Pastor Donald R. Cook II is the pastor of Harvest Tabernacle Bible Church in Los Angeles.
Cook attended Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia, on a full Track & Field scholarship. While an undergraduate, Cook was a Chapel Assistant, and a Morehouse College Assistant Archivist, where he assisted with day-to-day operations of the College Archivist’s office. At Morehouse, Cook was inducted into the Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Society and the National Society of Collegiate Scholars. He graduated in 2006 with his Bachelor degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Management, and was inducted into the Morehouse Board of Preachers in 2014. He continued his graduate education in the Master of Science in Church Management program at the Villanova University School of Business. He has completed three consultation certifications from the Jack Hayford School of Pastoral Nurture, the University of Southern California’s Certificate in Faith Leadership, Princeton University’s Certificate in Theology and Ministry, and Boston University’s Social Justice Certification, where he also served as a Research Fellow. Cook completed units at St. Anne’s College, Oxford University’s Summer Exchange Program and went on to continue his Philosophical Studies on a Doctoral level at Blackfriars Hall, Oxford University, where he was the only American inducted into the Golden Key International Honor Society for his academic work as a two-time Simon A. Simon PIKE Fellow and two-time International Scholar Laureate Recipient of Golden Key.
Before Cook began pastoring, there were only three college graduates at Harvest Tabernacle Bible Church; upholding his belief in the importance of education, there are now over 35 additional college graduates and seven students currently enrolled in college. Pastor Donald is also a proud Life Member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated and a Life Loyal member of Alpha Kappa Psi Business Fraternity, Pi Chapter. Cook mentors young people, encouraging their continued pursuit of achievement in education. Cook established the Harvest Seminary, where he teaches ministers who are seeking to develop research techniques and sermon preparation. He has established Harvest Tabernacle CDC, which is a nonprofit entity that serves the community through housing development projects and financial literacy strengthening initiatives. One of his newest tasks is to bring Harvest into the 21st century by including social media as a method to connect to the community and extend Harvest’s reach beyond its walls and beyond Sunday morning service.
