Steven Curtis Chapman On The Nashville School Shooting & Finding Faith In Tragedy

Contemporary Christian singer/songwriter Steven Curtis Chapman has spent time this week honoring one of the six victims of the shooting at The Covenant School in Nashville.

“Mrs. Katherine Koonce, the head of the school, was a very dear friend and profoundly woven into our family,” he says.

Koonce, a lifelong educator, was one of three adults and three children gunned down by a former student of the school, on the morning of March 27^th.

Chapman knew Koonce from her days at Christ Presbyterian Academy, a school his children attended. She spent a number of years at CPA before taking the position at Covenant.

“She was a teacher, educator, and then became the Academic Dean there,” he explains. “When my sons, Caleb and Will Franklin, were in my band and went on tour with me for a couple of years, we worked out a thing where we’d be able to take them on the road and homeschool them, but still stay in the curriculum. Katherine was the one who really put all of that together.”

But her influence on his family runs much deeper. In 2008, the Chapmans suffered a family tragedy when their young, adopted daughter, Maria Sue, was struck and killed in an accident on their property.

“Katherine was a force of nature,” Chapman says. “It would not be a stretch to say part of the reason my son, Will Franklin, who was driving the car that struck our daughter, is still alive is because of Katherine Koonce. She believed in him, she loved him, and she also helped our daughter, Shaohanna, who witnessed the accident. Katherine helped them through a dark time that even we, as parents, didn’t know how to navigate. Her light shines in our family in an amazing way.”

Chapman, who is sharing his grief at the loss of Koonce, has also been open about the tragedy his family suffered. He’s told the story through interviews, his autobiography, and most notably his music.

As a man of strong faith, he’s spent the past 35 years sharing his life journey, the highs, the lows, the celebrations, and the times of heartbreaking loss through his songs. He says these are the things that connect us, and by sharing his worries, his struggles, and even his own questions about faith and God, he hopes to inspire others.

His latest album Still features a song called “Don’t Lost Heart,” that touches on wrestling with faith in difficult times. He wrote it reflecting on the loss of his daughter and others, including the recent deaths of his longtime keyboard player, Brian Green, who died from COVID in 2021, and his brother-in-law, who lost his battle with cancer in 2022.

“I went into a room and really started being as honest as I could. Those sleepless nights (as referenced in the song), I’ve had them. And obviously we’re having them again in the wake of what’s happened this week, wondering ‘God where are you, are you even there hearing me?’ I’ve asked those same questions and if I can say anything, let me tell you where I’ve been, show you the scars, and just say this is what I know to be true.”

The song resonated with fans, becoming his 50^th No. 1 hit. It’s set a record not only in Christian music but put him in an elite category overall with artists like Madonna, George Strait, and Conway Twitty.

“I’m completely blown away by the support for this song and for my music, even after so many years,” Chapman says. “To ever have a number one song at radio as an artist/songwriter is a dream come true, and to have fifty is simply unbelievable!”

Currently on tour, he says he will continue writing and singing songs that share his faith and beliefs, in the hopes of encouraging others during difficult of times.

“I believe this is not the end of the story. Katherine Koonce is with my daughter, Maria, and I’m going to see both of them again. That’s not a fairytale, that’s not wishful thinking, that’s what our lives are built on and anchored in. So, I’ll keep singing and talking about it, so we can encourage each other in the midst of this craziness we’re living in right now.”