After a Florida man was acquitted in 2013 of killing unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin, a local minister and longtime civil rights leader helped lead a forum for the Black community at his northeast Oklahoma City church.
The Rev. John A. Reed Jr., as president of the Concerned Clergy for Spiritual Renewal, also started a special fund that distributed thousands of dollars to help victim’s family members and survivors of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing take care of immediate needs.
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Reed, who died on Aug. 26 at 86, was praised for these efforts and more at a Community and Civil Celebration held on Sept. 6 to honor his life and legacy. The service, one of two, was held at his beloved Fairview Baptist Church, 1700 NE 7, where he served as pastor for more than 61 years. The second service, a Homegoing Celebration, was held Sept. 7 for Reed’s family, congregation, churches with strong ties to Reed and Fairview, along with ministers and pastors from throughout Oklahoma and beyond.
A steady stream of former and current elected leaders, ministers and civic leaders spoke about the longtime preacher at the community memorial. The Rev. H.B. Charles Jr., senior pastor of Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Florida, told those gathered that the civil rights and community activist drew his strength from his faith, allowing him to lead his community, preach the gospel and share nuggets of wisdom to those who knew and loved him.
“We’ve heard tonight that John Reed served in a lot of different ways, but let me say that the defining attribute of this man’s life was that he was a preacher of the gospel of Jesus Christ,” Charles said.
“It’s because Jesus was at the center of his life that he could reach out and help us ― that’s the Christ-centered life at work.
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Tributes to a ‘well-lived life’
Charles encapsulated the celebratory tone of the evening, quoting Philippians 1:21: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
“John Reed ain’t lost nothing — his death was his promotion day,” the minister said, drawing applause and shouts of affirmation from the crowd.
The tributes from local community and state leaders took the same tone, as several expressed their joy that Reed had met his heavenly reward, though they would miss his leadership, mentorship and congenial personality.
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“Tonight, we have gathered with our hearts heavy, knowing that this servant is at rest, but there’s a wakeup call in the morning, so we celebrate a life well lived,” the Rev. Lee Cooper Jr., senior pastor of Prospect Baptist Church, said as the event host.
Other speakers included Ward 7 Councilwoman and state Senator-elect Nikki Nice; Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt, via video; John Whetsel, former Oklahoma County sheriff; Brett Behenna, who read a letter from his mother, Oklahoma County District Attorney Vicki Behenna; and Jamie Polk, superintendent of the Oklahoma City School District.
Others included former state Rep. Kevin Cox, longtime member of Fairview; former state senators Angela Monson and Anastasia Pittman; along with current state legislators Rep. Ajay Pittman, Rep. Jason Lowe and Sen. George Young, who is a Baptist preacher.
Pittman said she met Reed when she was 12 and knew from that day that he was committed to serving others.
“He cared about the community,” she said.
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The former state legislator told the crowd that Reed’s influence kept many negative things at bay for the predominantly Black northeast side of Oklahoma City. She said he often met with local ministers and other elected leaders at his church to discuss things like voter registration and redistricting, and he told them that they would have to move beyond their comfort zone, sometimes.
Pittman recalled a time when there was a plan to place a trash dump behind Douglass High School and Reed led the fight against that move.
“Pop Reed said ‘No,'” she said. “He saw that the village was taken care of.”
Polk said she had the opportunity to hear Reed preach at the Freedom Fiesta worship service on Aug. 18 at Fifth Street Baptist Church. The Freedom Fiesta is the annual celebration of the anniversary of the Oklahoma City Sit-in movement, led by civil rights icon Clara Luper. This year, the event’s activities also commemorated the anniversary of the 1969 Oklahoma City Sanitation Strike, which Reed took part in as the youngest of a group of Black clergy helping to lead the effort. Reed was a member of the Clara Luper Legacy Committee, and members of the group, were acknowledged during the memorial service.
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Polk said she and Oklahoma City School Board President Paula Lewis had lunch with Reed the next day, where he encouraged her after she outlined the challenges facing “young scholars” in the Oklahoma City School District. Polk said as they left, he asked her if she knew the biblical story of Esther.
“He said, ‘you are prepared for a time such as this. You have got to tell your story and keep the dream,'” she said. “He’ll never know how much that meant to me.”
Polk encouraged the crowd to “dream,” continue on with purpose and conviction “just like Pastor Reed.”
“Our children need us now more than ever,” she said.
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Whetsel, the former sheriff, told one of the many humorous stories and anecdotes about Reed during the evening.
He said Reed had gone to jail before, getting in what the late civil rights and congressional leader John Lewis called “good trouble.” He spoke about a day that civil rights leader Jesse Jackson and Reed were leading a protest over an inmate’s execution, and they were subsequently taken to the Oklahoma County jail. Whetsel said Reed saw him at the jail and told him that while Jackson was fine going to jail, he needed to get home to explain to his wife why he “crossed the line” and landed in jail for trespassing.
“He said, ‘Reverend Jackson grabbed my arms, and we went across that line,'” Whetsel said of Reed.
“Even though he hadn’t been booked in yet, I left the jail to take him back to his car so he could go home and give that explanation. And yes, he rode in the front seat of my car.”
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Whetsel said Reed gave the invocation at his swearing-in ceremonies. Ending on an emotional note, Whetsel expressed how grateful he was to have known the steadfast leader.
“Mitzi and I thank God that he allow us to cross paths with John Reed and his beautiful family,” Whetsel said.
“John Reed was our friend. He was my brother, and while we will miss his presence on Earth, he will be with us in spirit and in our memories.”
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Poignant remarks highlight memorial for preacher, activist J.A. Reed
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