FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 10/18/05

Greenville College Homecoming Chapel Features Dove Nominated Writer/Producer Matt Bronleewe

An Original Jars of Clay Member, Bronleewe to Share How G.C. Experiences Shaped His Career

The list of artists for whom Bronleewe has written and produced reads like a who's who of Contemporary Christian music. Most recently, he co-wrote and co-produced “Healing Rain” with Michael W. Smith, a single and CD nominated for multiple Dove awards in 2005. He has also worked with such artists as Amy Grant, Rebecca St. James, Plumb, Sarah Jahn and Bebo Norman. “I'm still a fan of all of this,” said Bronleewe. “Sitting in the studio and having artists perform, I get a private concert everyday. I get to hear songs and material that will never be recorded or produced.”

An original member of Jars of Clay, Bronleewe decided to stick around Greenville when the band left for Nashville. For him, college was a time of developing strong community ties and digging deeper in his faith.

“Everyone leaned on each other. I created a sense of community,” said Bronleewe. “I'm working with people now that I worked with ten years ago. We still look to each other for support, guidance and music. What started at G.C. continues today.”

Though music is his first calling, Bronleewe doesn't limit his passion for storytelling to songwriting. Bronleewe recently signed a book deal with Random House and is set to release the first of a three-part, Christian thriller series in spring of 2007. “I had never considered novel writing,” said Bronleewe. “It just started flowing. It felt like a real spiritual thing for me.” His first book Tattoo, will explore the use of Christian icons.

The mystery of faith continues to inspire Matt and pull him deeper in his walk with Christ. “We have the Bible and we have all these things before us, but in the end there is still this huge leap of faith when we call ourselves Christians, and we don't have the power to make the leap ourselves.”

Bronleewe sees passion for faith and spiritual community at Greenville as something that sets the college apart. “Greenville retains the spiritual side of things. The college hasn't set that aside in light of technical expertise in music,” said Bronleewe. “The spiritual journey is really an important one intertwined with creativity.”

For further information on Homecoming and Parents' Weekend, visit www.greenville.edu . Questions may also be directed to Alex Schmidt at (618) 664-6514.

Greenville College is a four-year accredited Christian liberal arts school with more than 1400 traditional undergraduate, graduate, and adult degree completion students.  Founded in 1892 and affiliated with the Free Methodist Church, the college is located in Greenville, Illinois, 45 miles east of St. Louis.

CONTACT:
Christy Grimes ( This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it )
Assistant Director of Public Relations
Greenville College
(618) 664-6515