The Stewart Family

Faith, family and music are synonymous with The Stewarts. Joe Stewart and his family have been performing gospel music to delighted crowds across the eastern United States for several years — since his and Sharon's three children were small.

Devon, the youngest, who is now 20, was too small to play an instrument when he began performing with the group.

"He was highly energetic," Joe jokes about his son's inability to sit still when he was a youngster.

"He was ultimately motivated and otherwise predisposed," his brother, Russell, adds with a laugh.

The good-natured teasing comes easily to the close-knit family and their mutual respect is obvious.

While each family member is proud of the group's success, it is a mission they do not take for granted.

"It's been a delightful surprise," Joe emphasized.

"We never really had a big picture in mind," Sharon added. "We just went with the flow ...

"Wherever the Lord takes us, I'm ready to go."

Performing gospel music is a lifestyle that often takes them from home, but allows them to share their own deep faith with others.

"We wanted to keep music in our lives. It's something we've always enjoyed," Joe said.

"We do travel a lot, but it's seasonal."

In the spring and fall, the family may travel three out of four weekends each month, performing in towns nearby or as far away as Florida.

Working full-time in the business is not something they wanted to pursue as a family, Sharon added.

"The early stages of professional music doesn't offer much security," Joe said.

Because of the extensive travel, most children of professional gospel music performers are home-schooled, Misty, the oldest, explained. The Stewart children wanted to attend public school and their parents wanted them to have a comfortable, stable home life.

Education is also an important part of the family foundation.

Joe, a third-generation educator, is currently the Title I director for Wyoming County Schools.

"I thought about some other options, especially during those difficult years of college. Some non-college things were tempting, for sure," he recalls of his career choice.

"I continued my education, while working my way through college, at Marshall University. There is an old cliche that says, "If you can't do it, teach it." It was at this time that I found this old saying to be a myth.

"I was employed as lead guitarist for country singer Mel Street, making good money. Later I was offered an administrative position for McDonald's restaurant chain. A third opportunity came when I was encouraged to accept an opening in Marshall's graphic arts department. Last, and certainly most tempting, was the choice of pursuing a career in gospel music with Canaan Records in Nashville, Tenn.

"My decision: I can do it, but I'd rather teach it," he emphasized.

Herschel Stewart, Joe's father, was the principal of a three-room school in Elk Lick. His grandfather was the teacher and principal of a one-room school.

"I still run into people who say my father was the best teacher they ever had," Stewart said.

"My father, and my family, were my greatest influences. I think I inherited my love for education from (my father)."

He credits his love of music to his father as well.

The elder Stewart sang with his brothers, The Stewart Brothers, in the 1930s. The Stewart Brothers sang at the Lilly Reunion in 1936 and The Joe Stewart Family has performed at the reunion several times.

Sharon, who attended Marshall University, manages the family business and is the "facilitator."

"I help those around me to be all they can be, and thereby I am all that I can be," she said. "That is our duty and our reasonable service to God."

Her family, the Walls, are also well known musicians throughout the area. Several of her siblings have also become educators.

Misty is a reading specialist at Oceana Middle, and her husband, Robert Lyons, teaches at Westside High.

Russell holds several degrees from Concord University and hopes to expand the family's already successful recording business, JLS Sound Trax.

Devon is a student at Concord University.

"As the kids seek out their individual careers, who knows where tomorrow may lead?" Sharon noted. "I hope we can continue to work together."

When Robert married Misty, he became part of the group. While Robert could play piano, the group needed a guitar player.

"He literally learned to play in the back of the RV," Russell noted. "It was a quick learning process."

When Misty and Robert have children, she hopes they will choose to be involved as well.

"I'd like for (the recording studio) to be a career," Russell said. "This would make it feasible to stay put and make my livelihood out of the studio."

Word of JLS Sound Trax is spreading, and Russell has completed work for groups and individual performers as far away as Washington state.

While the studio requires a lot of time for family members, Russell does most of the work.

He records about 30 groups a year, Joe explained.

Many of those groups are nationally recognized artists, including The Couriers of Pennsylvania, Danny Funderburke, who sang tenor with The Cathedrals for many years, and Chuck Compton, among numerous others.

The Stewarts' most recent CD release, "Impact!," was also recorded at the family studio in Clear Fork. It is their eighth CD since the early 1990s.

The name, "Impact!" was chosen because the CD features some non-traditional gospel music that leans toward jazz and country, Joe added.

"There are a variety of styles on this CD," he noted.

One of the songs, "Born To Serve The Lord," features a recording of the song Misty made when she was just 8 years old. For this CD, the original version was blended with her current recording of the song.

While it took about six months to select the songs, it only took about a month to put it together.

"It's been well received," Joe said.

The Stewarts have also organized a local gospel music festival that has drawn hundreds to listen to local performers.

The festival, held annually at Westside High, helps encourage other singers as well, Russell said.

While the music is important, it is a vehicle to share their enduring faith with others.

"It's a way to reach out to the downtrodden and depressed, who may be seeking something," Sharon said. "They may see something in us that will help them to face their problems."

The music offers people a look into salvation in a nonjudgmental way, Devon believes.

"The most important thing I do is talk to people about their eternal salvation," Misty added.

"Life frequently gets hectic," Russell said. "This is always my stable ground. I can run to this and relax in it.

"I'd like to think what we've contributed will echo for years."