Owen K Wins Moniker Guitar at Soulfest

Over 13,000 people gathered last week at Soulfest, New England’s largest Christian music festival, but only one would walk away with a grand prize, a 12 year old from North Springfield, Vt.
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Owen K Wins Moniker Guitar at Soulfest For Owen Kelley from Springfield, Vermont, Saturday was a day to mark a lifetime for the budding musician. Over 13,000 people had gathered at Soulfest, New England’s largest Christian music festival, for the four day celebration of music and God, but only one would walk away with a grand prize – a Moniker guitar autographed by artists from Switchfoot, Phil Joel, Jeremy Camp, Plumb, Manic Drive, War of Ages, and all of the performers over the four days of concerts. Although only twelve years old, Owen has been a talented musician most of his life, starting at age five when his parents bought him his first guitar. At the age of ten, Owen started taking private lessons, as stringed instruments aren’t part of the school band. “By the time he was eleven, he was excelling in guitar and rocking out to all sorts of music! He reads music and plays by ear – a gift that no one else in his family has!” his mother, Angela, said via an email interview. Since then, Owen has continued to grow his talent, mastering Bass guitar, teaching himself ukulele, and preparing for a career by amassing a guitar collection and performing solos at school events. But Owen hasn’t kept his talent to himself. This summer, he started a small business teaching others to love the instrument. “He saw a need for this [teaching others] because guitar sometimes has a bad reputation – like it is a waste of time or something -- and it isn’t taught in school, so kids aren’t exposed to it like our family feels they should be,” Angela commented. “Guitar has given him an outlet to express himself, be a leader, and let out his emotions at the end of a hard day – I am so grateful that he has found something that he truly loves to do.” So, on Owen’s first trip to Soulfest this past Friday, it wasn’t surprising that he immediately noticed the five autographed guitars being raffled off. Four of them were autographed by that night’s headlining artist, while the fifth one was autographed by all of the artists that played during the event. Although Owen had brought one of his own guitars, in hopes of getting it autographed, the family decided to buy tickets for the raffle, since a one of a kind guitar would be “WAY cooler”! “We talked about how important it will be to pray about it and envision what it would be like to win. ‘Power of the mind – Power of prayer’ I told Owen,” Angela said. Owen continued to pray for the next 24 hours. On Saturday night, in a crowd of thousands waiting for the Casting Crowns concert, Owen and his parents waited with anticipation as the raffle winners were drawn. “We were hopeful, but didn’t want to have any hearts set on winning,” Angela recalls. As the first four guitars were drawn, the family kept their dwindling optimism quiet. Owen’s dad placed his hand on his son’s shoulder as the last name was being drawn, and said “Here it is, Owen, they are going to say your name” as the announcer read the final winner: “Owen Kelley, North Springfield, Vermont.” The family celebrated wildly as their prayer was answered. “This was the best experience ever for a 12-year-old; to be a witness to the power of prayer and to have confirmation that he is doing what he should be doing with his life,” Angela said. Owen, congratulations! Thank you for sharing your testimony with us, and we’re looking forward to see how God uses your talent!