About Us
We firmly believe in the transformative power of worship as a unifying force that transcends race, politics, denominations, and more. Grounded in our mission to inspire and equip church worship teams, leaders, and followers of Jesus. Inspired by Biblical principles, we embrace core values of unity, diversity, and humility, seeking to shape multicultural and intergenerational communities of believers who worship, pray, serve, and stand together as one.
What We Believe
We believe there is only one living and true God, who exists in three distinct, equal persons, known as the Trinity - God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
(Matthew 28:19)
We believe we are created in the image of God, destined to enjoy an intimate relationship with God, and called to fulfill His will here on Earth.
(Genesis 1-3)
We believe Jesus Christ died, offering His body as a sacrifice and atonement for the sins of all mankind, and on the third day, He rose again so that all that believe in Him can have eternal life.
(John 3:16, John 1:12)
We believe that every word in the original writings is inspired by God and is without error.
(II Timothy 3:16-17)
We believe The Church is the bride of Christ and all are welcome to “come as you are” and partake in the community and body of believers.
(Hebews 10:24-25, Acts 2:41-47)
“In a world often divided, CultureFusion Worship represents a diverse group of worshippers and musicians who blend their unique backgrounds and musical styles to create a symphony that transcends cultural boundaries and exemplifies unity in God through their exceptional gift of song.”
Our Board
Hal Sacks
Hal serves on the board of CultureFusion Worship as President. For the past 25 years, Hal Sacks has combined his exceptional audio/video production skills with his vast experience across genres and industries. This creative synthesis has resulted in a top tier resume and lengthy discography combining Hal’s production talents in the recording, film, broadcast and live event production industries.
With multiple Grammy, Stellar and Dove awards and nominations, Hal’s spirit-led goal is to serve the whole body of Christian believers using his gifts and experiences to see the “church” move ever closer towards its highest calling to be a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, intergenerational and multi-genre church experience.
Hal is particularly honored to have produced and engineered the recent “United We Worship” and “Make Us One” CultureFusion” worship projects featuring original music by outstanding contemporary Christian musicians and voices including Tommy Walker, Kirk Whalum, Norman Hutchins, Paulina Aguirre and many others.
Kirk Whalum
Kirk Whalum’s music is often described as soulful, passionate, and stirring. Rooted in his Memphis gospel background and influenced by the vibrant Houston nightclub scene in the 1980s, Kirk’s distinctive tenor “voice” emerged.
After relocating to Los Angeles, Kirk became an in-demand session player for top artists including Barbara Streisand, Al Jarreau, Luther Vandross, Larry Carlton, Quincy Jones and most notably, Whitney Houston. It’s his sax heard on the mega-hit, “I Will Always Love You.” Kirk soon followed that career high point with his phenomenal hit album released on Warner Bros. Records, For You, perhaps the most successful of over 25 solo recordings to date: others include his eclectic and much lauded, “Gospel According To Jazz” series, (Chapters 1, 2, 3, and 4).
As an ordained minister, Kirk has earned a Masters of Art in Religion. It’s in this spirit that he serves his communities in various ways. There is also his daily 15 minute podcast, The Bible In Your Ear (BIYE), in which he invites you to listen along as he reads through the Bible in a year. In addition to music and ministry, Kirk has a passion to educate young, aspiring musicians and is currently engaged as a music professor at Visible Music College in his hometown of Memphis.
Kirk is the recipient of numerous awards and acknowledgments for his musical excellence including three Dove award nominations, an NAACP Image Award nomination, and has won two Stellar Awards- Gospel music’s highest honor. A twelve- time Grammy Award nominee, Kirk won his 1st Grammy Award in 2011 for Best Gospel Song (“It’s What I Do”- featuring Lalah Hathaway) alongside life-long friend and gifted songwriter, Jerry Peters.
In a career spanning decades, Kirk has a sound that is uniquely his; it is a sound that leaves an indelible imprint on the listener.
Selomit Ventura
Selomit is a native of Durango, Mexico, where she was born into a family steeped in musical talent. At an early age, Selomit made history as the youngest songwriter in the CanZion Group, contributing to the song “Asi es tu amor” alongside the late Jaime Murrell, a pioneer in Hispanic praise and worship.
At 15 years of age, Selomit was accepted into the prominent Escuela Superior de Música de la Universidad Juárez del Estado de Durango where she honed her skills as a voice instructor, voiceover artist, and extraordinary vocalist across multiple genres. Currently, Selomit is a renowned worship leader within the Hispanic community serving in her home church La Iglesia en el Camino Van Nuys. She also provides her valuable expertise through Vox Uncta, a school of voice for worship leaders and singers where her curriculum places an international and intentional emphasis on unity, training all of her students to serve God as one.
Daniel Furukawa
Daniel is the creator and president of Second Collective, Inc., a video production company based in Los Angeles, CA. His passion for storytelling began as an staff editor at Shepherd Church where he eventually became creative director before leaving to start his own business. He lives with his wife and three children in Northridge, CA.
Paul Don-Michael Johnson
Paul serves on the board of CultureFusion Worship as Secretary. His Doctorate in Ministry was earned out of a passion for God’s calling to full-time ministry, serving people, and God’s Word. This ministry journey has taken Paul and Jill (his wife of 42 years) from Canada through the USA, to the Caribbean and Europe. As worshippers and leaders, Paul and Jill have an intense sensitivity to the power of a life focused on worship and prayer.
In 2009, the Johnson’s were led to plant The Gathering Place in Phoenix, AZ. This community is affectionately described as a “united nations” of ethnicities where people come together in unity while focusing on doing life together. The mission is “touching God, reaching people”.
Mario Adriel Ortiz
Mario was born in Mexico and immigrated to the U.S. in 1989. He has been in the ministry for over twenty years and has served in worship and lead pastor roles. Currently, he serves on the Senior Leadership Team at The Church On The Way in Van Nuys, CA., where he has a dual role leading the Worship Arts department and The Church On The Way – En Español (TCOTW-EE). TCOTWEE launched in March 2021 and is rapidly growing. Mario’s Sunday Spanish message of the Gospel is aired daily in thirty-three California state prisons.
In 2013, he launched Vida Real, the Spanish congregation of Real Life Church in Valencia, CA, which grew from a small group of thirty to hundreds. In 2016, he and a team planted Neuma Church in Santa Clarita, CA., which merged with The Church On The Way in 2020.
Mario attended Fuller Seminary, where he earned a Masters in Theology. He is passionate about his family (his wife, Mayra, and their daughter, Sarah) leading worship, developing leaders, church planting, good music, traveling, and great food.
Lisa McGloiry
With over two decades of experience, Lisa has spearheaded communications, marketing, and PR efforts for corporate, faith-based, and non-profit organizations.
Her previous role as the Communications Director at Shepherd Church — a 10,000-member multiracial and multicultural church, with four campuses in Los Angeles — led to her current role as the executive director of Dream of Destiny. In this role, Lisa focuses on helping churches and organizations to grow by reaching more diverse communities for Jesus Christ. Dream of Destiny supports pastors and ministry leaders by providing complimentary communications and marketing assistance, workshops, diversity training, and access to a nationwide network of professionals and resources.
Lisa is also a frequently invited conference speaker and enjoys writing in her spare time. Her recently published blog is entitled, “Whatever Happened to Communicating Christ without Chaos? Five Lessons from Conversations with Ye.”
Lisa holds an undergraduate degree in legal studies from the University of Maryland and her Juris Doctorate from Purdue University Global Law School.
She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, Michael, stepson, Blair, and a spoiled Terrier named Charlie.
She is a lover of dogs, salsa, lions, and all things purple.
Abraham Laboriel Sr.
Born and raised in Mexico City to Honduran (Garifuna) parents, Abraham, a gifted musician, received his earliest training from his father, a talented composer and guitarist. A founding member of groundbreaking jazz groups Friendship and Koinonia, Abraham has left an indelible mark on the jazz scene. His extensive repertoire includes recording and performing with luminaries such as Al Jarreau, Dianne Reeves, George Benson, Herbie Hancock, and Ella Fitzgerald. Not confined to jazz, Abraham’s bass skills have graced recordings for Quincy Jones, Michael Jackson, Ray Charles, and Placido Domingo. A sought-after figure in the Latin music world, he has collaborated with legends like Ruben Blades, Julio Iglesias, and Luis Miguel. Abraham’s bass can be heard on numerous movie soundtracks, from classics like Tootsie to modern hits like Coco and Jurassic World. His influence extends to gospel and worship recordings, having worked with Andrae Crouch, Take Six, and Don Moen, among others. As a respected teacher of music and worship, Abraham imparts his knowledge at institutions like Berklee College of Music and the University of Pittsburgh, as well as churches worldwide.
Mandie Pinto-Czarnecki
At the age of 14, Mandie Pinto clearly heard the call to minister through music and set out to sing at churches, conferences and services throughout the world. Currently, she attends and serves as a Worship Leader at Shepherd Church in Porter Ranch and the Worship Director at West Valley Christian Church in West Hills. As a vocal coach, Mandie makes spiritual and musical development along with mentorship a priority coaching worship leaders around the country. She enjoys regularly singing the National and Canadian Anthem for professional sports including the LA Dodgers, Anaheim Angels, LA Kings, LAFC, LA Lakers and LA Galaxy. Mandie resides in Southern California with her husband, Jeremy to whom she is happily married for 18 years and is a blessed mama to their two young beautiful daughters, Bridgette & Brielle.
Daryl McKillian
Daryl is a organizational leadership professional with experience leading global initiatives and teams. He is passionate about diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging & accessibility within organizational settings. Daryl has twenty-nine years of experience in Christian ministry ranging from the local church to the nonprofit sector. He also serves as the Founder & Co-pastor of Reconcile Church LA, a new church plant in Central Los Angeles, committed to the gospel, diversity, discipleship, missions & church planting.
Dave Burns
Dave has been the Director of Adult Ministries at Mount Hermon Christian Conference Center since 2007 and has recently stepped into his new role as Director of Strategic Partnerships for Mount Hermon.
Previous to Mount Hermon, Dave was in full-time pastoral ministry for 15 years. He also has an extensive business and performance background in the music industry as a marketing/sales exec and professional keyboardist.
Derek Jones
Derek serves on the board of CultureFusion Worship as Treasurer. He holds a B.S. in Business Management from California State University Los Angeles and spent 40 years as an I.T. Engineering executive in the banking and entertainment industries before retiring. Derek also has 35+ years of experience in real estate, providing housing in low to middle income areas. And as a licensed contractor, he is involved in residential property management, remodeling, and development. Derek loves providing counseling assistance to young adults looking to fulfill their career and homeownership dreams. Derek also mentors young men and premarital couples with spiritual principles and accountability.
