Our second interview with Spencer Thury (former band member from the mid-1980s), recorded in Austin, Minnesota at our property in an abandoned house. Wait until you hear the birds singing and the cars driving by.
The discussion starts with Rick and Spencer talking about the kids the RLS band was reaching. Spencer was with the band three straight years and traveled all over the Midwest and even went to Toronto, Canada. At one church in Oregon, people vandalized and wrote vulgar graffiti on the side of the house where the band was staying. It was a protest against the band coming to the town to preach about Jesus.
The public schools that had the most impacting memories were when the band performed in the high schools on the Indian reservations. Not many groups were asked to come to these schools and it was an honor. One specific memory for Spencer was the school in Eagle Bute, South Dakota. He saw a little girl who looked him in the eyes and he wondered what she was thinking about. He wrote a song about her and sings it for us during the interview. A beautiful song of longing to be loved by God and others. Spencer would play this song with the band from the moment he wrote it until the last time he performed with RLS.
At Eagle Bute, the first assembly started out rough and Rick remembers making a stupid reference to “cowboys and Indians.” He thought their time to perform was over but instead, they ended up inviting them back 8 times. One of the kids joined the Teen Rescue team and traveled with them for a time. Also, the Chief gave the band a special license to fish on the Reservation.
The band never turned down an invitation and it led them to perform in many unique settings. One memory was going to Rapid City, South Dakota to a group called Job Corp. Rick and Spencer remember that the crowd was rough and it was like performing in a juvenile detention center.
The band always handed out comment cards after the workshops to see what the kids were thinking about, what they heard from the assembly, and if they had any questions. The band would come together later and read the cards. Personal follow up with the kids was hard so hundreds of letters were sent to the kids over the years.
Spencer shares that when he did a workshop, he would talk about goals and how important it is to follow the innate dreams that God places in your heart. One girl was inspired by his message and was able to be bold enough to not only tell her friends that she wanted to design clothes but she also wore one of her outfits to the evening concert and she was glad to see that her classmates were impressed. Teen Rescue had created an encouraging environment for the kids in the workshops.
After Teen Rescue, Spencer was hired as a youth pastor and created a CD of his music. He knew the band was going more heavy metal and he was more of a blues bass guy. Spencer married his lovely wife and is still married after 28 years. And then went to bible college for four years. After college he returned to Iowa and served as a lead pastor in a Pentecostal church and a Quaker church. Following that he received an opportunity to be the chaplain at William Penn University for 10 years until it changed ownership. Spencer said he would take a group of students to Bourbon street each year. He would hear people say that they usually hate Christians but their message either saved their life or made them rethink everything they thought about Christianity.
Rick reconnected with Spencer and he had Rick speak at William Penn about 20 years later and they have been doing stuff together ever since.
The interview ends with Spencer sharing one more song he wrote about “Seeds Sown in Stories.” Thank you Spencer for coming to speak at on our podcast!
