Conversations with the Inspiring Karri Turner

Today we’d like to introduce you to Karri Turner.

Karri, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’m a bootstrap kind of woman through and through. I’m a woman’s woman. As native of Las Vegas, Nevada, I didn’t come from much at all. I was born to two young parents at the tender age of eighteen years old who both really had no clue how to be parents and unfortunately, couldn’t make their relationship work. My mother was left as single parent and alone after my grandmother put her out on the streets for getting pregnant. Mother slept on floors and worked long hours to ensure that she could take care of me and later my brother. She instilled the value of hard work, sacrifice, grit and God. While she does not have formal educational degrees, her work ethic and relentlessness taught me more than I could ever learn in any classroom. Along with her work ethic, she also introduced me to Jesus at a very young age. This introduction changed the trajectory of my life. I grew up in a dysfunctional environment where sexual and physical abuse was woven into the narrative of my life. However, the church became a safe place for me as I began to discover my gifts and talents to sing and speak. I noticed very early on that speaking was a gift for me and I began cultivating that gift by reading the church announcements as a little girl and giving sermonettes on youth Sunday. I was also introduced to a small group in my church called “Youth on the Move for Christ” which was led by Barbara (Ficklin) Blakes. This group allowed me to become confident in my ability to speak publicly and to do so for God. Speaking was the one thing I was confident in doing and felt very early on that God was with me. I have been in church for most of my life. I accepted Christ at seven years old and was baptized shortly thereafter. I have always felt a special relationship with the creator, but I never imagined that I would be formally doing the work of ministry.

During my sophomore year in high school, I saved five-hundred dollars to go on a college tour. The tour brought us to Atlanta and I immediately fell in love. We toured a number of colleges and universities, however, Morris Brown College immediately felt like home. I went back home to Las Vegas, and knew that when I graduated from high school, I was going to Morris Brown. I didn’t know how I would do it as I would be the first in my immediate family to attend college and the very first in my entire family to attend a HBCU. I didn’t come from a home where higher education seemed to be a viable option, but my mother strongly encouraged me to go, no matter what it would take. I can remember vividly the week that I was preparing to leave for Atlanta, our home had been foreclosed on and we had to sneak inside to clothes. The few pairs of clothes that we were able to retrieve were stuffed in a single duffle bag for my trip to Atlanta. I literally had a plane ticket, duffle bag and a vision to make my life and the life of my family better. As challenging as it was, I left and I vowed to finish college no matter what it took. I successfully graduated from Morris Brown College with a degree in Political Science and aspirations of becoming the nation’s next Congresswoman, but God had other plans.

Instead of running for congress, I decided to go to seminary at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University, where I received a Master of Divinity degree. Shortly thereafter, I accepted the call to ministry, became licensed and ordained as a minister and later Elder. I currently serve as a Teaching Pastor at the Rock Church Atl. In the process of this journey I’ve suffered major losses; too many to recount in this short write-up, nonetheless, they’ve run from divorce to unemployment. Those challenges have helped launch me into becoming the international speaker, author, philanthropist and entrepreneur I am today….. and I’m just getting started. My life’s experiences and hardships have given me a heart and compassion for others that I may not have had without them. I am blessed to live out my life’s mission to draw people closer to Christ, helping them become exactly who he’s created them to be. I am not your typical pastor or preacher and I make no apologies about it. I strive daily to defy religious systems and constructs that suggest that I don’t fit because either I’m a woman or because I didn’t come from the right pedigree. I try to live a life that is true and authentic to whom God created me to be and not according to anyone’s box.

I am the product of a grandmother who did “private homework” which consisted of cleaning homes for wealthy white people and a mother who worked as a maid and laundry room attendant in a local Las Vegas hotel. While this is a small, yet important part of my lineage, I am also the product of a God who defies norms and specializes in taking those who the world has thrown away and bring them to the forefront. If he can do it for me, he can do it for anyone!

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It has been far from a smooth road. Rejection has been a theme all throughout my life even now. There are still places where I am unwelcomed because I am a woman sharing the Gospel, or because I didn’t come from the right family, school or background. However, I learned very early in life, the nothing great comes without obstacles and challenges! I would encourage every young woman reading this to remain inspired and relentless! The greater the obstacles, the greater the story and the greater the victory! There is a place and space just for you! There is an audience and a market designed just for you! Challenges help to build character and endurance. They add weight and credibility to your story and your ability to connect with others. Do not be silenced and do not conform. Be who God called you to be and do so unapologetically. Remain in control of your feelings and emotions. Take nothing personally. You govern your emotions; never allow them to govern you. Invest in people who genuinely invest in you and when a person shows you exactly who they are….. Just as Mya Angelou and Oprah Winfrey would say, believe them.

What should we know about your business? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I am a Speaker, Author, Philanthropist and Businesswoman. I am an ordained clergy woman who’s life pursuit is to use every single part of who I am to love, inspire, motivate and draw people to Christ! To aid them in a deep and meaningful relationship with the creator so that they live life according to God’s purpose and design in ministry + marketplace! I get a chance to travel the world and share my successes and failures with other women. I have two published books called “She’s Lit” and the “Girl Bible” along with specialty product lines. I host signature events like, “Life Behind the Collar” for women in ministry and marketplace, The Lit Life Bible Study and Worship Series, Dinner with Strangers and a few others! I have a mentorship program called the NUDGE for women aggressively pursuing their goals and I’ve recently launched a new podcast called “Life Behind The Collar.” I serve as a Teaching Pastor at The Rock Atl Church with Senior Pastor, Dr. David E. Jackson. I am most proud of developing a growing brand and having incredible opportunities to serve and share my message on incredible platforms, great and small. I am honest, true to who I am… I genuinely love people and want to see them prosper… I have no desire to copy or become anyone else…. I don’t mind sharing my scars and revealing my failures…. I think this is what may set me apart from many others. Additionally, I get the pleasure of leading and amazing team for a local county government here in Georgia that provides signature youth program development for more than 200K youth ages 0-24.

For good reason, society often focuses more on the problems rather than the opportunities that exist, because the problems need to be solved. However, we’d probably also benefit from looking for and recognizing the opportunities that women are better positioned to capitalize on. Have you discovered such opportunities?
There are incredible opportunities for women! There are great opportunities for women who are multifaceted and move in a number of different spheres. There are many opportunities for women outside of the traditional educational, governmental, or corporate context. Women are thriving in ministry and creating niches in the business sphere around their passions, gifts and talents. The greatest opportunities will be the ones that lie dormant inside of them. I would encourage them to go deeper within themselves…… Often time the thing that they’ve been waiting for is the very thing that they already possess, it’s just awaiting their recognition and cultivation.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.karriturner.org + www.thegirlbible.co
• Email: info@karriturner.org
• Instagram: @mzkarribaby
• Facebook: Karri Turner

Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.