The Two Lives of Pastor Dave Burrows 
By Pastor Dave Burrows

Pastor Dave Burrows, affectionately known as "Davy B" or "The Ruffneck Pastor," grew up as a troubled teenager on the streets of Nassau, Bahamas. He went from being a model student to a street drug dealer. His teen years were spent in clubs, on the streets selling marijuana and cocaine and hanging out with notorious thugs of the Bahamian underworld.

He was thrown out of school on several occasions for such offenses as fighting a teacher, cursing teachers and students, robbery and gambling. He was also involved in burglary and was arrested for possession of drugs with intent to supply.

Though Burrows spent much of his time on the street, he was smart and educated enough to land a job in a bank. But while there, he supplied bank personnel with drugs and took part in bank fraud.

A similar pattern continued after enrolling at North Florida Jr. College in Madison, Florida. He was arrested on campus for handgun possession and for burglarizing the library and administration building. A deal was worked out between Burrows, the sheriff’s department and the school, where he would only serve probation.

A year later, through the influence of his brother-in-law, Pastor Robyn Gool, Burrows accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior and turned his life around.

Burrows went on to graduate summa cum laude from Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with a degree in social work and a minor in business. After college, he returned to the Bahamas, where he began work for the Bahamian government as a youth officer. He then became senior officer in the Ministry of Youth and Sports, and orchestrated a number of highly successful programs for youth.

Burrows was instrumental in the establishment of Bahamas Faith Ministries, serving as one of the founding directors, along with Dr. Myles Munroe, Henry Francis and Dr. Richard Pinder. After working with the government for a number of years, Burrows accepted the position of youth pastor and president of Youth Alive Ministries, a division of Bahamas Faith Ministries.

Pastor Burrows is credited by some with revolutionizing youth ministry in the Bahamas and other areas of the world through a variety of unconventional programs that have impacted gangs, drug users, troubled youth and other young people. His down-to-earth approaches have earned him the nickname "The Ruffneck Pastor.” which refers to his outreach among gang youth. Pastor Burrows was known for “talking trash,” playing basketball and other activities with gang and hardcore youth. He also introduced such culturally shocking things as hip hop, reggae and break-dancing through the church. He and another ministry associate are personally responsible for leading as many as 2,000 gang members to Christ between1993 and 1996 during a campaign called “Peace on the Streets” that sought to quell the violence between street gangs.

Pastor Burrows travels locally and internationally as a conference speaker, motivating youth, churches, youth ministries and school groups to reach another level in Christ and to develop their academic, leadership and business skills. He has held many seminars for teens and young adults on the subjects of college, careers, business, money and relationships.

He has been also been a speaker for such international youth organizations as Christ for the Nations and Youth With a Mission. He has authored seven books, including Sex & Dating, Making the Most of Your Teenage Years, Strategies for Saving the Next Generation and Talk to Me. He also hosts TV and radio programs including The Ruffneck Myxx and Effective Youth.

Pastor Burrows has appeared on many television and radio programs, including shows hosted by TBN, Richard Roberts (Hour of Healing) and T.D. Jakes (The Potter’s Touch). He is also a contributing writer for the national Christian magazine, Sharper.

In addition to his ministry work, Pastor Burrows is an avid businessman as owner of Megabyte Computers, One Rib Publishing Company and Tech TC, a computer and technology training center. His wife Angela ministers along with him and runs the family businesses. He and Angela have two children, Arri and Davrielle.