If you attend the Spooner Wesleyan Church, you already know that Kara Vincent has been the worship pastor since 2014.
If you’ve recently graduated, or gotten married, or needed a family Christmas photo, or a business ‘head shot’, or photos of your products, or needed a have website created or have been in need of business cards, you also might already know Kara Vincent.
Kara was born and spent a lot of her life in Big Bend, Wisconsin, near Milwaukee, and from age 4 was dedicated to taking piano lessons. That’s right, age 4.
Her parents were both in the church choir and no sooner did she learn to read music than she was accompanying others. She was in kid’s musicals and played in the church worship band while still in high school.
There were big plans to go to college in Minnesota, but the school just wasn’t a fit, and despite being unsure about her future plans, she chose Indiana Wesleyan College in Marion, pursuing a degree in graphic design and photography which changed eventually to ministry.
There was another student in youth group and he also played the upright bass in the school orchestra. They became friends during the school’s production of Pirates of Penance, with him playing away in the instrument pit and she taking the lead singing role of Mabel.
It wasn't loved at first sight, but by their junior year of college, they were engaged and then married the following year.
He was pursuing a degree in ministry and had a goal of working with college kids.
First, there were two years in Michigan where he worked with the youth and she worked in musical worship.
Next was two years in Sheboygan helping develop the church’s ministry. She also started some serious photography and began creating websites and she was pregnant with their second child.
She longed to be in Wisconsin, closer to family, so in 2014 they attended the Spooner Wesleyan Churches Annual Church Conference. This congregation of 400 was looking for a part-time minister of music for Sunday mornings and to work musically with the youth, and she was looking for a job. The position fits them both.
Meanwhile, Zach found his job working with the Intervarsity Christian Fellowship program on the Duluth, Superior and Cloquet campuses.
When they moved north, Kara’s parents came too and now that Kara is the mother of three children, it’s the help and support she gets from them and her husband that makes it possible for her to pursue the two things she loves the most in life, music and art.
For the past year she’s pursued her love of creating clever signs using old boards, be they fruit crates or pallets, she pulls them apart and puts them together again, making beautiful creations out of broken, dirty, ugly things. She uses her graphic art training and creates works that don’t last more than a few days on her online stores; inselly.com/karavincentart or on facebook.com/karavincentart.
One of the truly signature signs she makes are the signs with the words written in a loved-one’s hand. She started by making one using her grandmother’s handwriting from Grandma’s recipe that said, Merry Christmas at the top of the recipe. People find that things written the way their mother or father or friend’s handwriting looked make even more of an impact to the words. It’s even more moving when it’s something they said all the time, and it’s in their own handwriting.
She’s designing a book cover for a local author's novel to be released soon and she’ll be holding a sign making class at the Dock in Spooner in April as a make & take project. She will also have her signs at the Coffee, and Clothing, and Jewelry, oh my! event this Monday, March 27 at The Dock Coffee starting at 5:30 pm.
Talent just oozes out of her ears, whether it's music or art or websites and business cards, no one gives it the touch she does.
Follow her on Facebook or Instagram.com/karavincentart or call her for more information on what she can do for you. (262)-442-5666
[Photos by Kara Vincent Art]
Last Update: Mar 24, 2017 8:25 am CDT