Ron is founder and president of As For Me And My House Ministries which provides marriage and family training across the country and family education consultation to church and community leaders. He is a popular conference speaker and family trainer plus a member of the Couple checkup Research Team. In 2012 Ron was invited to join the staff of FamilyLife as Director of Blended Family Ministries. Ron is author of The Smart Stepfamily: Seven Steps to a Healthy Family and DVD series,The Smart Stepdad, co-author with Couple Checkup developer Dr. David Olson of The Remarriage Checkup, co-author with Laura Petherbridge of The Smart Stepmom, and creator/presenter of the Couple Checkup Conference. His latest book is Dating and the Single Parent. He is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Licensed Professional Counselor. Ron and his wife, Nan, have three sons.  Their middle son, Connor, died unexpectedly in 2009 at the age of 12. In his memory, the Deal's have partnered with Touch a Life Foundation to rescue children in Ghana, West Africa from slave trafficking.