Ross grew up in Woburn, MA, about 10 miles Northwest of Boston. His father, Jim, worked as a farmer, leading a five-generation family greenhouse business. He grew up attending The Church of the Open Bible in Burlington, MA and was schooled at its Open Bible Academy. Upon graduation, Ross attended Northland Baptist Bible College, receiving his Bachelor’s in Bible with a math minor. After completing a pastoral internship at Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington D.C., Ross moved to Louisville, KY where he finished a Master of Divinity degree from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Before coming to First Baptist in the Spring of 2011, Ross served on the staff at Kenwood Baptist Church in Louisville, KY. Ross and his wife Suemi are blessed with six children: Lily, Owen, Nora, Jack, Eliza, and Asa.

Willie grew up in the hills and marshlands of southern Iowa, where his dad was a teacher. He attended Faith Baptist Bible College in Ankeny, Iowa, graduating in 2018 with degrees in English Education and Biblical Studies. After graduation, Willie served as an intern at Iowa Regular Baptist Camp and later worked for Faith Baptist Bible College. Willie met his wife, Lyndi, a Lapeer native, while working at camp, and they were married in 2020. God brought Noah into their family in the summer of 2023. After working at Faith, the Feldermans were led back to IRBC, where Willie served as Program Director for five years, pointing children, teens, and families to Christ through camp ministry. He also served as Worship Director and deacon at Clear Lake Baptist Church before the church commissioned him into pastoral ministry at First Baptist Church of Lapeer. Willie enjoys running, reading, coaching, coffee, finances, and playing the piano.