"Let us sing now, not in order to enjoy a life of leisure but in order to lighten our labors. You should sing as wayfarers do-sing but continue your journey…sing then, but keep going." St. Augustine

If you are reading this story, we hope it is because you had the chance to hear Kris Reffett play music live. Maybe she visited your church and played a song or led the church in worship. Maybe you stumbled upon her and her band playing at a club or some event out in the community. Maybe you picked up one of her cds and appreciated what you found.

You may also be reading this story because you knew Kris as a person and you know that her music was an extension of the life she lived-a life of passion, and purpose, and faith. Maybe she was your friend, or your neighbor, or your pastor, or your patient. No matter where you ran into her, the chances are, you remember.

If by some chance you are reading this and you never had the privilege of knowing Kris, you missed an amazing life.

Kris Reffett was a singer-songwriter based in Columbus, Ohio who served the church and the community through her music, even after she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2002. She responded to her diagnosis the same way she always had in life, by putting up a fight. In her own words, "No matter what you are facing, keep fighting and know you are so much bigger than anything that afflicts you. Even when we don't understand, I am convinced that God loves us and is ultimately in control."

Kris's "Brand New" cd was written and recorded in between chemo and radiation treatments. As her condition worsened and it didn't look like she had much time, getting this music made and out to you was a very clear priority. These are songs that reflect hope, courage and strength-and for Kris, the source of those things was her faith and her belief that there is more to this life than we can see.

After Kris died, the original plan was to "fix" these songs, to add things to them and produce them the way Kris would have if she were still around. But we think they are just right the way they are, the way she left them. And hope that in their unpolished, raw, honest state, they are closer to the reality of a life finished too soon.

When a person dies from cancer, people tend to say that the person "lost their battle" with cancer. Kris Reffett died from breast cancer but in no way did she lose the battle. It could not rob her of the essence of who she was and what she cared about. In the wake of her life, the music keeps on playing.