Carolyn Mitchell Dillard is a native and lifelong resident of Keswick, VA.  Her greatest joy is being the wife to Michael J. Dillard and the mother of Alexandra Colette Dillard and Kenneth Charles  Dillard.  While there are many people who have influenced her life and to whom she is appreciative, she is most thankful for being the youngest of the two daughters born to Kenneth and Bernice Mitchell. They ensured that since birth, she has had a solid Christian foundation to build upon. She is very grateful that God has blessed them with long lives.   

 

Carolyn received her Bachelor’s Degree in 1988 from George Mason University, and a Master’s of Business Management in 1996. She is employed with the University of Virginia in the Office of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion where she has served for over 15 years. She has been a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. since 1984. She has served as the Executive Secretary to the Piedmont District Baptist Association under then Moderator, the Rev. Dr. Stanley E. Woodfolk.

 

It was in 2011 at the beloved Samuel Dewitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University that she heard the Call from God to preach the Gospel. She is a 2014 graduate of the School of Theology where she received a Master of Divinity (M.Div.). She holds the office of Parliamentarian for the School’s National Alumni Association and is currently enrolled in the Doctorate of Ministry Program with a concentration in Trauma Informed Ministry Healing Practices for the African American Church.

 

In 2012, Rev. Dillard preached her initial sermon at her home church, Zion Hill Baptist in Keswick, and was licensed to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ by her pastor, Rev. Dr. Lorenzo E. Dyer.  In 2014 she was ordained, became assistant pastor, and later interim pastor before being elected as Zion Hill's pastor. Pastor Dillard is the first woman in Zion Hill's history to serve in this role. She loves teaching, preaching and sharing the precious gift of Jesus Christ through ministry and strives to show her love for people by saying, yes to the question, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” In 2023, she celebrated her 5th pastoral anniversary at Zion Hill.

 

For Rev. Carolyn Mitchell Dillard, being called by God is not a choice, but a gift to spread the Gospel, as written in Isaiah 6:8 “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here. am I; send me.”