Our First Lady

 

       Sharalyn Potlow was born on February 7, 1968 in Chattanooga, Tennessee to Alonzo and Mary Brown. She credits her parents for her own integrity, discipline, and faith in God. She is the oldest child out of three siblings. Her family moved to Georgia in 1972 and eventually, and finally, was moved to Alabama in 1975, where her family still resides.

 While in Huntsville, Alabama, she met her God sent husband, Eddie Potlow. They were married February 14, 1994 (aka Valentine’s Day). While in Huntsville, Alabama, she was a faithful attendee of Bible study, Sunday school attendee (also a teacher), and attended church services at New Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church, where the pastor is Dr. Ricky L. Sykes. She was a member of the Junior Women’s’ Auxiliary and a member of the Flint River Baptist Association.  Educationally, speaking, while in Huntsville, she attended Drake Technical College in 1993. Due to God’s favor by way of a scholarship, she received a License Practical Nurse Licensure in 1994 and was hired at Huntsville Hospital in January 1994. While working as a LPN, God afforded her the opportunity to further her education on a scholarship to attend Calhoun Community College in Decatur, Alabama. While at Calhoun Community College, she received her Associate in Applied Science and Registered Nursing in 1997. On March 3, 1998—Baby girl, Makaila Vanay Potlow was born.  

       In April 1998, the family moved to Pontiac, Michigan from Alabama. She attended Community Bible Baptist Church where the Great Doctor Warren H. Lawrence as pastor. In 2000, the family joined the New Springfield Missionary Baptist Church with the late great Dr. Linworth Miner as Pastor. In 2000, God afforded her another opportunity to be hired to work full time at Saint Joseph Mercy Oakland as a Registered Nurse in Orthopedics and Neurology.

On March 1, 2002, a second daughter was born, Karyn Nicole Potlow. Also, in December 2002, through God’s blessings, by scholarship and employment, she graduated from Oakland University with her Bachelors of Science in Nursing. In May 2003, she became an Intensive Critical Care Nurse at St. Joseph Mercy Oakland. God has blessed her through this helps ministry in nursing for over twenty years now. What a blessing to witness to patients, families, co-workers, and enemies.

Ministry is real and rewarding work and it became very evident in her life when First Corinthian MBC was started in July, 2007, in the family’s basement. God has enabled the church to move three times since 2007. As of October 19, 2014, First Corinthian MBC merged with the great Mount Zion MBC of Pontiac. Church ministry is a serving ministry, as well as, nursing is a serving ministry, in addition to, other ministries and jobs.

Currently, she serves as a trustee, nurse, mentor, wife, first lady, co-worker, friend, daughter, etc. She also, currently and for the past four years, has served as the Minister’s Wives Vice –President for the Crystal Lake Missionary Baptist District Association (she was appointed by the late great Moderator Dr. Delaney).

 She was given the opportunity to teach health classes last year at the CLMBDA for the Congress of Education. She has attended National and State level classes. There are a lot of great women who have been phenomenal influences in her life from Tennessee, Alabama, and Michigan.

Favorite Scripture: Romans 12: 1-3 “I Beseech you therefore, brethren by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. 

Her greatest accomplishment is giving her life to Jesus Christ and leading others to him!

First Lady Sharalyn Potlow currently resides in Pontiac, Michigan with her husband, Pastor Eddie Potlow and their two daughters; Karyn (14) and Makaila (18).