Our Team

BERNARD EMERSON

▲ LEAD PASTOR

Bernard Emerson is a proud native and resident of Oakland. Bernard works with urban churches and partners with them to coach leaders. Passionate about serving urban areas, the move to plant a church East Oakland was a natural one. With a strong sense of God's call, Bernard partnered with Kyle Brooks to plant Tapestry Church in Oakland. In his free time Bernard loves to mentor "at risk" young men, ride Harley Davidson motorcycles and is an avid Miami Dolphins fan. He and his wife Kim have been married 30 years and have 5 children.

KYLE BROOKS

▲ Executive PASTOR

Kyle is a native Californian, and he and his wife, Stephanie, live in the beautiful and vibrant Fruitvale. Ellos hablan un poco de español, y aman su vecindario. Kyle is passionate about personal and communal transformation and envisioning communities with just practices that lead toward spiritual growth. Kyle holds a Master of Divinity (M Div) and Master of Theology (ThM) in philosophical theology. If you want to win his heart, take him golfing, introduce him to your dog (unless it’s a chihuahua), or let him take you to coffee so you can swap stories. He writes a newsletter about God, culture, and the spiritual journey at kylebrooks.substack.com.

Carol Mijares

▲Worship director

Carol is a Bay Area native having been born in San Francisco, she spent many years growing up in Clearlake (a small, rural California town), she returned to the Bay Area as an adult where she now resides in the Far East Bay. Her mother is from Tecun Uman (San Marcos), Guatemala and her father was Irish. She mastered interpreting and speaking Spanish and English by helping her parents communicate. She is passionate about Jesus & The Gospel, music & worship and her 2 children (16 and 11). In her leisure you can find her listening to music or scavenging at a thrift store. She has led worship for the past 15 years and spent the last 3 years in full-time ministry leading worship around the Bay Area.

Jelisa Sterling-Smith

▲TapestRy Kids & Youth Interim director

Jelisa has an incredible heart, gifting, and experience in kids ministry. She is a deeply prayerful and skillful person who loves Jesus and the next generation. She lives with her husband and two sons in nearby San Leandro.