Singers Donny and Marie Osmond billed themselves as “a little bit country and a little bit rock ‘n’ roll.”

Sixty-five-year-old Nazerine Harris of Athens and her 16-year-old nephew Raphael Cox of Madison could bill themselves as “a little bit gospel and a little bit contemporary Christian with a little advice thrown in.”

Harris is an outgoing woman who dresses neatly but modestly. The quieter Raphael wears a T-shirt, shorts and a baseball cap like most teenagers, but with a little bling.

Despite their differences, when it comes to bringing God’s message to the generations, they seem to fill all the gaps.

The two produce and broadcast a live gospel radio show for Mason Funeral Home from 10 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. each Sunday at WVNN 770 AM in Athens. The show is a mixture of inspirational talk and advice, and gospel and contemporary Christian music.

“We don’t do rap,” Harris said.

They have listeners throughout Alabama and other states.

“We have listeners from all over – Alabama, Tennessee, all over,” Harris said.

The Mason Funeral Home show has been broadcast for more than 50 years. Harris has emceed it only since 2001, when she took over for her boss, Thelma Carter, who owned Mason’s.

“I was terrified,” Harris said. “I would start worrying early in the week about what I would say. I didn’t think I was going to be able to do it. But after a few times, I found I enjoyed it. Pretty soon, I was looking forward to it.”

She looks for inspiration to pass along to listeners in life’s daily occurrences – grandchildren, weather, the news, walking in the yard. She enjoys hearing from those who call in.

“I try to help people and to inspire people if I can,” she said.

Raphael began working behind the scenes about a year after his aunt took over the show, helping Sundays when he could. He got his unsolicited stab at the mic one Sunday when his aunt had to spend the night in the hospital and couldn’t do the show.

“I told the doctor I had to do my show on Sunday, but he said I had to stay,” Harris recalled. “I didn’t know what to do. I called Raphael and told him he was going to have to do it.”

Raphael was not keen on the idea but did so.

“I played a lot of music,” Raphael said, laughing about his preference for music over talk.

Harris listened to the show from her hospital room.

“He did fine,” she said.

She believes the experience coordinating the broadcast will help Raphael some day.

Raphael, a Sparkman High School student, isn’t so sure since he’s interested in a medical career – possibly studying anesthesiology – not radio.

Naturally, his aunt is right. The experience will help Raphael gain confidence just as it did his aunt.

“If something ever happened to me, he could take over for me,” she said.

Raphael balked at that.

“She has to be he inspirational one,” he said.

Harris reminds him she felt the same when she first took a chair behind the mike.

“Look how it all worked out,” she said.