Ricky Van Shelton

                    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4PBpesX6oo

Do you remember this country music singer? He was active in his career from 1986 to 2006. He was born in Danville, Virginia. That is 84 miles from Roanoke, Virginia which is where I grew up. 

 

He has 4 platinum records and more than twenty singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts. He sang Gospel music at his church as an adolescent. When he was a teenager, however, Shelton discovered country music. He soon started singing in his brother's band, singing Country music, and performed at any local gathering he could.   

 

He married Bettye Witt in 1986 and then shocked the country music world when he announced his retirement in 2006. These days, according to his website, "Ricky spends time flying his airplane, working on his 150-acre farm, gardening, repairing his collection of classic cars and antiquing."

 

Shelton wasn't just a country singer. When he wasn't crooning country songs, he wrote a hit series of children's books too. Tales From a Duck Named Quacker and Quacker Meets Mrs. Moo were both successes in their own right.