WELCOME
Our Pastor & First Lady
Rev. Dr. Samuel L. Hayes Jr., D. Min.
PASTOR
Born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, Samuel enlisted in the United States Air Force at seventeen, serving Honorably and retiring after twenty-five years of Honorable active Service as a decorated Combat Veteran in aircraft maintenance. He has received three highly prestigious USAF Meritorious Service Awards over his career and completed his academic endeavors while serving our nation at Southern Illinois University with a degree in Work Force Education. He further pursued university training to complete a master's degree in Divinity (MDiv) from New Brunswick Theological Seminary. Samuel
acknowledged his call into public ministry in 1995 and completed all institutional requirements of the African Methodist Episcopal Church for Itinerant Elder ordination in 2007. He has served as pastor of four churches across the State of New Jersey, renovating the infrastructure and challenging the congregants to grow spiritually and seek God first in all we do. He has served as a hospice chaplain for Samaritan and is an appointed chaplain for the Pemberton Township Police Department. He serves his fourth pastoral charge as the Pastor of Friendship AME Church Browns Mills and has faithfully served this post for ten years. Pastor Hayes received his Doctoral Degree (D.Min.) from New Brunswick Theological Seminary in May 2023. He and his wife, Rev. Donna Hayes, are very proud of their wonderful adult children: Samuel III, KaiLoni, Arianna, bonus son Maurice Tyndell, and their loyal, devoted family pet canines, Rock & Simba.
Rev. Donna Hayes
First Lady/ Christian Education Director
Rev. Donna Hayes is a native of East Orange, New Jersey. She pursued her passion by obtaining her Cosmetology License from Concord School of Hair Design in Bloomfield, NJ. Rev. Donna worked for celebrity hairstylist Elgin Charles in Beverly Hills, California, and has been a highly sought-after hairstylist for many, including celebrities such as Queen Latifah, the late Rita Owens, gospel artists Kierra “KeKe” Sheard, CoCo of SWV, Justine Simmons, and the cast of *Run’s House*. She has traveled the country as the key stylist for her sister, Deborah Tillman, the star of Lifetime Television’s *America’s Supernanny*. Her work has been featured in numerous publications, including *Black Hair* and *Diva Zone* magazines. Rev. Donna successfully owned and operated Creative Illusions Hair Salon in West Orange, NJ, and Evolutions Hair Studio in Browns Mills before retiring from cosmetology.
In 2005, Rev. Donna heard the voice of God calling her to declare His Word. She answered the call and preached her trial sermon at Allen AME Church in Atlantic City, New Jersey, entitled “I Know You Hear Me, But Are You Listening.” She has a tremendous passion for God’s Word and a love for God’s people. Rev. Donna is the First Lady of Friendship AME Church in Browns Mills, New Jersey, where she stands beside her loving and supportive husband, Rev. Dr. Samuel L. Hayes Jr., faithfully serving God and ministering to the growing flock of the church. On April 15, 2012, she was certified and appointed Evangelist of the New Jersey Annual Conference of the African Methodist Episcopal Church under the hand of Bishop Richard Franklin Norris. Rev. Donna is currently an MDiv. Student at New Brunswick Theological Seminary and was ordained on April 6, 2024, at the 152nd Session of the New Jersey Annual Conference of the African Methodist Episcopal Church under the hand of Bishop Julius Harrison McAllister Sr.
Rev. Donna has a heart for women, and God is using her to encourage, equip, and empower them to reach their fullest potential in Christ Jesus. She desires that the women of God humbly seek Him to understand their true purpose in life and begin to see themselves through the eyes of Christ.
As a dynamically powerful preacher, Rev. Donna teaches Church School with passion and fervor. She hosts the *Inspired Purpose Talk Show* on its YouTube channel, co-hosts *A Conversation with Pastor Sam*, which airs live on Wednesdays at 6:00 PM on the YouTube channel of Pastor Sam Friendship AME Church, and is the creator and host of The Beautiful Beyond Measure Women’s Ministry. Additionally, she founded My Husband’s Crown, a ministry to help wives desiring a godly, principled marriage affirm their noble character through scriptural understanding and the Jesus Lovin' Jersey Girl Brand. Rev. Donna is a board member of Brooks Media Group, an overseer of the Diva Zone brand, and a contributing writer for the Diva Zone Magazine. One of her favorite scriptures is Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy path.”
Rev. Donna’s greatest joy and accomplishment is her family. She and her husband are the proud parents of three children: Samuel III, KaiLoni, and Arianna, along with two fur babies, Rock and Simba. This dynamic ministry family currently resides in Browns Mills, New Jersey, where they stand as living testaments to the amazing things God can do when we surrender our lives to Him.
Pastor Sam & Rev. Donna Hayes
Pastor & Rev. Donna was appointed to Friendship AME Church with a Spiritual Vision to fulfill the Great Commission by making Disciples for Jesus Christ. Their focus is centered on loving God and loving people.
Their Motto is: "We Will Never Ask You To Do Something We Are Not Willing To Do Ourselves."
