A month has passed since three members of the southern gospel group The Nelons, and four others, died in a plane crash in rural Wyoming.
Kelly Nelon Clark, her husband Jason Clark, their oldest daughter Amber Kistler, and Amber’s husband, Nathan, were four of seven passengers aboard a private plane that crashed in rural Wyoming Friday, July 26. Kelly, Jason, Amber, and youngest daughter Autumn made up the award-winning gospel group.
Autumn and her husband weren’t aboard the plane that claimed the lives of her entire family. In a recent interview with Woman’s World, Autumn opened up about the moment she found out about the crash and the outpouring of support she’s received.
Autumn, who is expecting her first child in December, told the outlet that she and her family were en route to board a Gaither Homecoming cruise to Alaska. Since she and her husband live near Nashville, they chose to fly commercial from there to Seattle instead of joining her family for a private flight from their home in Georgia.
“It was just easier for us and I didn’t think a thing about it. We had a layover in Phoenix. I talked to my mom then. She said, ‘We have just landed in Nebraska. We’re going to eat and then we’ll be on to Billings,'” Autumn recalled.
That would be the last time she spoke to her mom. Shortly before the plane was to land in Billings, Montana, it fell from from more than 30,000 feet and crashed in rural northeast Wyoming. Streetman didn’t learn about the crash until she landed in Seattle and received a call from her cousin, whom Autumn described as “hysterical.”
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“I called my Uncle Todd [Kelly’s brother] and he said, ‘Are you sitting down? I’ve been told that the plane went down.’ I was in shock,” she said. “I think my first words were, ‘Oh no! You’re joking. You are joking,’ even though I knew that that was not something that he would joke about.”
Autumn and her husband, Jamie, were taken to the hotel where the artists were staying before boarding the cruise.
“They took Jamie and I up to the hotel room, and when I opened the door, Bill and Gloria [Gaither] were standing there, and I looked to my left, and Karen Peck was standing there,” she shared.
“They were all crying, and they didn’t have to say anything. I knew. I looked at Bill, and I said, ‘I just lost my entire family, all of them.’ They took me in their arms and we prayed.”
Bill Gaither then asked all of the other artists to meet and shared the horrific news, and Autumn wanted to be there when he did.
“I wanted to go because Gaither is really a big family and I needed to be with those people at that moment,” she says. “We walked in, and you could tell the artists had no idea what was going on …So Bill told them and then we all just sat there and cried and sang and then we prayed. Then Jamie and I flew back home that next morning and started preparations for the service.”
Almost two weeks after the crash, Autumn took the stage to sing for her family’s memorial service.
Autumn and Sonya Isaacs, lead singer of family gospel group The Isaacs, had agreed that Sonya would look at Autumn before taking the stage for an indication of whether or not she would be able to sing. Up until the last minute, Autumn didn’t think she would be able to do it. But, in a moment that she says was God telling her “You’re going to be okay. Everything is going to be okay. I’ve got a plan and I’ve got a purpose for your life,” Autumn walked up on stage and sang “Family Chain” with the Isaacs.
The powerful moment has since garnered millions of views across all social platforms, giving Autumn a platform to share her family’s story and faith with people who may have never heard before. And it’s a task she never expected to take on.
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She told Woman’s World that her sister always wanted to sing, whereas she was more reluctant to get on stage.
“This was not something that I would ever imagine that would happen, and I joke and say that they left the one here that was less likely to do any of this by myself,” she said. “But now I ask God, ‘What do you want me to do? What is my purpose in life? What is your calling on my life now? I know what I’m called to do and that is to sing, but how do I do that now when my family is not here beside me?’ So I’m just waiting on Him.”
The Nelons’ final album, Loving You, was released Friday, August 30.
Shortly before the tragic plane crash, The Nelons had finished recording Loving You. The release of the project was in question following the deaths of Kelly, Jason, and Amber, but Autumn chose to honor her family’s legacy by following through with the original release date.
“Loving You is more than just a music project; it’s a testament to The Nelon’s’ enduring legacy and anointed artistry,” Dusty Wells of Daywin Records said. “Who knew that this project would be the last recording that they would bring to us. The project is a musical tapestry of hope, strength, peace and love and I know without a shadow of a doubt, it will help countless others on their own journey.”
Order a physical copy of Loving You HERE. Or a digital copy HERE.