Our Pastor
The Reverend Dr. Carla E. Lightfoot is a native of Richmond, Virginia. Elected in October 2003, she is the first woman and tenth Pastor to lead the historic Angel Visit Baptist Church. Pastor Lightfoot has a heart to serve and has been faithful to her assignment in leading the congregation in making a difference for the Kingdom of God. Dr. Lightfoot is a gifted teacher and powerful orator. Her sermons are informative, spirited, reflective, and relevant to today's world. She always delivers spiritual sustenance.
Dr. Lightfoot earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology and minor in Sociology from Longwood University, a Master of Divinity degree with HONORS, and a Doctor of Ministry degree from the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University in Richmond, Virginia. Her dissertation, The Black Church: Reclaiming Its Purpose in the 21st Century.
Dr. Lightfoot served as the second women President of the Baptist Ministers' Conference of Richmond and Vicinity, serving in that position for three years. She has also served as Associate Professor, Associate Academic Dean, and Interim Dean of the Richmond Virginia Seminary in Richmond Virginia.
Dr. Lightfoot is widely sought after, regionally, and nationally, as a preacher and workshop facilitator. She received international recognition as preacher and conference leader in Hamilton, Bermuda, and led prayer in Central America's Belize. She is a contributing author in a collection of devotional messages in the book, Women Who Worship, and she has written devotional messages for the local Rappahannock Times newspaper. Having Church magazine featured Dr. Lightfoot in its cover story June-July 2008 issue and published a subsequent article in 2009. She was spotlighted in the Richmond Free Press as the Personality of the Week and honored for her accomplishments by the American Businesswomen's Association, Cavalier Chapter, in celebration of Women's History Month.
Dr. Lightfoot serves as the First Vice Moderator of the Southside Rappahannnock Baptist Association which comprises the Essex, Middlesex, and King and Queen counties, and a member of the Board of Trustees of GraceInside. She is an Instructor at the Evans-Smith Lifelong Learning Institute of the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology, Virginia Union University. Currently, the Executive Director of "Lightfoot's Happy Feat," a non-profit community service project, she provides shoes and clothing for children and youth. Elected 2016, Dr. Lightfoot serves as the Vice President of the United Order of Tents, Southern District No. 1, a Christian Fraternal Benevolent Order established by two former slaves in 1867. She is also a proud member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated, Kappa Rho Omega Chapter. In 2019, Dr. Lightfoot was blessed to retire from the City of Richmond with thirty-two years of service.
Dr. Carla E. Lightfoot takes seriously the call to serve, and believes that Faith in a Loving God Is essential in making it through this journey called "life."