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COVER STORY
Monday, January 20, 2014 • Page 3
CARRYING ON KING’S WORK Joliet comes together to honor Martin Luther King Jr. By ERIC SCHELKOPF eschelkopf@shawmedia.com JOLIET – During Sunday’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day ecumenical celebration at Prayer Tower Ministries COGIC, community leaders who continue to fight for justice in his name were honored. The Rev. Ray Lescher of Sacred Heart Catholic Church presented the Excellence in Community award to Maria Rosa, president of Concerned Citizens of Joliet. “She is a fighter for justice,” Lescher said, in presenting Rosa with the award. Rosa humbly accepted the award. “We are all brothers and sisters and here for one cause, our community and our needs,” she said. Her words echoed the theme of the night, “The Unfinished Agenda, The Work Continues On.” The event was sponsored by the Joliet chapter of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition. Lescher urged all those in attendance to carry on King’s work. “Sadly for many of us living in the U.S. today, his life and message has been watered down,” he said. King, whose birthday was Jan. 15, would have been 85 this year. He was assassinated on April 4, 1968. Monday is a national holiday in remembrance and celebration of his life. The Rev. Herbert Brooks Jr., of St. John Baptist Church and Will County Board Speaker, noted that it was appropriate the celebration was taking place inside a church. “Let us not forget that he was a preacher,” Brooks said. “His dream, his vision must contin-
Heidi Litchfield for Shaw Media
Jennifer Spiva with her nieces, Jadah and Jalah McCullum, sing “Lift Every Voice and Sing” Sunday during this year’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Ecumenical Celebration held at Prayer Tower Ministries on Stryker Avenue in Joliet. ue. It must live on.” The keystone speaker was the Rev. Gregory Seal Livingston, senior pastor of Mission of Faith Baptist Church in Chicago. He previously served as national field secretary and chief of field operations for the Rainbow/ PUSH Coalition. He spoke about the importance of doing what it is right. “The heart matters, if it is in your heart to do the right thing,”
“The law and culture don’t move at the same speed.” The Rev. Gregory Seal Livingston Mission of Faith Baptist Church in Chicago Livingston said. Livingston also reflected on the difficulty of changing society
even after segregation laws were struck down. “The law and culture don’t move at the same speed,” he said. Fittingly, the Dr. Isaac Singleton award for Extraordinary Service was presented during the night to Cindy Marble and Tory Moore, of the group Warehouse Workers for Justice. “Dr. Isaac Singleton shared what it meant to serve a com-
munity,” said The Rev. Craig Purchase Sr., of Mount Zion Full Gospel Tabernacle and president of the Joliet chapter of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, in presenting the award. “We have to work together if we want to make a difference in our community.” Also receiving the Excellence in Education award was Joliet Central High School teacher Joe Baltz.