Leadership

Terry-Lee (yes, he has a first name with a hyphen and he admits that it is confusing) and his wife, Abby, moved to Cincinnati in the summer of 2016. For most of their life, they called Panama City, FL home. Sensing a call to ministry and the support of their church family at Hiland Park Baptist, they moved to Louisville, KY. Terry-Lee earned an M.Div from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and served on the local missions team for Highview Baptist Church. As the Lord placed church planting on Terry-Lee and Abby's hearts, they began to fall in love with the city of Cincinnati. It wasn’t long before their desire to be in Cincinnati outweighed anything else. With the support of The Summit Network and The Send Network, the Kirkland’s moved to Cincy to start a church. And the rest is history.

Terry-Lee enjoys spending time with his wife and son, Brooks. He also enjoys reading, wakeboarding, watching FSU football and drinking a good cup of Ethiopian coffee.

Jimmy and his family moved to Cincinnati in early 2017 to be a part of The Oaks Church team. Originally from Tallahassee, FL, Jimmy became a Christian early in life by the grace of God. After earning a degree in history from The University of Central Florida, Jimmy and his wife, Katelyn moved to Louisville, KY, where he attended and graduated from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. While serving as a student pastor at Highview Baptist Church, Jimmy got to know Terry-Lee. So when the opportunity to serve in Cincinnati came about, the Funchess family was eager to move and be a part of The Oaks Church.

In his free time, Jimmy enjoys woodworking, playing basketball, golf and football, eating BBQ and watching FSU football.

Adam and his family left Virginia in 2017 to return to the state of Ohio. Raised in Northwest Ohio, he wrestled with God throughout high school and college before responding to Christ’s call. Adam has been a teacher for 13 years working mostly 4th through 6th grade. While living in Virginia, Adam and wife, Kathleen, grew in the faith through diligent expository preaching and sanctification in the trials of life. They have called the Oaks home since moving back to Ohio. Adam serves as a lay elder at The Oaks.

Austin and his wife Kelsey became a part of the Oaks during the summer of 2017. He grew up in southeastern Michigan and was introduced to the gospel by friends and family there and became a Christian early in life. Before coming to the Cincinnati Austin and Kelsey lived in Durham, NC while Austin was attending Duke University. While in North Carolina, Austin and Kelsey were members of the Summit Church and had the opportunity to meet Terry-Lee as he was participating in a Summit network training program. After hearing about the church that was being planted in Cincinnati, Austin and Kelsey were excited to have the opportunity to move to Ohio and join the Oaks upon his graduation. Austin serves as a lay elder at The Oaks Church.

In his spare time, Austin enjoys watching or playing nearly any sport and is also a fan of playing board games and reading.