Witness to Dr. King’s Assassination to Speak at MLK Event
CONTACT: David Olejarz Jan. 6, 2010 dolejar1@hfhs.org 313.874.4094
Witness to Dr. King's Assassination to Speak at MLK Event at Henry Ford Hospital
DETROIT - The Rev. Samuel "Billy" Kyles, a longtime civil rights leader and the only living person who spent the last hour of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s life with him, will be the featured speaker at 12:45 p.m. Monday, Jan. 18 at Henry Ford Hospital's annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration.
The theme of the celebration, which will be held from noon - 1:30 p.m. in the hospital's Buerki Auditorium, is "Where Do We From Here?"
Rev. Kyles has served as the pastor of Monumental Baptist Church in Memphis, Tenn. since 1959. He was an eyewitness to King's assassination and the only living person who spent the last hour of King's life with him at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis on April 4, 1968. Kyles and King were talking on the balcony outside Room 306 when King was fatally shot. His account is chronicled in the Academy Award-nominated HBO documentary The Witness: From the Balcony of Room 306.
Music entertainment will be provided by Detroit's Mosaic Singers and Tymara Spears, a local gospel singer.
The event is free and open to the public. Henry Ford Hospital is located at 2799 W. Grand Blvd. just west of the Lodge Freeway.
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EDITOR'S NOTE: Media and attendees should enter the Clinic entrance, located off the Lodge Service Drive.
