Committee Pays Tribute to Dr. King

By Chuck Stewart, Jr.

(Newburgh) - For the past few years, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Committee has been working to create a permanent monument and bust of slain civil rights leader Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The moment they have been working for finally arrived last Saturday with the official unveiling.

The bitterly cold weather didn’t stop the group of people that gathered on the corner of Colden Street and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard to witness history in the making. They were there to honor a man who stood up against the bitter injustice of Jim Crow laws that oppressed African-Americans and made them second class citizens.
Local sculptor David Frech was responsible for bringing King to life. He read books, looked at historical photo’s, and reviewed videotaped interviews and speeches to determine how best to capture the essence of King and create his work of art.
His most stunning recollection was that of King when confronted by an angry white man during a march. Frech was taken back by the calmness King possessed during that trying time. That is the calmness you see in the sculpture which faces east towards the Hudson River, greeting those who enter into the City of Newburgh.

Rev. Byron Williams, Pastor of Baptist Temple Church eloquently brought the warm message for the cold afternoon ceremony.
“The death of the man, was the birth of life. The messenger may have been murdered, but our presence here today symbolizes the fact that what he stood for cannot be assassinated. And will not go away until justice is truly served,” Williams said.
Williams noted that African-American’s honor King because he gave his life to God and he gave his life to liberty and freedom for African-Americans in this country. “We stand here today for Americans everywhere who are impoverished, who are discriminated against and who are mistreated day by day.”

Martin Luther King spoke of a day when Blacks and Whites would join together and live in peace and harmony. He asked that we all join together and work toward eradicating human issues that affect everyone such as poverty, racism, bias, and prejudice.

Father William Scafidi, Chairman of the Memorial Committee, summed it all up best -ironically - in his opening remarks. “We have completed, yet we have begun our project here on the corner of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard and Colden Street.”
The Memorial committee’s work is done, but the work must continue for Dr. King’s dream. If the civil rights giant were alive, he’d be 78 years old.

Pictured From Top to Bottom: Elder Dextro Tiller, Father William Scafidi, and Reverend Byron Williams stand in front of the newly bronzed bust during the unveiling ceremony.

A crowd of people gather for the Unveiling Ceremony of the newly bronzed bust of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. last Saturday January 20, 2007.