Karen Peck and New River have been given many accolades, including having been named Trio of the Year from the 2007 Southern Gospel Music Fanfair Fan Awards Show. Karen Peck Gooch also won for Favorite Soprano, and Susan Peck Jackson won for Favorite Alto. The song "Hold Me While I Cry" captured Song of the Year. At this year’s Harmony Awards, given by the Southern Gospel Guild, Karen was honored as the Female Vocalist of the Year.

Awards may come with talent and dedication, but their mission in life is to use their music to please God, by encouraging other Christians and trying to reach the lost.

“Gospel music is my calling,” said Karen, in an interview with The Christian View. “I feel that God has called me to be a Gospel singer, and this is where He can most effectively use me. What I enjoy most about singing is knowing that, hopefully, through our music, believers will be encouraged and challenged to keep going and not give up, and the lost will be saved.”

“Gospel music is encouraging to people,” said Susan. “There are a lot of hurting people. Jesus is the answer to every situation and every problem they might have, and He will give them peace that nothing else can give them. We want to give them encouragement, through the songs that we sing, and let them know that there is hope and that Jesus is the only hope.”

“I love the message of Gospel music,” said Devin McGlamery. “Our message is real, and it can make a difference in people’s lives.”

All three began singing at an early age.

“I remember singing when I was three years old,” said Karen. “Mama used to stand me up in a chair when I was little, and I would sing in church.”

Susan began singing at the age of seven.

In high school, sisters Susan and Karen sang in a trio with fellow student Pam Blackburn, and Becky Shuler Withrow playing piano.

Devin began singing at the age of five. “I started doing solo concerts when I was 11, at local churches in south Georgia,” he said. “Charlie Waller had me on his Grand Ole Gospel Reunion when I was 11. That was when I felt in my heart that this was what I wanted to do, and the Lord began to open doors.”

As a college student, Karen became serious about a career in Gospel music. “Every day, when I would go to school, I would listen to the Nelons on cassette,” she said. “I knew all of their songs. I wanted to sing so much, and I prayed that the Lord would open the door.

“I sang for a part-time group, and we opened for the Nelons quite a bit, whenever they would come around our area in Georgia. I remember telling Rex Nelon I would love to sing professionally and asking him what I would need to do. He told me to give him a tape and a resume and a picture of myself and that he would send that to all of the groups I would like to sing with.

“Alphus LeFevre was the one who gave me my first professional job, in 1980. A year later, Rex Nelon hired me. I stayed with them for almost 10 years.

“The Lord really answered my prayers and gave me the desires of my heart, to sing with my favorite group, the Nelons. Now, to have my own group, with my sister, is a tremendous blessing.”

“In addition to singing, Karen also has co-written, with John Rowsey, three songs recorded by New River: "Hey," "Faith," and "When the Stone Rolled Away."

She also speaks at several women’s conferences each year.

The group Karen Peck and New River was formed in 1991. The name was suggested by Danny Crawford, of Liberty, South Carolina, who played piano for Karen. “His wife, Kelli, gave him a sweater for Christmas,” explained Karen. “On the front of the sweater, it said, ‘New River’, and he thought that would be a great name for a group. We thought about it and prayed about it and felt that was the name we needed to go with. We love the fact that the Lord loved to be around water, and, at the time we started the group, in 1991, we were new, so we love that name.”

Karen was saved at the age of eight in Vacation Bible School. Susan gave her heart to the Lord at the age of seven in a Sunday School class. They and their older sister, Sandra, grew up in South Bend Methodist Church in their native Gainesville, Georgia.

Both have fond memories of their home church.

“I have great memories of when we would have ‘old-time’ singings,” said Karen. “Every fifth Sunday night, we would have a singing, and we would sing from the old church hymnals.”

“That was the church Karen and I started our girls’ trio in, when we were only in high school,” said Susan. “The people there were very supportive of us, and that church is very special to us.”

Devin was saved at the age of 11. “I wasn’t a bad kid,” he said, “but I knew I needed to be saved. Around the end of high school, I really rededicated my life and became a stronger Christian. In the last few years, I’ve really found the role that God is wanting me to live, to be a godly example as a husband and a dad.”

Referring to his home churchin his native Valdosta, Georgia, Devin said, “I’m thankful for a pastor and song leaders who gave me a platform, as a kid, to learn how to sing.”

Karen said that the Lord has tremendously blessed her life. “I cannot begin to count my blessings,” she said. “I’m so thankful. I want to encourage young people to live their lives for Jesus while they’re young, because, when you’re older, you do reap the benefits of the seeds that you sowed when you were younger.”

“The Lord has truly blessed my life,” added Susan. “He has given me a wonderful husband and a great son, and I have my health. Just to be able to get up every day and know that He is there and that He is helping me through is truly a blessing. There have been difficult times in my Christian walk, but I feel that, during the difficult times, God was telling me that I needed to depend on Him and that He could help me through anything.”

“I can look at my life each and every day to see His hand in my life,” said Devin. “He has blessed me with a wonderful family, and, every day, I thank the Lord for everything He has given to me.”

Karen said that her favorite verses from scripture are Romans 8:38-39. “There is nothing that can separate you from the love of God,” she said.

Susan’s favorite verse is Matthew 7:7:  Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and  ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

For Devin, Philippians 4:13 has special meaning. “At times, when I feel I’m not strong enough to do something, I can do it through Christ,” he said.

In addition to Jesus, another of Devin’s heroes from the pages of scripture is King David. “I speak of him when I talk with our young people on Wednesday nights when I’m home and in a youth center leading praise and worship. I’ll mention him often, because he just totally messed up so many times, but he was always so quick to repent and get his heart right. And God called him a man after his own heart. That shows me that people can mess up and still God can do great things with their lives.”

Susan admires the character of Joseph, for whom she named her own son. “Even through difficult times in his life, Joseph still trusted God, and he stood firm,” she said. “At the end, even after everything he had been through, he still was a man of God. Even though his brothers and other people did him wrong, he didn’t turn his back on them. Even though they did him wrong, He still was there for them.”

“I admire Jesus’ mother, Mary,” said Karen. “She was such a courageous woman. She pleased God, and she really fulfilled her destiny in life, which was to be the mother of the Son of God.”

Among old hymns, Karen counts among her favorites "Amazing Grace." Of the songs recorded and sung by New River, she noted, “ "Four Days Late" will forever be a favorite song of mine.” "Four Days Late" was Song of the Year in 2001, voted by readers of The Singing News magazine. “Aaron Wilburn and his wife, Roberta, wrote the song,” said Karen. “One night, in Meridian, Mississippi, he mentioned a song he had written a few years earlier, and, when he sang it, I just fell in love with it. When he came off stage, I said, ‘Aaron, you have just sung about me.’ I told him that we would love to record that song, and we recorded it just a few months later.”

Susan named "What a Day That Will Be" as her favorite song. With singing as a career, she enjoys traveling to other states as well as to other countries, such as Scotland. “I enjoy being able to see different people,” she added. “We have friends all over who come and see us, and it’s nice meeting new people and seeing different scenery.”

“Getting to meet different people and make new friends all over the country” is something Devin enjoys about singing. “And with the world wide web, it’s easy to stay in contact with those people now,” he added. Traveling to Scotland and singing on the stage of The Grand Ole Opry are among his favorite memories, he said.

Devin, who has two brothers, Ron and Omar, and a sister, Kim, has moved from his native Georgia and now lives in Kinston, North Carolina with his wife, Karen, and new daughter, Karlyn, a name created from his wife’s first and middle names, Karen Lynn. He calls his wife a great influence in his life, and he credits his parents, Don and Sandra McGlamery, for their positive impact on him, personally and professionally.

Karen and Susan both named their parents, Sue and the late Robert Ezra Peck, as great Christian role models.

Their father’s death, in February, 1993, marked a turning point and a difficult time in both of their lives.

“His death was hard to accept,” said Susan. “He was only 59. We did everything together. There were times that I really didn’t want to go on, but I knew that I had to, for my Mom. During the difficult times, the Lord gives us extra strength we need to go on, and become a better person and a better Christian.

“My Mom is strong in her faith,” added Susan. “She is very outgoing, and she is able to laugh at herself when she does funny things. She has taught us to laugh at ourselves if funny things happen. She is a very positive, upbeat person.”

Susan lives in Dahlonega, Georgia with her husband, David, and their son, Joseph.

Karen and her husband, Rickey, also live in Dahlonega, with son Matthew and daughter Kari, whose name is spelled with the first two letters of her parents’ names.

 In addition to her own parents, Karen named Rex Nelon, Eldridge Fox, and Alphus LeFevre as influences in her life and her professional career.

“Rex Nelon was always giving me advice,” she said. “And my parents were always giving me advice. The people who have mentored me have been every encouraging. My Dad was very supportive of us girls, but he also said, ‘Don’t think too much of yourself. Don’t be arrogant in what you do, but just be humble, and realize where your gift comes from.’”

“Our Dad was very instrumental in giving us advice, even though he didn’t see much of our career before he passed away,” said Susan. “Several people in the industry also gave us advice,” she added.

While growing up, Devin was impressed by the Gospel quartets, and was also influenced by Michael English. He added that George Younce was one he admired who offered him advice when he was starting out. “He took a lot of time with me, as a kid,” said Devin. “He told me to sing every chance I get.”

For his own advice to young singers, Devin said that they should make certain that singing is their calling. “Make sure you’re called before you go into it,” he said. “Make sure it’s what He wants you to do, because, just because a door opens, that doesn’t necessarily mean that He opened it.” He advises Christians to remain strong in their walk with the Lord. “It’s a daily battle with Satan,” he said. “We’ve got to remember that.”

Susan recommends that aspiring singers and all Christians have a good foundation in the Word of God. “First of all, stay in God’s Word, read your Bible, pray, and study,” she said. She suggests that young singers sing as much as possible and train with a vocal coach. “Try to learn an instrument, if you can play an instrument,” she added. “Basically, be in the Word of God and work on your craft.”

Karen advises young singers as well as any Christian to “Love the Lord and keep His commandments and do your best to live right. And pray for God’s will in your life, not your will. Pray that God will put you where He wants you to be. If you really try to lead a good life, then the Lord will give you the desires of your heart.”

Karen urges anyone who is unsaved to give their heart and life to the Lord. “The Bible says that the only way we get to heaven is through the blood of Jesus,” she said. “It says to believe on the Lord and you shall be saved. If there is anything I could tell an unbeliever, it would be to please ask the Lord to come into your heart, and know that there is life when this life is over. It is so important to know Jesus, to ask the Lord to come into your life. You don’t have to walk through this life alone. The Lord will be your dearest friend. He will help you through trials in life. As long as we live on this earth, we are going to be faced with problems, but it’s good to know that the Bible says that we don’t have to bear those burdens alone, that the Lord is with us. Don’t go through life not knowing the Lord and never making it to heaven.”

“There is a void the lost need to fill in their lives,” said Susan. “Sometimes, they fill it with other things, in the world, but they will never have complete peace in their heart until they accept Jesus.”

“You may think you have a plan for your life,” added Devin, “but, if you just ‘get out of the way’ and give it over to God, He can do more with your life than you could ever dream of.”

Devin said that he would like to be remembered “as someone who loved what I did but also loved the people. And I want to be remembered as someone who was real.”

“I would like to be remembered as someone who was fun and as someone people enjoyed to be around,” said Susan. “And I would like to be remembered as a good Christian person who was stable in my Christian walk.”

Karen echoed the sentiment of wanting to be remembered for her Christian life. “I would like to be remembered as a person who tried to please God,” she said.