Home for Dinner: Mac Powell of Third Day

When Powell is off the road, he stays close to home and makes sure the family sits down together
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Home for Dinner Mac Powell

Photograph by Raymond McCrea Jones

“We wanted to show that love can go beyond the color of your skin,” says musician Mac Powell of the blended family he’s created with his wife, Aimee. The couple, who have three biological offspring—Scout, 18; Cash, 15; and Camie Love, 14—adopted two more children with the help of Bethany Christian Services. Emmanuel, eight, came first, and then in 2010, the need grew for good homes for children affected by the earthquake in Haiti. Along came Birdie Clare, seven. “We were blessed to receive the children that we did,” says Mac. Almost all of the Powells are seated around the dining table in their Powder Springs home tonight (Scout is off riding horses in Colorado), but before they can dig into pork tenderloin, twice-baked potatoes, and green beans, it’s time to give thanks. Mac tours either as a solo act or with his Christian rock band, Third Day, about 100 days out of the year, so when he’s off the road, he stays close to home and makes sure the family sits down together. “Barbecue sauce!” Emmanuel says, as soon as the prayer’s over, and he’s granted his wish while Camie Love helps him cut his meat into eight-year-old bite sizes.

Home for Dinner Mac Powell
Pork tenderloin, potatoes, and green beans

Photograph by Raymond McCrea Jones

Christmas Tradition
Instead of a Christmas card, Mac sends friends and extended family a copy of the Powell Family Christmas CD, featuring renditions of “Away in a Manger,” “Silent Night,” and other standards.

Young Love
Mac and Aimee met in the marching band at McEachern High School in Powder Springs. “She played flute and piano, and she sings as well,” Mac says. “We both have a great love for music that we passed on to our children.” Emmanuel has a drum kit upstairs, and Scout is in a band called Lemon.

Double Act
Mac says that Third Day “sounds like American rock—anywhere between Springsteen and Tom Petty. For about five years now, I’ve been doing solo country stuff, but that’s few and far between. The band’s been pretty busy!”


This article originally appeared in our December 2017 issue.

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