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THIS IS HEADLINE
Praise Writers is a group of young songwriters led by Sam & Shelley Glionna who are located in Belize and have a passion for sharing Jesus through music. Not only do they share their music, they also share the story behind each song!
THIS IS HEADLINE
Praise Writers is a group of young songwriters led by Sam & Shelley Glionna who are located in Belize and have a passion for sharing Jesus through music. Not only do they share their music, they also share the story behind each song!
Praise Writers is a group of young songwriters led by Sam & Shelley Glionna who are located in Belize and have a passion for sharing Jesus through music. Not only do they share their music, they also share the story behind each song!
Sam and Shelley Glionna
Sam started learning piano and pipe organ at the age of nine. By the age of fourteen, he was an assistant organist to composer/choir director George B. Hacker at St. Gregory the Great Church in Chicago, Illinois. At age sixteen, he directed and played keyboard for “Landslide ’68,” the musical touring group for Richard Nixon’s presidential campaign in Chicago. Over the years he has taught pre-school through college level music programs and was the music director for several churches in Florida.
When he married singer and vocal coach Shelley, she added her beautiful voice and songwriting talent to the mix and together they directed the Praise Team and Bell Choir at First Presbyterian Church in Inverness, Florida.
They decided to move to Belize in 2010 at the request of a missionary couple they met while on vacation. After all, their kids were grown, married, and scattered across the U.S. They planned on helping for a year or two, but thirteen years later they are still in Belize. God clearly had other plans for these two. As Sam and Shelley often say, “God’s plans for us are so much bigger and better than anything we could think up on our own. Each one of us was created by God for a specific purpose. If we follow His lead, He will bless us beyond our wildest imagination.”
After moving to Belize to teach music to the kids in village schools and churches that had no resources for music programs, Sam and Shelley started the Spanish Lookout Kids’ Choir. Sam was next inspired by the Holy Spirit to start a group for young songwriters.
It wasn’t long before a seven-year-old girl asked if she could sing a song she wrote called “My Best Friend.” Many of the other kids in the choir also have a gift and passion for writing and recording songs, and have become known as the “Praise Writers.”
A spokesperson for the group said, “We pray for all our listeners at the beginning of each vocal class and recording session. We hope our music is a blessing to you. Please comment and write to us. We would love to get to know you as a friend.”
ANDREA PLETT My name is Andrea Plett. I am 13 years old. I was born in Spanish Lookout, Belize where I am still living. I have 5 siblings and two are married. I have a 4-year-old nephew now. I go to a Christian School and am in 8th grade. When I was about 7 years old, I accepted Jesus into my heart. I love reading, dancing, and spending time with my friends. I live on a farm and take care of the chickens. I have four dogs. When I was around 7 years old, I started to go to kid’s choir. I wrote my first song at the age of 12 years old.
ANDREA PLETT My name is Andrea Plett. I am 13 years old. I was born in Spanish Lookout, Belize where I am still living. I have 5 siblings and two are married. I have a 4-year-old nephew now. I go to a Christian School and am in 8th grade. When I was about 7 years old, I accepted Jesus into my heart. I love reading, dancing, and spending time with my friends. I live on a farm and take care of the chickens. I have four dogs. When I was around 7 years old, I started to go to kid’s choir. I wrote my first song at the age of 12 years old.
BREANNA ALLEN My name is Breanna and I am 14 years old. I live in a village called Los Tambos, Belize. I get inspired to write songs by God. I like drawing, crocheting, playing video games, and watching TV. I wrote a song called Wonderful Life when I was 12 years old. I was inspired to write the song because I realized that some people aren’t happy. I wanted to show that with God you can have true happiness. My favorite subject in school is history and I think when I get older I would want to be a cartoon character designer.
