Charismatic, Energetic, and Captivating are words that describe the personality of Dr. Ketra. Armed with over 20 years of serving the community, Dr. Davenport-King is an advocate, speaker, mentor, coach, and philanthropist who has radically impacted the lives of believers under the flagship of her ministry.
Dr. Ketra L. Davenport-King, a native of Dallas, Texas, received her Bachelor of Arts and Science in Christian Counseling, Master of Arts in Christian Education, and Master of Business Administration from Dallas Baptist University. She earned her Doctorate of Strategic Leadership from Regent University. She has spent much of her life serving people in various capacities. One of her greatest joys is starting Life After Advocacy Group, Inc., in 2004, to help individuals who have been victims of sexual abuse recover and live a healthy life.
Dr. Ketra opened the doors to Rock Dimensional Consulting (formally known as KLD Consulting Services) in 2005. Through RDC, she has spent the past 15 years coaching and training leaders, developing and educating church ministries, hosting leadership seminars, and workshops. Dr. Ketra is known for her innovative and engaging Leadership Seminar name, ‘The Leadership ReCourse’ designed to reconnect today’s leaders back to collaborative leadership. Dr. Ketra wholeheartedly believes, “when you live in a community, there should be a handprint of your work left behind for future generations.” She launched the North Vernon Women’s Community Bible Study group in 2015 to bridge the gap and bring together a diverse group of women to improve the family dynamic in underserved communities.
Her latest accomplishment is her new book, Seeing Beyond The Shattered Glass, which is a fictional memoir based on her true-life events. Dr. Ketra is confident that her book will inspire victims of sexual abuse who have suffered in silence to speak their truth.
PWH: You are a Woman of God, First Lady, Mother and Community Leader, how do you balance it all?
KDK: It is amazing how God will give us the grace needed to maintain the various facets of our lives that He calls us to. My life has always had multiple lanes that required me to compartmentalize my focus. Of course, my faith has always been my driver, as well as my relationship with Jesus Christ. It is not comfortable living in a world where we have to position ourselves to do right when it is easy to do wrong. It is not easy choosing to live a saved life in an unsaved world, and as a woman of God, I have had many struggles over the years maintaining a life that is holy and acceptable for myself, my children, and those who follow me publicly. In 2005 when I gave my life to Christ for real, I made a conscientious decision to become a beacon of hope for others as well as inspire women to Speak Their Truth and live a life of freedom. One of my favorite scriptures is Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” because it provides a glimpse of hope that fueled me to keep moving forward in those time when I wanted to give up. I believe my life journey prepared me for the role of being the First Lady of a church.
My husband and I have been married now going on eight years. It was never my intent to marry a Pastor – but, when I asked God to send me the person whom He has for my children and me – he is what God sent. We have a small church in Vernon, TX, but we have members who love God and us. The role hasn’t been a challenge for me because before marrying my husband, I was very involved in ministry serving in the Women’s ministry of my then local church and other church auxiliaries – as well as being a Minister of the Gospel. So, to say, if there was a significant adjustment in regards to the new role, no it has not been, however, I just had to balance being the wife of a Pastor (smile). I always say, ‘being the wife of a Pastor is a called position and not a position you choose.” My husband is a laid-back person who is an introvert, so it amazes me when I see him in the pulpit because he speaks more there then he does in a typical conversation. I had to adjust to his study times because he is an early riser, and I am a night owl – so I like to sleep late, and he gets up at 5:00 am every day! Of course, there have been several other adjustments, but those I believe comes with being the Pastors wife. There is one thing, in particular, I can say that was an adjustment, and that was making sure I did not lose myself to being his wife and not being who God called me to be first – that took some time and adjustment for the both of us.
My children are my world, and when my husband and I married, we had a rather large blinded family, for me. Together we share four grown children and four grandchildren – I had a son and daughter, and he had also had a son and daughter along with grandchildren. I love children, and when we met, my children were still living at home, and his children were grown, so it was easy for me to adjust to loving his children and building a relationship due to their age.
So, to sum up, all of the hats I wear, I have to say that God is my equalizer, and He gives me the patience, understanding, clarity, and guidance needed to main a balanced life to serve faithfully at home, church, and community. One of my mentors told be some time ago that God will give us the exact amount of GRACE we need in the season we are in to fulfill our purpose – and I believe that wholeheartedly.
PWH: Tell us about Life after Advocacy Group?
KDK: Life After Advocacy Group, Inc, opened in 2004 and is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization committed to promoting awareness and prevention in sexual, verbal, emotional, and physical abuse by identifying, admitting and advocating education within the church body and local community. The mission of LAAG is to assist children, women, and men in promoting a balanced life after being sexually abused by creating a confident, caring, and personal environment. LAAG’s vision is to be a catalyst for victims of sexual crimes. To rehabilitate the lives of sexually abused and rape victims. To advocate for legislative laws for sexual assault victims and families. Our purpose is to provide support to victims and their family members by educating them on information regarding sexual abuse and neglect.
PWH: What is Rock Dimensional Consulting?
KDK: Rock Dimensional consulting is an extension of Life After Advocacy Group were, we do business and leadership consulting and coaching. Great leadership sometimes occurs naturally. But for most of us, great leadership must be developed through specialized training, deliberate focus on areas of opportunity, and accountability. Whether geared toward a single individual, executive management teams, or entire organizations, our leadership development consulting services will help you fully assess your talent’s strengths and weaknesses.
PWH: You are known for your powerful workshop “The Leaders Recourse,” what is your message in this class?
KDK: The Rock Dimensional Consulting firm conducts an 8-hr., 6-hr., or 4-hr., leadership seminar. The seminar attendees have consistently rated this workshop as a highly practical and interactive experience. However, opportunities for structured training in leadership competencies during the subsequent five to ten years are limited. Given the success of the Leadership ReCourse seminar and the need for continuity in this model of leadership training, we also conduct a half-day workshop for new and current leaders to foster continued organizational training.
The seminar curriculum focuses on the leadership areas of strategy, structure, culture, teams, performance management & assessments, leadership styles, and leadership development, which manages the organizational structure and navigate leadership transitions. Also, the curriculum emphasizes both short-term competencies, such as active participation as a member of a leadership team, and long-term competencies, such as the leadership of a research team, division, or department. The inaugural leadership training seminar, held in April 2018, was assessed by leader participants to be well organized and highly relevant to leadership concepts and skills. Each session attendee will receive an interactive training manual that will is a personal reference guide.
The overall purpose of the Leadership ReCourse seminar is to Revisit, Innovate, and ReEngage the fundamental aspects of leadership development and the importance of continuously developing leaders worldwide.
PWH: What upcoming projects do you have?
KDK: Dr. Ketra L. Davenport-King has written a fictional memoir book based on her true-life events that is easy to digest and will hopefully inspire victims of sexual abuse who have suffered in silence to speak their truth.
Connect With Dr. Ketra
Email: info@drketra.com
kdavenportking@lifeaftearg.org
Website: www.drketra.com
www.lifeafterag.org (Redesign coming July 2020)
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/ketra.davenport
Life After Advocacy Group – https://www.facebook.com/LifeAfterAdvocacyGroup?ref=bookmarks
Rock Dimensional Consulting – https://www.facebook.com/RockDimensionalConsulting/
Instagram: @Kkinginchrist @kdavenportkingrdc
