God's calling on my life began even before my birth with my parents, who are Deaf Christians and blessed beyond measure to be able to access the Deaf World and know American Sign Language. My spiritual journey began when I was nine and accepted Jesus as Savior and Lord. God showed me examples of Christian role models enriched by faith, who lived step by step with the Holy Spirit surrounding me, and an unmistakable promise that He will always remain.

I grew up both in the hearing world and DeafWorld through Indiana School for the Deaf. I attended all forms of Deaf Ministry from Deaf-led Pastors to ministry with interpreted services. It is crucial to note that I did not have Christian friends my age until I went to Gallaudet University, and the friendships and our common calling to the Deaf Church have lasted to this day. My passion is to show the way to Abba, a Father who designed and dearly loves Deaf People. This led to my enrollment in the Gordon-Conwell Seminary to bring additional reinforcements to the life-transforming relationship with Jesus Christ, strengthened through a Biblically sound and theological framework presented in a Deaf-friendly methodology.  

As the vision of DeafChurch Together coincides with my experiences and an early anointing to introduce Jesus as our everlasting Lord and the omnipresent and loving Father to DeafWorld. I cling to the everlasting promise long foretold in Revelation 7:9-10, DeafWorld roaring along with Christians from every tribe, nation, and language before His eternal throne and the Holy Spirit, who are indeed alive.

Dwight Martin's faith journey began in a hearing household, where he was the only Deaf child. Dwight is forever grateful to his family, who instilled a deep faith and invested time in teaching him about God. From a young age, Dwight knew that Jesus Christ was the way, the truth, and the life. His spiritual path led him to the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, where he became involved in a campus ministry. During a summer project in Louisville, he met Bob and Kathy Ayres and witnessed the launch of Deaf Teen Quest.

After college, a calling led him to live and work with the Deaf community in Central Asia. His passion for ministry led him to seminary, where he quickly noticed that traditional church models often didn't fit Deaf culture. This realization sparked a quest for a better way, a journey that eventually led him to a Bible translation agency specializing in translating the Bible into sign languages on a global scale. Through this work, he became convinced that a Deaf church, modeled after the Acts 2 church, is the ideal approach. This vision of a Deaf-centric, biblically grounded community is why the mission of DeafChurch Together resonates so deeply with him. He is dedicated to fostering Christian unity and is excited to join them on a journey to show that we are all one in Christ, just as Galatians 3:26-28 says.

Bob and Kathy both grew up in Gainesville. Bob came to Christ through the ministry of YoungLife and Kathy grew up in church and matured in faith as a teenager. Bob was originally ordained to the gospel ministry in 1980 and worked in the church and YoungLife ministry while attending the University of Florida. Kathy's career was mostly in the school system as an Occupational Therapist. The Ayres lived for 35 years in other states before moving back to Gainesville, FL in 2017. In 2000, Bob and Kathy founded a national ministry called "Deaf Teen Quest" that has been a national ministry of Youth For Christ USA since 2009. Bob has graduate degrees in education, religious education, and doctorate of ministry. Kathy is ordained to the ministry as a deacon and schedule to graduate next year from Trinity Anglican Seminary. 

Following a career in the parachurch and nonprofit sector, Bob was ordained a priest in the Gulf Atlantic Diocese in 2019. God stirred up a vision in Bob’s heart for establishing the DEAFCHURCH TOGETHER movement in the ACNA based on his doctoral work. Fr. Bob has published three books including Deaf Diaspora: The Third Wave of Deaf Ministry and DEAFCHURCH 21: Vision for a New Generation. Bob and Kathy have a deep commitment for mentoring and empowering Deaf Ministry leaders. The Ayres have six adult children (two of them Deaf) and over a dozen delightful grandchildren!