Gospel music star Lauren Talley will be performing at the Callaway Community Center April 26-27 for the Nebraska Gospel Fest, hosted by Morning Star Church. (Courtesy photo)

Pastor Mike Garner has been shepherding the flock at Morning Star Church near Callaway for nearly a year, and in that time the Tennessee transplant has made his mark. Through his connections and background in the music industry, Pastor Garner has treated area residents to some fun and exciting entertainment - and in April he will be hosting a very special program.

He is calling it The Nebraska Gospel Fest, to be held April 26-27 at the Callaway Community Center. Much to Garner’s delight, the event will feature one of the biggest names in Gospel music - Lauren Talley.

The story of how this Gospel musician turned Pastor landed in Callaway, Nebraska, is an interesting one. “Ed Lashley (owner of Red Fern Electric) and I connected on Facebook, and they were looking for a Pastor. And to be honest, I wasn’t keen on moving to rural Nebraska,” Pastor Garner explained in his southern accent. “But I told him I would come and preach for him, and I did. We were here for a couple of weeks and fell in love with Callaway and the area.”

Garner admits that he did not expect the church to call him after he left Nebraska, but told his wife he would pray about it if they did. “I did a lot of praying about it in the meantime; I sort of knew God was going to bring us here. But, as time went on and they didn’t call, I thought they had found someone else. I was fixin’ to give another church in California a call. I told them I would call at 10 p.m., and Ed Lashley called me at 9:47 p.m. that night.”

As for the Gospel Fest, Garner said the event is partly in celebration of their 1-year anniversary of coming to Callaway. “But it’s also an extension of our ministry here,” he added. “We wanted to bring in somebody that folks would easily recognize, so I called KJLT in North Platte and mentioned Lauren Talley and he said she is one of their most played artists on that station.

So I got in touch with Lauren and she said she would love to do it. She has never sung in Nebraska before.”

Pastor Garner shared that while the Nebraska Gospel Fest is a concert, it is much more than that.

Saturday’s lineup will include singers and preachers.

“It’s just going to be a fun get together Saturday night. Then on Sunday morning at the Community Center, Lauren will be doing our service. She will lead the music and give her testimony about going through depression and some things that she’s gone through.

Then, Sunday afternoon, we are going to feed everyone after the service.”

The Callaway Community Church with Pastor Dean Haidle will be joining Morning Star for the Sunday morning service, with a free lunch for everyone in attendance following the service at about noon. That afternoon there will be what Pastor Garner referred to as “an old-fashioned sing along”.

“People can just request hymns, they can request Lauren to sing, or whatever they choose,” Garner continued. “It’s just going to be a fun informal time starting about 2:00.”

It all gets started at 6 p.m. on Saturday, April 26, at the Callaway Community Center. Tickets for the full weekend, including lunch on Sunday, are $40. There is no charge for anyone who just wishes to attend the Sunday morning service.

“We want folks to understand that there is a ticket price, but if someone can’t afford to buy a ticket, we are not going to turn anybody away. We want everybody who wants to come, to come,” said Garner.

Lauren is a member of The Talleys, a family group that Pastor Garner explained were pioneers in the world of Gospel music. She has been featured in music videos with Bill Gaither many times. Lauren launched out on her own about three years ago, and has found a great deal of success in her own ministry.

Garner’s life and livelihood centered around Gospel music for many years. He traveled with a family out of Atlanta, Georgia, called The Nelons. Last July, all but one member of that family was tragically killed in a plane crash. The group had taken off from Nebraska City on their way to Billings, Montana, when the plane crashed in the mountains of Wyoming. The youngest daughter, Autumn, was the only survivor. Garner said he does plan to bring Autumn to Callaway in the near future, but she wasn’t quite ready to perform just yet. Garner had left the group in February of 2020. He had spent 20 years with The Nelons serving in several capacities, including booking manager, tour manager, bus driver, sound man…”whatever I had to do at the time”. “We traveled about 250 nights a year, and if someone quit I did that job until we filled the spot,” he said.

The loss of the family was very hard for Garner, and since that tragedy God has opened new doors and opportunities for him in ministry. The Nebraska Gospel Fest provides an opportunity for Garner to bring together his two passions - serving God through music and ministry, and helping hurting people.

“This isn’t a show. It’s not even a concert. It’s about bringing in people who want to sing and minister for the right reasons,” Pastor Garner shared.

For more information on the Nebraska Gospel Fest or to purchase tickets, call 865-292-4368.