Shirley was fitting in quite nicely with her new husband, Jim, and her new in-laws, Warren and Betty. They enjoyed a long and prosperous ministry that allowed them to sing the gospel all over the region. After years of traveling and singing, Warren and Betty felt the need to leave The Profitts and come off the road. Jim and Shirley supported their decision wholeheartedly, and continued singing filling as many dates as they could. Jim and Shirley carried on the family name and brought on different baritone singers, including Dwayne Clem, Jim Compton, and then Tony Bostic.  While Tony was their baritone, they hired Brad Newell to play keys who instinctively knew how to segue between songs and even select the appropriate invitation song, without even Jim having to tell him what to play.  Tony and Brad left for other endeavors after only a year of traveling, so Jim and Shirley restructured the group as a duet and carried on as if nothing ever happened.  Jim became a full-time evangelist on January 1, 2001, and a year later, The Profitts became a full-time Southern Gospel group, relying completely on God to provide their income.  Jim and Shirley sang for many years as a duet, meeting so many friends along the way as part of Chapel Valley and SonShine Promotions.

I relied on Brad so much as a pianist and the way he had this sense to choose the perfect invitation song and the way he led us from one song to another, it was quite a blow when he left.

Not only did Jim sing, he was an ordained minister. He preached many revivals and The Profitts always sang at those revivals. It was the best of both worlds for Jim and Shirley. They enjoyed years of traveling and singing, which took them all over the United States. They traveled frequently to Texas, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, Michigan, Indiana and Illinois. They were gifted a full size Chevrolet Suburban so they could travel reliably and comfortably. Getting a trailer to haul their sound equipment was no problem, so that’s what they used to travel in.

As they traveled, they knew so many great friends that invited them into their home. This proved to be a huge blessing because they hardly ever had to stay in a hotel anywhere. Plus, they had each other, and that’s all that mattered.

Life on the road had its challenges, especially when you’re in a Suburban and equipment trailer. Shirley always did her hair and makeup on the go, so over time, her seat and headrest was covered in hairspray! Jim always had to have his hair just right and in place, so he had a little of it built up on his seat as well. Fun times!

There are too many memories of their life on the road, so we will keep posting them as they come to mind.