Leadership
Pastor Chad Spencer grew up in Big Flats, New York in a ministry family. Though he was surrounded by faith from an early age, Chad initially pursued a degree in Criminal Justice — unsaved and unsatisfied, searching for purpose in all the wrong places. Everything changed in the summer of 2011 when three back-to-back mission trips ignited a flame on the inside of him that he couldn't ignore. It was at the Uproar Conference where Chad fully answered the call to full-time ministry, surrendering his plans and stepping into the purpose God had for his life.
Pastor Jade hails from East London, South Africa. Also from a ministerial background, she encountered the Lord at 15 years old and experienced a transformation that reshaped the trajectory of her life. Jade recognized that her natural gifts in teaching and her passion for people could serve a far greater purpose than she had ever imagined. She knew God was calling her to use those gifts in full-time ministry, and she answered that call wholeheartedly.
Chad and Jade met in 2013 as students at Bible college in Tampa, Florida. They spent two years growing in their faith, sharpening their gifts, and building a foundation for ministry together. In 2015, they graduated and got married that same year — beginning a journey together that would take them across the country and ultimately to Southwest Florida.
The next 8 years were spent in Upstate New York, where Chad and Jade served faithfully in every capacity they were given. They began as young adult and outreach pastors before being entrusted as campus pastors of a thriving church campus in the college town of Ithaca. Through every season, they poured into people, built community, and learned what it means to lead with integrity — all while God was preparing them for something of their own.
In 2022, the first words were written to pen the blueprint for Legacy Church. God called Chad and Jade to Southwest Florida, and they relocated to Bradenton with a vision to see the city transformed and a nation changed. Legacy Church was planted in 2023, and what began as a step of faith has grown into a thriving church family serving the Bradenton, Lakewood Ranch, and Sarasota communities every single week.
