With only his family and limited resources, Matt Pettit left a growing ministry in Raleigh, North Carolina to pursue God’s call for his life and his family. His vibrant personality, steadfast attitude that God cannot fail and an unwavering faith in a God that cares about people in every part of the world are coupled with Matt’s exceptional communication skills, focus on leadership and his gift of encouragement

Matt Pettit is a growth-minded leader who depends on relationships and his encouraging spirit to help people as they pursue God and discover their value in Christ and purpose in ministry. Matt’s primary role as the lead pastor will be that of leadership, vision-casting and teaching.

Matt Pettit grew up in Miami, Florida
and the Tidewater area in Virginia. He attended school at Southeastern College (BS in Theology) and Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, NC, where he received the Masters of Divinity and is currently writing his dissertation for his doctorate. Matt ministered at Faith Baptist Church for nearly ten years before leaving to start North Valley Fellowship in Las Vegas.

Matt's wife name is Ericka and they have been married for 15 years. They have four boys: Alex (11), Blake (8), Brenden (3), and Luke (not yet 1). They also have a daughter Jayden (2).

Matt enjoys reading, scuba diving, teaching leadership, traveling and wrestling (no rules) with his two boys. He follows closely (too closely we might add) the Miami Dolphins. He enjoys watching the television show “24”. He is not mechanically inclined at all and thinks that NFL games coming on Sundays at 10am (Pacific coast time) is a bummer.

Jeff Harris leaves a 23-year long successful career as a senior level executive for a fortune fifty company to join North Valley. He is a leader’s leader and brings a professional aspect to the North Valley organization. Jeff’s approach is both practical and professional and rooted in the integrity the Word of God outlines

Jeff has been deeply involved in lay-ministry for many years but has felt God’s leading to use his business background and his organizational and leadership skills for Christ. Using his gift of leadership and administration, Jeff will oversee the organization of North Valley’s entire ministry and will be the driving force for our world-wide missional approach

Jeff’s extensive international contacts and focus will make our “kingdom expansion” mindset a reality. Jeff’s first international contact for missions took place in Eastern Europe and he has never been the same. Shaking the continents for Christ is not a patent statement for Jeff - he lives and dreams it every day.

Jeff graduated from DeVry Institute with a B.A. in Electronic Engineering. He met his wife Gail at Atlanta, Georgia and they have five children - two teenage boys (a drummer & a guitarist) and three adopted children from Romania. Their children’s names from oldest to youngest are Josh, Adam, Ana, Adrian and Julia. Their incredible journey in adopting their three youngest has enriched Jeff and Gail to thousands, and although they don’t know it yet, will be a book one day.

Jeff enjoys most everything because he can do just about anything. Most conversations with Jeff end up with him talking and the other person realizing (as he talks about plutonium tips on rocket launchers destroying comets traveling at several times the speed of light) that they seriously didn’t pay attention in science class. He golfs, builds, does carpentry work, can cook, is a 10 on the 1 to 10 computer savvy scale, hunts, camps, swims, sails and just about anything else you want to add to the list.

Scott Rider, with the support and talents of his wife, Heather, leads our Communication and Creative Arts efforts. They are passionate about finding ways to creatively express God's love to a generation that is unfamiliar with the amazing reality of God's grace through His son Jesus.

Scott joined the NVF staff in March 2010. They have led worship and developed services for 6 churches over the past 16 years and at various conferences. To join our staff, Scott left a 13-year career as a Security Forces officer in the U.S. Air Force.

Scott was raised near Toronto, Canada and studied theology and piano at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, IL, prior to his acceptance to the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO. Upon graduation, he was awarded a B.S. in General Science and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant. He completed his Masters of Science in Criminal Justice from Michigan State University in Lansing, MI.

Heather grew up in Dallas, TX and Colorado Springs, CO. She completed her B.S. in Marketing with a minor in Organizational Management from the University of Colorado. In addition to her volunteer role as NVF's primary worship leader, she currently fills most of her day raising their three children Ashley (8), Maggie (6), and Caleb (2).

Scott, with tremendous help from Heather, orchestrates NVF's weekend services, technical and creative ministries, the NVF website, and he looks forward to building a vibrant ministry based here in Las Vegas that impacts the world for Christ.