Rev. Dr. Robert Turner is a gifted preacher, senior pastor, community leader, change agent, and board-certified coach with over 43 years of professional experience.

He exemplifies leadership, collaboration, and community development. Since 1993, Rev. Turner has led the St John Baptist Church in Columbia, Maryland, as Senior Pastor, where his guidance has expanded the congregation from 400 to over 2,000 members and from a $250,000 budget to an over $2.9 million annual budget. He also led a successful capital campaign to build a new $10 million, 30,000 square foot worship and ministry center in 2009. Revered as a significant figure in religious and community spheres. Rev. Robert Turner has been honored with numerous prestigious awards throughout his career, highlighting his impact in community service and leadership. Notable recognitions include twice being named Citizen of the Year (1996, 2022) by the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., Tau Pi Chapter, and receiving the Congressional Achievement Award twice (2008, 2018). He was also inducted into the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Board of Preachers at Morehouse College in 2019. Other significant awards include the Transformative Leader Award from the Horizon Foundation in 2018 and multiple community service awards from various organizations. His credentials extend to being a certified professional business and executive life coach, a nationally acclaimed speaker, and a respected counsel to political and community leaders.

Rev. Turner’s role as a catalyst for change is evident through his active participation and leadership in various local entities. His contributions include roles with the People Acting Together in Howard (PATH) Strategy Team as an outgoing Co-Chair, a founding member of the Columbia Downtown Housing Corporation board, Vice-Chair of the Community Action Council of Howard County board, an outgoing Co-Chair and founding member of the Johns Hopkins Howard County Medical Center Faith Health Advisory Council, the African American Community Roundtable, leadership within BGAV-Baptists General Association in Virginia, member of COAD-Community Organizations Active in Disaster, Howard County Public School System, and a member of the Howard County Interfaith Advisory Council. Furthermore, his efforts as the Director of Continuing Education at Howard University School of Divinity have been crucial in initiating a Distance Learning Program for clergy and laypersons nationwide.

Rev. Turner began preaching at the age of 16 and began to pastor the Western Avenue Baptist Church in Cambridge, MA in 1982, where he successfully led the congregation for 12 years. During that time, he created a national pulpit for the church, inviting well-known pastors to preach for special occasions with a radio ministry and numerous outreach programs.

Rev. Turner’s passion lies in bringing out the best in people and organizations – helping clergy, churches, and individuals realize personal and professional success, resolve issues and achieve purposeful goals.

As a board-certified coach, Rev. Turner is trained in grief coaching, relationship coaching, and executive life coaching.

As a relationship coach, he empowers couples to create positive, sustainable change in their relationships. As an executive life coach, he strives to make successful people more successful, knowing that the best return on investment comes from working with people who are already good at what they do.

The Howard County community has greatly benefited from Rev. Turner’s leadership, notably through donations of over $150,000 to Community Action Council, and the facilitation of over 30,000 COVID-19 tests and vaccinations and flu shots at St John during the pandemic. St John was subsequently voted as the #1 Vaccination Clinic and continuous testing site for Howard County, MD. The church then received the 2022 Rise to the Challenge Award from the County Executive. Post-pandemic, St John continues long-term support for partners such as Howard County General Hospital, funding a sponsorship to honor our caregivers, Heroes in Healthcare.

Rev. Turner initiated the vision to church staff and community stakeholders for the church to be used as a convenient, highly visible early voting polling site. Over the course of 10 years, St John cleared several qualification requirements such as appropriate size and space. In 2022, this visionary idea led to the board of elections selecting SJBC as the only faith based early voting polling site in the county.

He also leads St John in strong partnerships with key community organizations, including Johns Hopkins Howard County Medical Center and the Community Action Council. His advocacy for higher education has led to St John giving over $300,000 in scholarships to SJBC graduates and college students, and Rev. Turner has fostered a strong partnership between the church and Howard Community College, supporting student scholarships and initiatives like Ambiciones, the Silas Craft Collegians program, and Howard P.R.I.D.E. Moreover, the church’s introduction of a monthly grab-and-go breakfast program for students addresses food insecurity, embodying a novel approach to community and college engagement. The SJBC congregation also mentors HCC students, offering both personal and professional support.

Rev. Turner has led St John Baptist Church to donate thousands of dollars to emergency relief needs, over one million pounds of food to those who are in need through the St John and HCC food pantries, over 4,500 gifts to children through the Christmas Gift Giving Outreach, and thousands of items to partner organizations such as Jessup Correctional Facility, Dress for Success, Jack & Jill of America Inc., and the Divine 9 Greek Organizations.

To extend the ministry of hope beyond the local vicinity of the church, St John partnered with Shalom Outreach, Inc. to facilitate global missions. The medical and dental teams traveled to Mombasa, Kenya while an evangelism, preaching, and teaching team served in Kisserian, Kenya and nearby villages.