Choristers
and visitors raised their voices in song during a commemoration of
Martin Luther King Jr. Day at the First Presbyterian Church.
By LAURA KOSS
In the same church where Martin Luther
King Sr. preached in 1971, a group of Red Bank-area ministers led more
than a hundred area residents in a lively tribute to his slain son last night.
Guest speaker Rev. Donald Warner – a longtime Red Bank Regional High superintendent who now lives in Florida – reminded the audience of mankind’s “history of killing the dreamer.” But addressing the late civil rights leader whose birthday is celebrated as a federal holiday next Monday, Warner said, “we will fulfill your dream.”
Dr. Donald Warner, right, shares a laugh with Pastor Lenny Liebmann and other members of the Greater Red Bank Ministers Association prior to the event.
The event, held at the First Presbyterian Church at Tower Hill, was the second organized by the Greater Red Bank Ministers Association, a multi-denominational organization. Red Bank resident Riley Odell Wilson welcomed many of the attendees as they entered the worship hall. “TheyÂ’re all my family,” he said.
Pastor Lenny Liebmann of the Red Bank Community Church set the tone for his Warner’s powerful commemorative sermon by encouraging listeners to “disturb the status quo” as King had.