Meredith Sheppard is a gifted author and speaker. She publishes Wives In Touch, a bi-monthly letter of encouragement which offers hope and
practical advice to pastors’ wives. Meredith’s ability to understand and
personalize Scripture is a gift to all who enjoy her speaking and writing.
Her wisdom, warmth and candid communication style creates trust and
openness wherever she ministers.
Meredith is the wife of Paul Sheppard, senior pastor of Abundant Life
Christian Fellowship in Mountain View, CA and speaker of Enduring Truth,
a popular daily radio broadcast. They are the proud parents of two young
adult children, Alicia and Aaron.
Now that she and her husband are empty nesters, Meredith’s maternal
desires are met by ministering to women. Meredith has written several
articles for Just Between Us magazine, a Christian women’s publication.
One of her articles, “Conquering Comparison,” is featured as the first
chapter of the book titled The Comparison Trap, a compilation of writings
by several Christian authors.
Whether serving at home or abroad, Meredith is an encourager with a
sincere heart for women.
First Lady Trina E. Jenkins (affectionately known as First Lady) is the devoted wife of the Pastor
of First Baptist Church of Glenarden, Pastor John K. Jenkins, Sr. They have been united as one for over
25 years. She enjoys being a full time homemaker and being a mother to their six children and grandmother.
First Lady received Christ as her personal Savior in 1976 at the Good Hope United Methodist
Church in Silver Spring, Maryland during a service in which her future husband (Pastor John K. Jenkins, Sr.)
was preaching. First Lady serves as Director, Family Life Ministries and the Women's Fellowship at First Baptist Church of
Glenarden. She is very interested in the natural development and spiritual growth of families and women. She preaches and teaches at churches, retreats, and conferences all over the country and Africa. She is a godly woman and the Lord is using her mightily to train Christian women to reach their utmost potential in Christ Jesus.
First Lady successfully completed the requirements of the Instructor Training Program offered by the Natural Family Planning Providers Association of Maryland and the District of Columbia. She has worked for Providence Hospital in Washington, D.C. as a certified Natural Family Planning Instructor.
First Lady received her formal education in the Montgomery County Public Schools and earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Sociology from the University of Maryland in 1982. On May 29, 2004, she received an honorary Doctorate of Divinity from Truth Bible College in Jacksonville, Florida.
Gloria Mayfield Banks
Gloria Mayfield Banks is best described as “Energy in Motion!” She is an internationally renowned motivational speaker and sales trainer, an Elite Executive National Sales Director with Mary Kay, Inc., a communications consultant, and one of the founding partners of Charisma Factor, Inc., a corporate event planning company. Considered an expert in the fields of motivation, self-esteem, and sales training, Gloria has trained internationally in Mexico, Canada, Germany, China and Russia. She often works with children, motivating them to get a jump-start in school and in their personal lives.
Gloria is always on the go, traveling the country speaking to hundreds of people at her special event workshops. Her message is strong. She is known for her dynamic story-telling ability and uses creative humor to impact her audience. She presents her ideas and thoughts in a conversational style with confidence; yet her enthusiasm is contagious. One of her best-known workshops – “People-ality” – teaches the potency of people skills.
Gloria's personal road to success is an amazing story in itself. After being diagnosed with dyslexia in the 7th grade, Gloria and her mother began a intense program to help Gloria learn to use various coping mechanisms to overcome her reading challenge. Gloria realized that she would need to enlist the assistance of others to help her in school and in life. All the way through high school, college, and graduate school, Gloria had volunteer readers to get through the text books. Gloria also learned how to recognize and bring out the best qualities in others and lead them in various team-effort situations. In realizing what her strengths were, while not worrying about what they were not, Gloria used the skills of delegation and working with others to reach her own goals and help others reach theirs. Turning a challenge like dyslexia into a springboard for success, Gloria has been able to turn what could have been a disability into a strength: using her incredible tenacity and her speaking and motivating skills to build a successful career with two interrelated businesses.Gloria is truly known world-wide as “A Leader of Women”.
After graduating from Howard University, she began her professional career in the computer industry as a sales representative for IBM in Boston, Massachusetts. From there, she joined Stratus Computers as a manufacturing marketing manager. Gloria subsequently received an MBA from Harvard Graduate School of Business, and she went on to work for the Harvard Business School as the Assistant Director for Admissions where she reviewed applications for prospective students. Gloria was also responsible for the solicitation of minority students and traveled across the United States describing the experience of Harvard Business School and the advantages of higher education. She also traveled to South Africa to help the school evaluate an exchange program that represented a unique opportunity for both South Africa and Harvard.
In 1988 Gloria joined Mary Kay and started her own business. That next year she set the company record for the most sales as a qualifying sales director. By 2008, her business had grown to over $24 million in retail sales and a sales team of over 8000 consultants and sales directors nationwide. Gloria has qualified for Mary Kay Pink Cadillac status for 19 years and has broken 4 company records. Currently there are 1.8 million women in Mary Kay and Gloria ranks as number seven in the United States and is the number one African-American Sales Director in the world.
Gloria's accomplishments have been recognized in many print publications over the years, including Black Enterprise, Glamour Magazine, Working Woman Magazine, and twice in Fortune Magazine. She has appeared on numerous radio and television programs, and received many awards for her accomplishments. Most recently, Gloria was honored as one of the "Outstanding Leaders in the Workplace" by the Baltimore Area YWCA. There is a Harvard Business School case study included in graduate level text books and taught to many business students nationwide named “Gloria Hilliard Mayfield at Mary Kay Cosmetics.”
Gloria is married to Kenneth Banks, the founder and owner of Banks Contracting Company and Banks Development Group. Ken's current projects include the $305 million construction of the Convention Center Hotel in Baltimore and the $1 billion dollar development of the Johns Hopkins Hospital Biotech Park. Gloria and Ken share four adult children and reside in Baltimore, Maryland; and also own homes in Atlanta GA and Ft. Walton Beach, FL.
Leslie Parker Barnes is a native of Akron, Ohio. She attended Akron Public Schools continuing her education at Bowling Green State University where she received an Associate’s Degree in Applied Business. She has also received a Master of Divinity from Ashland Theological Seminary.
Leslie is the Founder and Executive Director of the Youth Excellence Performing Arts Workshop fondly known as YEPAW. 2008 will mark YEPAW’s 19th year of encouraging youth to pursue lifestyles of excellence. She also serves as the Minister of Praise & Worship Arts for the Arlington Church of God. In 2006, Leslie was the recipient of The Akron Beacon Journal’s Extraordinary Woman Crystal Award in recognition of her service to youth. She is also a popular vocalist who performs with the nationally acclaimed gospel group, Divine Hope. And, Leslie is a member of the highly successful musical drama, “Paul – A Musical Journey.”
Her personal mission statement: Excellence is not accidental. You don’t wake up one day a brain surgeon. It is planned, it is purposed, it is earned. DREAM! Dare to be your best, Respect yourself, Respect others, make Excellence the center of your character, Attitude is everything, (it’s a double M), Master something, then Minister – share it with someone else.
Leslie Parker Barnes is married to Ted Barnes and together they have two children, Theo and Kimberly.
