PASTOR, REVEREND DR. MIESHA FERNELL OSBORNE received her early education in the Monmouth County Public Schools of New Jersey, rooted in the City of Long Branch. She later earned a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts from Fairleigh Dickinson University and a Bachelor of Science in Administration of Justice from Rutgers University. She also holds a Master of Divinity from Payne Theological Seminary. She completed theological studies at Princeton University, and she holds a Doctor of Ministry from Wesley Theological Seminary.

 

Rev. Dr. Osborne completed the preparatory work as a part-time student in the Johns Hopkins Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) program. She also served as an on-call Clinical Chaplain. She ministered to the emotional and spiritual needs of staff, patients, and family members. At the same time, Rev. Dr. Osborne worked at the Loving Arms Youth Shelter as a part-time spiritual encourager. Weekly, she taught and led youth Bible study sessions and organized youth outreach events in collaboration with non-profit organizations.  

 

Rev. Dr. Osborne served at Mt. Calvary AME Church for nine years. She served under her mother in ministry, the (retired) Reverend Dr. Ann Lightner-Fuller, and later, Reverend Bobby Cox. She was appointed as Minister to Youth and Director of the Young People's Department (YPD) for three years. With a passion to preserve our legacy and secure our future, she sought God's direction and encouraged the spiritual growth of five youth ministries. She led youth participation in community outreaches and actively encouraged and engaged them outside the church walls.  

 

On May 27th, 2016, following her years of ministry at Mt. Calvary, Rev. Dr. Osborne was ordained as an Itinerant Elder during the 123rd Session of the Western North Carolina Annual Conference. She was ordained under the Right Reverend William Phillips Deveaux, Sr., who was the Presiding Prelate of the Second Episcopal District of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. This ordination marked her transition from youth ministry to ordained leadership.

On May 26, 2018, Reverend Dr. Osborne received her first pastoral appointment under Presiding Prelate James Levert Davis of the Second Episcopal District, becoming the first female Pastor of Wayman's Memorial AME Church in Baltimore. Over five years, she launched ministries, expanded outreach, and led renovations.

 

On May 27, 2023, and continuing to the present, after completing her service at Wayman's Memorial, Rev. Dr. Osborne became the first female Pastor of Bethel AME Church in Centerville, MD, and remains humbled to serve God by serving God’s people. She leads the congregation with Jesus-led discipleship, biblical preaching, spiritual formation, and faithful service rooted in the AME discipline.

 

On November 23, 2024, and continuing to the present, Rev. Dr. Osborne serves as an instructor for the Baltimore Conference Board of Examiners' third-year class. Teaching Contemporary Issues in Ministry, she equips emerging leaders to engage critically with theological, cultural, and social realities while discerning faithful and relevant responses for today's AME churches. With the help of Jesus, she aspires to prepare God’s chosen vessels for effective, transformative ministry in an ever-changing world.

 

Reverend Dr. Osborne is the wife of Bro. Raymond D. Osborne, who serves St. James AME, Green St. as the first-First Gentleman. She is the mother to Temple Osborne and the stepmother to Brianna Osborne. Bi-vocationally, she is a federal government employee with over 20 years of experience. She has held various leadership and management positions and remains dedicated to mentoring both current and next-generation leaders.

 

As a walking work in progress, Reverend Dr. Miesha remembers Matthew 19:26 (NIV): "With God, all things are possible,” and remains humbled at how God has called her "unusual" to assist in God's ministry as a wife, a mother, a daughter, a friend, and as a Pastor.