Message of Hope, Justice & Standing Up for Others
“Let Freedom Ring: MLK Day of Remembrance at Mt. Calvary Remembers, Rejoices & Uplifts
Despite the frigid temperature outside, Mt.
Calvary Church of God in Christ in Macomb was burning inside with messages of hope, resilience, justice and love during the annual Rev. Martin Luther King Day of Remembrance Monday.
Kicking off the event was a greeting from Church Elder and Assistant Pastor Allen Henderson, along with remarks by city, county and university officials.
Belinda Carr, a member of the congregation, read the Rev. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, which he presented Aug. 28, 1963, from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, calling for civil rights and an end to racism. Following an original poem, “A Dream Shines On,” written and read by 11-year-old Joe’L Harris of Macomb, keynote speaker the Rev. Carolyn C. Blair, the pastor of Zion United Church of Christ, Burlington, IA, took to the pulpit to present “Building a Community, Uniting a Nation.”
Keynote Speaker the Rev. Carolyn C. Blair addresses the crowd at Monday’s MLK Day of Remebrance at Mt. Calvary Church of God in Christ.
“Lord, I thank you,” sang Blair as she began her keynote. “Martin Luther King would be 97 today. Today, we are celebrating the life of a warrior and we are still struggling to bring his dreams into fruition.”
Blair told the packed church that there are three lessons from the Rev. King to build community: walking with Jesus means working for justice, to live the dream we have to keep on working on the dream and to live the dream, we need to be revived.
“Working for justice means you have to stick your neck out to make sure the excluded are included. Anytime you walk with Jesus, you are working for justice,” she said amidst “Amens” and “yeses “ throughout the crowd. “You’ll suffer some consequences but even if the road is rough and tough, work and work and work. Work hard and smart. Have hope. Keep working even if it is rough.
“It seems like we are stagnating, where we fight fire with fire, violence with violence, terrorism with terrorism. We need to be revived and get with God,” Blair said emphatically. “We need to build a community of faith that puts faith into action. All of these propelled Dr. King to achieve social change. Dr. King still reverberates. Progress has come but we’ve also seen regression that is undoing the pathways of progress. In our communities, the dream is in full array for some and nonexistent for others.”
Blair went on to share that currently we’re not focused on uniting a nation and building a community. One in five children go to bed hungry every night, and the U.S. is the only industrialized country to not include healthcare as a basic human right. Her final message: We need to be revived to empower us.
“Never give up. Don’t let your spirit be broken,” she concluded. “We can unite a nation. Mountains … moveable. Justice …achievable. Sky … reachable. All things … possible. Keep on living the dream to unite and build a nation until justice and righteousness flows like water.”
To round out the 2026 event, Pastor Freddie Starling, who has led the 101-year-old church for 51 years, praised Blair and her message, followed by words from Blair’s husband, the Rev. Floyd Blair. Finally, the crowd stood and joined hands across the church to the singing of “We Shall Overcome.”
Pastor Freddie Starling thanks the crowd for attending.
