Cherise Booker

Cherise Dorrine McGill Booker was born in December 1961 to the late Lloyd McGill and Mildred McGill. Raised in the Van Dyke Projects in Brownsville, Brooklyn, NY, she helped raise three children—Stephen Denal, Ryan Lamont Staton, and Ashley Joy Staton-Salliey—before moving her family to East New York in 1994. Cherise later married Bruce L. Booker in 2003, gaining a bonus daughter, Krystal Booker, and welcoming seven grandchildren and one great-granddaughter into their blended family.

Determined to improve her family’s financial stability, Cherise pursued higher education while working full-time, earning an associate degree from New York City Technical College and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the College of New Rochelle, graduating summa cum laude in 2007.

Cherise’s spiritual journey began at SPCBC in 1981 as a teen mother. She later joined the Unity Dancers, the Maafa Ministry, and the Women’s Ministry, where she served in various capacities. In 2019, Cherise was consecrated as a Council of Wise Jewels member. After retiring from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in 2025, Cherise and Bruce made history by becoming the first married couple to join the Governing Board of Elders.

Cherise’s favorite scripture is Isaiah 54:10.