@ThreeGenerationsSinging
90-Year-Old Promotes Faith and Family Through YouTube Did you know we have a 90 year-old YouTube star right here in the Diocese of Shreveport? You may have seen her at countless church events. You may have heard her in the past as the organist at various Catholic parishes. Or, you may have been lucky enough to have witnessed her outspoken comments in a Bible Study group. But, if you haven’t watched her on YouTube, you are missing out! Who is this person and what does YouTube have to do with her story? To answer those questions, let me tell you about my mom, Marilyn Pettiette, our family matriarch and the headliner of Three Generations Singing. Mom is an accomplished vocalist, pianist, and organist. She grew up in Minnesota and migrated South after she and my dad (a talented musician from the great state of Texas) met one another at the Minneapolis College of Music. As a child, Mom was groomed to be a Shirley Temple look alike. She tap danced and sang in numerous talent shows. As a young adult, she performed with Big Band groups in various Minneapolis supper clubs. In her early twenties, Mom was offered the chance to join the Phil Silvers’ “Top Banana” tour. That would have been her big break. However, my mom and dad had recently married, and Mom was expecting the first of six children. She declined the offer. In other words, Mom gave up her stage career to raise a family. While my siblings and I were growing up, Mom was a music educator in the public schools. She believed in the 22
CATHOLIC CONNECTION
power of music to bring various cultures together. During our elementary school years, Mom founded a group called “The Young Americans.” The group was comprised of childhood friends from Dixie, Louisiana, our hometown at the time. Mom took us to nursing homes, the VA Hospital, and to isolated members of the community to perform. We even appeared on the Saturday morning television show “Bob and His Buddies” with local celebrity, Bob Griffin. Now, fast forward to our adulthood…The six original siblings have families of our own. About three years ago, I began to wonder if it might be time for Mom to return to the stage - albeit a cyber stage. I founded a YouTube channel called Three Generations Singing to showcase Mom’s talent, but also, to have priceless memories of our kids performing with their grandmother. The first number we published was “Hallelujah” which my son Sean, my mom, and I recorded. At the beginning of the video, Sean casually announced that we were three generations singing together. That phrase was the perfect name for our channel.The video was well-received on FB and YouTube, and our channel was born. Mom’s grandchildren are scattered across the United States, but our families gather for Christmas every year and record a large group video. Sometimes, we have four generations performing together. Currently, our age range spans 6 months to 90 years! As far as logistics go, we are blessed to have Brent Latin of Young Pros Entertainment assist us. Brent has
