Sonrise Church gathers at 3105 Locan Avenue in Clovis, California, and is known for a 10 AM Sunday gathering that combines exciting music, passionate worship, and the preaching of God's Word. This Baptist congregation also centers its life on intensive Bible study, ministry for children and youth, young adults, missions, and recovery support. Its welcome is personal and practical: greeters are ready to help newcomers feel comfortable, and families are explicitly included in the church's life together.
A Sunday Morning on Locan Avenue
Sunday's rhythm starts at 9 AM with an intensive Bible study in the Events Center, where Pastor Otis and Gail Ledbetter lead the congregation in digging deep into God's Word. At the same hour, the Youth Room hosts a discipleship class for young people with Pastor Kyle Dunlap, while the 412 Kids Sunday School class gathers for children from age five through sixth grade. The main worship gathering follows at 10 AM, combining exciting music and passionate worship with the preaching of God's Word.
The rooms named for different ages are part of that rhythm. The Worship Center holds Sunday worship, the second-floor Young Adults classroom sits above it, and the Events Center serves Bible study and other gatherings. A Welcome Center in the lobby offers a natural place to begin, and the parking team helps visitors find a space. Sunday at Sonrise places study, worship, fellowship, and age-specific ministry within one shared schedule.
What a First Visit Feels Like
Sonrise recommends that visitors arrive 15 to 20 minutes early to allow time for parking and finding a seat. Families should allow additional time for their children to be checked into classes. Clothing can be as formal as Sunday best or as casual as a favorite comfortable outfit; the church simply asks people to wear what feels right. Guest parking spaces are identified as vehicles enter the campus, and a parking team works to direct drivers to a good spot quickly and safely.
Those who cannot attend in person can join the Sunday gathering through the Facebook livestream, which begins at 9:55 AM. The church office is at 3105 Locan Ave. in Clovis, with the phone number 559-291-5437. First-time guests receive practical arrival guidance, a personal parking welcome, and an online worship option.
Children at 412 Timothy Street
Sonrise's children's ministry spans nursery, preschool, and elementary-age ministry. The 412 Kids Sunday School class is an in-depth small group for children from age five through sixth grade and begins at 9 AM. These classrooms are safe, loving environments where children are engaged and taught God's Word. All children's workers are background-checked.
Wednesday's Kids Small Groups extend the children's rhythm into another part of the week, focusing on connecting kids to God and others. Vacation Bible school and overnight activities have also been part of the children's calendar, while summer camp and retreats serve students in the youth ministry. Families are offered resources to help equip them as households, available near the Welcome Center and online.
The church places particular value on family life. Its family-ministry resources are intended to support parents and children together, while the nursery, preschool, and 412 Kids classrooms give families ways to participate in the same church rhythm without separating the youngest members from it. The classroom at 412 Timothy Street serves K-6 ministry, while nursery and preschool care is part of the 10 AM gathering.
Youth Games and Wednesday Fellowship
Sonrise Youth is built for junior high and high school students. Doors open at 6 PM on Wednesday, when students can hang out and use activities including Gaga ball, a pool table, video games, basketball, air hockey, and foosball. The gathering then challenges students with the Word of God and an age-geared message while giving them room to build friendships and grow in Christ. Sunday's 9 AM Youth Discipleship Class adds a quieter time for learning and fellowship with Pastor Kyle Dunlap in the Youth Room.
The Young Adults ministry serves people ages 18 to 25. Its Tuesday 7 PM gathering meets in the second-floor classroom of the Worship Center, with activities also on the first and third Sundays at 7 PM. The group seeks to glorify God, love God and others more deeply, serve the church sacrificially, and study God's Word intently. Biblical teaching, service, and shared activity are central to how Sonrise describes its young adult community.
The wider youth calendar has included camps, retreats, shared meals, and service opportunities, giving students experiences beyond the classroom and the regular gathering. Older students also take part in worship, outreach, and mission activities alongside the teaching and fellowship designed for their age groups.
Men, Women, Small Groups, and the Choir
Beyond age-based ministries, Sonrise has Bible studies for men and women, small groups, family resources, and a church choir. The men's and women's studies provide separate settings for participants to explore Scripture, while small groups for children and adults emphasize connection as well as teaching. The Sonrise Choir is another distinct part of the church's music ministry, with resources for choir members and opportunities to contribute during special services.
Worship at Sonrise is not limited to the music heard in the main service. The choir contributes music to the church's special gatherings, while the worship leadership team includes Sherry Krigbaum, who has served on staff since May 1986. Music, teaching, and the varied meeting spaces of the church work together to support the congregation's Sunday gathering and the ministries that meet throughout the week.
Missions, Prayer, and Recovery
Sonrise's missions emphasis combines gospel commitment with prayer for people who carry out that work. The church participates with Baptist Bible Fellowship International in Project 938, an intentional call for believers to pray for more laborers to share the gospel throughout the world. The initiative connects a local congregation to a wider Baptist network and asks men and women to set aside moments for focused intercession. Missions also appears in the church's statement of purpose: worshiping God, strengthening the church, and sharing the gospel with the community.
Celebrate Recovery is another ministry with a visible role in congregational life. Recovery ministry leaders have shared testimonies during worship, and the church has gathered people afterward for fellowship and a shared meal. The ministry combines testimony in worship with opportunities for fellowship and food after special gatherings, bringing support for people in recovery into the church's shared life.
What Sonrise Believes
Sonrise's beliefs begin with the Bible, which the church affirms is verbally inspired by God, including the original writers' choice of words. Scripture is held to be God's revelation, infallible, and the authoritative guide for faith, belief, and life. God is affirmed as one eternal Creator who exists as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and is both wholly loving and completely holy.
Jesus Christ is affirmed as both God and man, co-equal with the Father. The church holds that Jesus lived a sinless life, died on the cross as the sacrifice for sin, rose from the dead, ascended, and will return as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Human beings are made in God's spiritual image, but sin separates people from God and His purpose. The response is repentance, faith in Jesus, and submission to God's will, accompanied by water baptism and the filling of the Holy Spirit.
Salvation is described as God's gift rather than something accomplished through self-improvement or good works. Eternal life begins when a person receives Jesus by faith, and the church teaches that salvation is maintained by God's grace and power. Sonrise also believes in eternal security, heaven and hell, and the church as the body of Christ made up of all who place faith in Jesus. That body has no boundaries based on age, race, gender, or denomination. Its purposes are to worship God, strengthen believers, and share the gospel with the community.
A Long-Staying Leadership Team
The pastoral team reflects long service alongside a newer generation of ministry leaders. J. Otis Ledbetter has been Sonrise's senior pastor for more than 35 years. A graduate of Baptist Bible College in Springfield, Missouri, he also holds a Doctor of Ministry degree from Liberty University. He co-leads the intensive Sunday Bible study with Gail Ledbetter. Executive Pastor Phil Laughlin has been on staff since February 1986 and studied at Mt. San Antonio Junior College and Pacific Coast Baptist Bible College.
Worship Leader Sherry Krigbaum has also been on staff since May 1986 and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Pacific Coast Baptist Bible College. Youth Pastor Kyle Dunlap joined the staff in 2021 after graduating from Charis Bible College and serving seven years as an associate pastor at Vision Church in Lockhart, Texas. His wife, Bianca Dunlap, joined Sonrise as Children's Ministry Director in 2021 after the same period of associate-pastor service at Vision Church. Together, the Dunlaps lead the church's youth and children's work.
The staff's responsibilities span the church's principal ministries. Otis and Gail lead a major Sunday study; Phil serves as executive pastor; Sherry leads worship; and Kyle and Bianca lead the ministries that connect adolescents and younger children with the life of the church. Their roles place Bible teaching, music, games, mission, family support, and recovery within the same weekly pattern.
One Church Through the Week
Sonrise's week has a recognizable shape. Sunday opens with Bible study and age-specific classes at 9 AM, then gathers everyone for worship at 10 AM. Tuesday's young adults meet at 7 PM, and Wednesday brings youth and children together for activities, teaching, and fellowship. Men's and women's Bible studies, small groups, the choir, missions prayer, and recovery support fill out the life of the church around those central gatherings.
That rhythm is joined by a consistent welcome. Greeters, parking volunteers, background-checked children's workers, practical visit guidance, and comfortable dress expectations all shape how visitors encounter the church. At 3105 Locan Avenue in Clovis, Sonrise Church is a Baptist congregation centered on worship and the Word, with room for study, family life, youth, young adults, missions, and recovery within one shared fellowship.