the group that her health would no longer allow her to keep up with the trio's busy schedule. Carol's daughter in law, Sarah, was coaxed into helping keep our commitments for the Christmas season. But, as God would have it, she did not get to sing at a single concert.

When our loving Savior is working in the background, it is sometimes not evident. Carol is an avid scrabble player and likes to play Yahoo's Literati. Of the hundreds of thousands of people who play on line computer games, what are the odds of an alto, who lived 4 miles from the group, being in the same room playing a game with Carol? Yep, when it seemed like nothing was on, God was up to something. Carol and Janet met in the room and were chatting while Janet, who is highly competitive, let Carol beat her twice!

One thing led to another and Janet came to audition. She picked up the music and had it all memorized in 4 weeks. She completed the 2004 Christmas season with the group and has been with us ever since.

We have recently headed back into the recording studio to start on a 3rd project. We are earnestly searching for original songs for most of this work in the making.

Other great supporters through the years have given us valuable advice. Watson Holyfield is the President of BAGMA (Bay Area Gospel Music Association) and a member of a men's group, New Psalms. In the early years, we did not memorize our words. At one of our concerts our music flew off the stand and we were mortified. I can still hear Watson telling us to lose the words and memorize the songs. How right he was! Now we have eye contact with the saints and we can truly minister and concentrate on our sound instead of reading the words.

Lou Willis Hildreth heard us at a BAGMA convention. She and her husband, Howard, came and critiqued us at one of our concerts. What a precious woman of God she is and her advice as well taken. You can see Lou in the Gaither Homecoming Tapes.

What does the future hold? Only our Savior knows, but one thing is for sure... These ladies will always being singing - JUST FOR HIM.

 

 
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