Paul is a Baptist pastor from England, who was a part of the team that helped to develop the missional ‘Lifeshapes’ tools that are used in Uptick and many other missional initiatives.

He was the lead pastor of Network Church Sheffield, UK, which developed innovative models of mission and discipleship. He then went on to found 3DM Europe before coming to the USA in 2014 to lead 3DM North America.

Paul spoke for Uptick retreats numerous times over the last decade and served as a member of the Uptick Board. In 2021, he joined the Uptick team as a program convener, and in 2023 he assumed the role of Uptick leader.

Paul is married to Elly, and they have two adult daughters, Grace and Hannah.

The Reverend Dr. Laura McDaniel is  an ordained minister, attorney, entrepreneur, mentor, wife, and mother who is passionate about identifying and investing in young leaders, particularly those who are women.

In 2005 Laura walked away from her vocation as a corporate attorney in 
Washington DC and followed God’s call to help women discover and use their voice for greater Kingdom influence and impact. In 2018 Laura wrote and received $1.5 million grant from the Lilly Endowment to create Uptick Catalyst which helps pastors flourish as they build bridges with civility in their communities.

In 2023 Laura handed over the role of Catalyst Director to Archie Bates-Mendoza. And in 2024, she became Director of Uptick Global to launch a movement of women as Jesus-Shaped leaders from around the world. 
 
Laura and her husband, Henry, live on Síth Farm (Gaelic for ‘person of peace’), located in Amherst, Virginia, where they enjoy beekeeping and growing hot peppers to make their
signature hot honey barbecue sauce. Laura is also the mother of Patrick, who lives in Vienna, Austria, ministering to Farsi speaking  refugees from Afghanistan and Iran.

Sonya is an ordained minister gifted for equipping the saints, proclaiming God’s Word, and enabling God’s people to embrace the “aha” moments that enlighten lives.

She holds a Master of Divinity from Wesley Theological Seminary (Washington D.C.), Advanced Management Graduate from Harvard University (Cambridge, Massachusetts) and bachelor’s and master’s degrees in engineering from North Carolina A& T State University (Greensboro, NC).

She has served in churches for many years, preaching, teaching and leading ministries (Christian education, young adults, community-based outreach & grant writing).  

Sonya began her ministry at Uptick as a guest teacher with Uptick Voice and served on Uptick's board for several years. In 2020, she joined the Uptick staff to help Uptick strategically expand and grow as it reaches high-capacity young Christian leaders around the world.

Alongside her gospel calling, Sonya is a retired Fortune 500 Executive with numerous years of executive leadership and business expertise. 

Archie is a minister and missionary at heart. She holds a BA from the University of Maryland and a Masters in Christian Leadership from the John Leland Center for Theological Studies. Before Uptick, she served as an Associate and later Senior Pastor of a multi-cultural church in Arlington, Virginia.

She has led volunteer groups to serve locally and in different parts of the world training them to work across cultural differences while loving the people in the name of Jesus. Her greatest desire is that pastoral leaders would trust God in their calling and become experts of their communities in order to proficiently bridge the inequities that hinder them from thriving and experiencing His great love for all people.

Minda has served as the administrative assistant for Uptick since 2019. Having grown up in a pastor’s family, she understands the importance of Uptick’s mission to strengthen ministry leaders for the long haul. She brings to Uptick her experience as an English teacher and church administrative assistant, her love of learning new things, and her enjoyment of helping others. Minda and her husband, Jack, are the parents of Emilee. One of Minda’s greatest joys and challenges is home schooling Emilee through her high school years.

Van-Neisha was born and raised in Richmond, Virginia. She is a graduate of Virginia State University and Liberty University. Van-Neisha's career started as a teacher in the Richmond public school system, followed by Henrico County public schools in the office of Family and Community Engagement.

Van-Neisha has a heart to build legacy and to be an example to other women, specifically helping them to live out their purpose and to walk in their gifts to build legacy.

She is the creator and voice behind the Well Talk podcast. She is a top producing realtor and investor in RVA, where she is dedicated to helping families build wealth and legacy through homeownership.  

She is the proud wife of a Richmond police officer, who is also dedicated to the community he serves, and she is mother to Kaiden and Zhuri. Daily, Van-Neisha's goal is to grow deeper in God and to love people well, helping them know that they are called, equipped, and loved.

Amie Burkholder is a business strategist and entrepreneur with a passion for equipping leaders to integrate their faith into their work. A graduate of Uptick Entrepreneur in 2018, she has remained deeply engaged with the Uptick community, serving on multiple task forces before stepping into a cohort leader role in 2023.

With over 14 years of experience in business ownership, Amie built, scaled, and successfully exited her own company. Through that journey, she learned firsthand the challenges and opportunities entrepreneurs face in aligning purpose with leadership. She now focuses on helping others navigate that intersection, leveraging her expertise in digital strategy and operations to empower faith-driven leaders to lead with clarity, efficiency, and impact.

Amie believes that entrepreneurship is a powerful expression of leadership, and she is committed to guiding others as they pursue their calling in both business and ministry.

Pauline resides in Nairobi, Kenya, with her husband, Marvin Esonga, who is Youth Pastor at Ridgeways Baptist Church. Together they have two children, Pazel and Tehilla. 

Pauline is a church ministry relations trainer, counseling psychologist, and psycho-educator, who has over 13 years’ experience working with churches and parachurch organizations, over a decade of experience of mentoring adolescents, five years as a professional counselor.

 She is an Alum of Uptick Global: BWA Women and is currently in the Uptick Apprentice Program. Pauline currently volunteers with the youth and children’s ministries at Ridgeways and is the leader of the prayer ministry.

Ashley is an alum of Uptick Catalyst. Born and raised in Philadelphia (a proud Eagles fan!), she moved to Virginia in 2017 with her husband, James, and their three amazing daughters—Karis, Kelsey, and Kyla. 

She has decades of experience working with children, having previously served as a children’s ministry director, leading volunteers and building impactful programs. Ashley also started and led a thriving homeschool co-op, serving as its president. In 2024, she played a role in helping launch a new campus with Freedom Life Church in Norfolk.

Her passion is encouraging, equipping, empowering, and elevating others, finding joy in seeing “lightbulb moments” as people grow and learn.