Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church Celebrates Women’s Day
Speakers will honor “Sisters In Strength.”
By Johnnie Grant –
The historic church at 47 Eagle Street in downtown Asheville will honor “Sisters in Strength” for its Women’s Day observance.
On Saturday, August 17, 2024, the Reverend Dr. Pamela Holder, pastor of Bethel “A” Baptist Church in Brevard, NC, will be the guest speaker at the annual Women’s Day at Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church. The program begins at 11 a.m.
Dr. Holder is an educator, minister, and songstress. Born in the borough of Queens, New York, she grew up in a musical environment, studying violin and releasing several music recordings with her family. Having earned Master and Doctor of Divinity degrees, Dr. Holder has completed ten years of Bible Study Fellowship International, and her ministry includes preaching, singing, and presenting workshops locally and internationally. She has also worked as a chaplain at the renowned Moses Cone Hospital in Winston-Salem, NC.
For 17 years Dr. Holder taught middle and high school English, literature, and speech pathology at Shining Light Academy in Greensboro, NC where she also directed school musicals and provided music for the weekly Chapel services. She was ordained by the High Point Education and Missionary Baptist Association in 2003.
Reverend Dr. Holder was elected to the Brevard City Council in 2023. She serves as First Vice Moderator of the Mud Creek Baptist Association and is First Vice President of the NAACP of Transylvania County. She is a member of the Executive Board for Rise and Shine after-school tutoring program offered at Bethel “A” Baptist Church, is the former President of the Woman’s Auxiliary of the High Point Education and Missionary Baptist Association, and has served in leadership roles for the Woman’s Baptist Home and Foreign Missionary Convention.
On Sunday, August 18, 2024, the 10:45 a.m. Women’s Day speaker is Asheville native Yolanda Miller. A graduate of Shaw and Ohio State Universities, Yolanda is a NC Board of Examiners-Licensed and ASHA-Certified Speech and Language Pathologist. She was the first African American president and CEO of the Hawaii Speech Language Hearing Association.
A noted research presenter for the Asia Pacific Society for the Study of Speech, Language, and Hearing, Yolanda has received numerous awards, including the Cambridge Who’s Who Among Executives and Professionals in the field of Research, Medicine, and Healthcare for Hawaii, and the Woman of Outstanding Leadership Award.
Yolanda is Assistant Direct Developer of District 2 and past Executive/Corresponding Secretary, for the Mud Creek Baptist Association. She has served in her church as Sunday School Superintendent, Vacation Bible School Director, and Christian Education Newsletter Editor. She has received Christian Education training from ITC in Atlanta, Dallas Theological Seminary, and Wesley Theological Seminary. She has also sung with the Asheville Symphony Chorus, the Miller-Reynolds Chorale, and the Hawaii Ecumenical Chorale.
Yolanda has served the community as a five-year Big Sister in the Big Brother/Big Sister Program and has volunteered with ABCCM. She participated in the Mt. Zion missionary trip to Capetown, South Africa. She currently serves Mt. Zion as Christian Education Director, Coordinator for Who’s Your One? Evangelistic Outreach, and Director of the Operation Multiplication Discipleship Ministry, and she sings with the Praise Team. She is also a staff member of the Asheville Evening Women’s Bible Study Fellowship International, serving as Student Program Children Supervisor.
Ervette Martin is Women’s Day Chairman and Reverend Dr. John H. Grant is the Senior Pastor of Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church.