About Our Pastor
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Pastor Twylla B. Tarver began her ministerial training at Oak Grove African Methodist Episcopal Church (A.M.E.) in 2001, where she served as an associate minister for 10 years. She was ordained as an Elder in the A.M.E. Church in 2007 under the leadership of Bishop Phillip R. Cousins. In September of 2011, she was appointed Pastor of St. Luke A.M.E Church located in Roseville Michigan, where she served for four years. In October of 2015, she was appointed Pastor of Vinson Chapel AME church located in Clinton Township where she served for six years.
Pastor Twylla was excited about being used by God to make a positive difference in the lives of the members of Vinson Chapel and the Clinton Township Community. Her first community involvement was joining the Macomb County Ministerial Alliance (MCMA) and becoming the chairperson for the Macomb County Rotating Emergency Shelter Team (MCREST) providing food and shelter for the homeless. Her passion for helping others led her to spearhead MCMA’s involvement with the Angel Tree Prison Ministry, where she worked with MCMA to bless hundreds of children in Macomb County, whose parent were incarcerated, with clothing and toys for Christmas.
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And now the Lord has blessed Pastor Twylla with the opportunity to use her gifts and talents in the city of Inkster as the newly assigned Pastor of Smith Chapel A.M.E. Church. Pastor Twylla’s philosophy is that our lives are not about us but about God getting the glory from using us. She’s happy to be united with Smith Chapel and is looking forward to working with them as they continue to be a blessing to the Inkster community.
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Pastor Twylla holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Management from Davenport University and a Master of Divinity Degree from Ashland Theological Seminary. She retired in June 2018, after serving 37 ½ years with the Federal Government as a civilian for the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers and then the U.S. Marine Corps.
Pastor Twylla is the 1st Vice President of the Macomb County Ministerial Alliance and continues to work to serve the community every chance she gets. She served as a member of the Staying Social While Distant (SSWD) group that was formed in May 2020 as a result of COVID-19. Pastor Twylla and the SSWD work together to find ways to support the community during these challenging times.
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As a result of her community outreach, Pastor Twylla was selected as the Visionary Leadership Award winner for the 2021 Macomb Celebration of Black Excellence. She received the Otis White Leadership award in 2019 from MCMA in recognition of her untiring leadership; advocacy and dedication to improving the quality of life in Macomb County. She was also recognized in October of 2016 by the National Council of Negro Women’s Macomb County section for her work in the community.
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Pastor Twylla’s emphasis is “Family, Health and Career” in that order, with God being first and utmost in everything she does. She is a mother of 3 (Torrey Jr, Amber & Jeremy) grandmother of 4 (Ny’ea, Keelen, Torrie & Twylla) and a mother-in-law to Rev. Keeley Lucas. She is happily married to Lewis Tarver. It is Pastor Twylla’s desire that wherever she goes, whatever she does or whatever she says, she is pleasing in God’s sight. Pastor Twylla wants to be able to invite anyone to look a little closer into her life, and when they do, they see “Jesus” the light of her life.