Alumni Stories: Zach Silk

We recently had the privilege of welcoming Zach Silk back to our campus for an inspiring conversation about faith, family, and music. Zach, a PCA alumnus, shared his journey—from unexpected life twists, including his early years at PCA, to his eventual rededication to his faith and his musical endeavors with his wife, Karielle.

Zach’s story is a powerful reminder of the importance of relationship over knowledge, and his journey reflects a deepened faith that continues to inspire. Read on to learn more about Zach’s remarkable path and the lessons he’s learned along the way.

We had the privilege of hosting Zach Silk on campus recently. Zach now resides in Rochester with his wife, Karielle, whom he met at Next Level Church. They celebrated their wedding in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic with a unique twist: Chick-fil-A catering at an outdoor venue. Due to the circumstances, they invited everyone, expecting only about a third to attend. To their surprise, almost everyone came, and the day turned out to be a wonderful outdoor celebration. Now, Zach and Karielle are making music together while raising three children: Emrys (7), Scion (2), and Savannah (4 months).

Zach works alongside his father and brother-in-law at Northeast Planning, a family business located in Newington. Read on to learn more about Zach’s journey.

Zach, what is a memory from PCA that stands out for you?

“I remember being in this room for chess club. I enjoyed the game and the community. As well as being part of the Chapel team all four years. In my junior and senior years, I led the chapel team and got there super early Monday mornings to set up and rehearse. I also remember a conversation with Mr. Pease in my senior year. I told him I planned to study mathematics, and he replied, ‘I’m really surprised. I think you should do music.’ I responded semi-jokingly, ‘Oh, but I want to make money, you know?’ Calculus was my favorite class though and the plan was to follow that path at UNH, but the plans changed. It is a reflection of an 18-year-old that had no idea what he wanted to do when he grew up. So, I never went to school for mathematics or for finance. I went to school for music, and I ended up working with my father and the family practice as an advisor.

What is it like working with family?

Working with family doesn’t always work, I’m very aware of that. But it has been an honor to work with my dad as I have for a while, but I’ve been working with him for the past couple of years, which has been fun. We’re partners now and I’m working with my brother-in-law as well. We are all wildly different people in terms of personalities, which I think is a good thing. My dad has been working in this for as long as I’ve been alive and being able to step into his shoes and, and I’m providing for my family in the same way that he provided for me and my sisters when I was growing up. And that is just ridiculously cool.

Where did life take you after graduating from PCA? Do you feel like your time at PCA influenced your walk with Christ?

“After high school, I took a gap year to serve at my local church and help with the worship ministry. But during that time, my attempt to strengthen my relationship with God backfired. I eventually enrolled at UNH, where I earned a bachelor’s degree in music. During my time there, I completely walked away from my faith for a couple of years.

“My experience at PCA was positive. But I didn’t realize how shallow my faith was at the time. When I deferred my college enrollment for a year to serve the church, I thought it would help deepen my faith and prepare me for professional ministry. I saw it as both a spiritual and résumé-building opportunity.

However, I ended up seeing the inner workings of ministry, which was eye-opening and frustrating simultaneously. At 18 years old, I thought I knew everything and could only see it as being democracy led and not spirit led, church of Christ. This led to anger and disillusionment—not just with the church, but with Jesus Himself. Ironically, the year I hoped would deepen my faith uprooted it instead.

For about two years, I focused on music school, gigging, and teaching. Meanwhile, my parents started attending Next Level Church and encouraged me to join them. My mom was heartbroken over my lack of faith, but I refused to go. One day, I finally agreed to visit. They played ‘How He Loves Us’ by John Mark McMillan—the first time I’d heard it in a church setting—and I remember crying in the seats trying to reconcile both my anger toward God, and His love for me that I was experiencing in a tangible way. It was milestone number one (of many) that eventually led me back to faith.”

After some time and a radical encounter with God through worship, I recommitted my life to Him with a stronger and deeper faith than before. I started attending Next Level Church, where I grew strong relationships. One day they invited me to lead a worship night that was focused on evangelism and seeking the lost and I remember being on stage and I had this thought that was like a bomb went off in my soul, and I heard “What are you doing Zach? You are missing out on this.” It was so fatherly and loving and it brought me to a state of sobbing that led me to rededicating my life to Him. After that, miracles began to happen as I shed off the world and God was moving me back and I had no chose to say “yes” to Him. Eventually I began leading the worship ministry. That involvement grew into a songwriting community with members from at least 6 different churches.

When Next Level Church eventually closed, my wife and I found ourselves with more time to focus on song writing, which (unbeknownst to us) eventually would become The Fourth Ministries.

During that season, we decided to focus on writing music and connecting with other musicians from various churches. It became clear that we should create a sound for this region—songs written by the local church for the local church. Over time, we raised enough money to produce a professional record and accompanying video. Our band, The Fourth, released our debut album, “It Starts at Home” in May 2024, and it garnered over 10,000 streams in the first month! Now our group responds to invitations across New England to come and bring our message of revival where it matters the most: at home.” The Fourth comes from comes from Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. The Fourth is another name for Jesus, as He is the 4th man in the fire.”

As someone whose faith was uprooted and then restored, how has your perspective on God and your faith changed?

“What has changed is I thought I needed answers that I didn’t need. For example, questions like, ‘if God is so good, why does He allow so much evil? If God heals, why doesn’t He heal everybody? Why does a good God allow bad things to happen?” etc. It was questions like that that ate away my faith and eventually led me to leave Jesus and church attendance. But coming back to church, suddenly having the answer those questions wasn’t what led me back to God. It was relationship with God and the emphasis on relationship and not just knowing about Him but knowing Him. What changed was the reliance on head knowledge vs. relational knowledge.”

If you could give one piece of advice to current PCA students, what would it be?

“Life will not happen the way you think it will—guaranteed. So, commit today to trust Him no matter what your future holds.”

After the interview, Zach graciously offered to return to PCA with his worship team to serve in any capacity. We are thrilled to welcome him back. Zach’s incredible heart for God and servant leadership continue to inspire many.