Ronald and Valery Sykes have been partners in ministry since 1997 and partners in marriage since 2004.

After graduating from School of the Arts in Rochester, NY, they continued to serve in the arts community through directing musicals in schools and with community theater organizations. A gifted musician and audio engineer, Ronald served on a number of worship teams, recorded musical projects, directed choirs, traveled throughout the country, and worked as a music director. Valery helped build dance ministries and houses of prayer throughout the state, served as a puppeteer (even traveling to the Ukraine to build puppet ministries there), and choreographed a number of productions for both sacred and secular stages.

In 2006, after a decade of serving in children’s ministry in other organizations, they became the Children’s Pastors at Church of Love Faith Center where Ron also served as a musician on the worship team. They continued in that role at Church of Love as well as serving other churches and organizations in the Rochester area until they moved to Kansas City in 2012. 

They spent four years as intercessory missionaries at the International House of Prayer primarily serving the internships and worship teams there, culminating in their entire family serving on the NightWatch for over a year. 

Feeling a deep call to partner with God’s purposes for their hometown, they returned to Rochester, NY in 2016. Ronald assumed a worship leader position and they both continued to serve local churches in the city and surrounding region. In 2020, they jointly assumed the Senior Pastor role at Shepherd’s Heart Christian Fellowship. 

Ronald and Valery have four children — Zoë, Adaya, Naqiyah, and Than — who range in age from 6 to 13 years old.