Jim preaches, teaches, writes, offers pastoral care and leads the church staff. His call includes commitment to the well-being of the congregation and the larger community.

He has been our Senior Minister since 1989. A graduate of the Berkeley School of Theology ( M. Div, DD) he served as the Associate Pastor of The First Baptist Church of Los Angeles before coming to Lakeshore. He also serves as the Pastor of our partner congregation, Oakland First Baptist Church.

Jim is currently the President of the Lakeshore Avenue Business Improvement District, the President of the American Baptist Ministers Council of Northern California, the Co-Chair of the Faith In Action East Bay Board, the Vice-president of the Interfaith Council of Alameda County and a member of the Board of Directors of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty.

Lakeshore’s Pastor of Public Witness represents the congregation’s commitments to peace and justice in our community, as well as provides ways for the congregation to participate in the broader mission of justice and healing in our world. This work entails education, advocacy, relationship building, partnerships and public witness. The three current focuses of Lakeshore’s public witness are our local commitment to immigration justice, our global commitment for a just peace in the Holy Land, and the intersectional justice work for a World Without Walls.

The Reverend Dr. Allison J. Tanner has been pastoring at Lakeshore since 1999. Having served as Minister of Youth and Family Life and Minister of Christian Formation, her ministry currently focuses on being a voice for justice in the community and equipping the congregation to engage in this work. Pastor Tanner has a passion for uniting spirituality and social justice, building relationships across difference, creating beloved community, and working for peace and healing in her diverse contexts.

As part of her commitment to Public Witness, Pastor Tanner serves as a faith leader with Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity, a Palestinian Advocacy Representative for the Alliance of Baptists and the Convener of the Bay Area World Without Walls Coalition. She also serves on the Board of Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America – Bautistas por la paz. She received her M.Div. from Berkeley School of Theology and her Ph.D. from the Graduate Theological Union, where her research focused on the power of religion to impact social change.

As Pastor of Christian Education, with the members of the Department of Education, coordinate the education ministry of LABC. This includes providing education opportunities for all ages on a weekly or consistent basis. This is not limited to bible studies but also includes coordinating special education and fellowship opportunities including but not limited to Vacation Bible Camp and the Annual Church Retreat.

I come to LABC having received a Master’s in Religious Education from Golden Gate Seminary and spending over twenty years in Education ministry at Baptist churches. Although not directly responsible for Christian education this did not preclude my involvement in Christian education when I became a member of Lakeshore almost twenty years ago.

As a student in seminary I received the “Pursuit of Excellence Award in Christian Education” and the “Jack O’Neal Multi-Ethnic Ministry Award.” The second was given to a student the demonstrated the ability to participate in ministry in a congregation with a diverse membership. In recent years, I have made presentations at: Feminism Conference at SUNY-Albany and Graduate Humanities Conference at Reed College. The Friends of Negro Spirituals named me a “Heritage Keeper” in 2014.

Kay Baxter is the Business Manager at the church. She manages the day to day office administration, including entering pledge contributions & other donations, approving bills to be paid, renting church space, answering questions the public has about the church. She assists the pastors as needed.

Kay has been a member of LABC since 1993. She has worked on church departments as well as served as Vice Moderator & Moderator. She worked as a legal assistant in a personal injury law firm in San Francisco for 27 years. When she lived in New York she worked for the Presbyterian Church & National Council of Churches. She is bilingual in Spanish and has used this second language in all her positions.

In the past she has done solidarity work regarding Cuba and Central America. Kay has lived in Colombia and the Dominican Republic. Kay has two grown children.

Tyrone Mack is LABC’s longtime Sexton. If you come onto our campus he is likely the first person you will meet. He cares for our buildings and pays attention to the well being of those who use them. Ty ran a tree service company before joining the LABC staff and enjoys fishing and cooking in his spare time.

Cole Stanford started playing the pipe organ in 2020 after an entrancing encounter with the music of Olivier Messiaen. Soon after, he won an organ studies scholarship from the American Guild of Organists. Cole also won first place in a singing competition put on by the SF Bay Area NATS chapter in spring 2022. When he’s not playing music, Cole can be found in the dojo working toward his judo black belt.

Charlene is a long-time member of Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church and, as Staff Assistant, fulfills the communication function for the church including Bulletin and Transmitter (monthly newsletter) publication. Charlene has spent over 35 years in the financial sector in management and communications. Additionally, her experience includes managing a Memory Care Community at Piedmont Gardens, a nonprofit HumanGood Life Plan Community in Oakland. She currently serves as the Chair for Piedmont Gardens’ Community Advisory Board and is a member of HumanGood’s Audit and Risk Committee.

Bay Area musician vocalist has a style that is simply… her own. Her gospel roots, diverse education and training in both classical and jazz music, and love of world music have all culminated in her own vocal musical style.

Mikki has been surrounded by music her whole life, starting with Pentecostal- Cogic gospel church roots, she began singing in her churches childrens’ and youth choirs and in her teens, she began directing these choirs. After high school, Mikki’s love for music led her to pursue formal music education. Mikki earned her music performance degree at the Southwestern Music Vocation College  in Iowa, a bachelors of music degree at San Francisco State University and her master of music degree at Northern Illinois University
At university studied both classical,  jazz and world music, vocal performance and pedagogy, and also music composition and arranging.

Sandra Lee is a graduate of the MDiv program at the American Baptist Seminary of the West and works with both senior and youth ministries at Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church in Oakland, CA. She assists with worship planning at Lakeshore and serves as Project Director of Lakeshore’s current worship education and resource creation project, funded by a 2019 Vital Worship Grant, funded by the generous support of the Lilly Endowment. Sandra serves as one of the Evergreen Asian Caucus representatives to the Executive Council of the Evergreen Region. She has served in various roles in the Asian Caucus, including President, and is currently the Congregational Resourcing Coordinator for the Asian Alliance.