As a public service, 97.9 WHAV presents Community Spotlight at no charge for the benefit of Greater Haverhill nonprofit organizations. To submit news of events, fundraising appeals and other community calendar announcements, Click image.
Temple Emanu-El of Haverhill plans its annual Shabbat service honoring the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. as a virtual program Friday, Jan. 15.
The annual service, celebrating the life and legacy of Dr. King in song and prayer, is presented by Temple Emanu-El in partnership with Calvary Baptist Church, Haverhill. The service follows the weekly Sabbath liturgy and includes selected readings from the writings of Dr. King. Cantor Vera Broekhuysen and Rabbi Rachel Putterman, both of Temple Emanu-El, will conduct the service. Members of the Greater Haverhill Clergy Association and Bradford Christian Academy will also participate.
Temple Emanu-El Makheila (choir), conducted by Broekhuysen, and the Calvary Baptist Church Sanctuary Choir, under the direction of Music Minister Joe DeVoe, will also present musical selections in celebration of the civil rights leader.
“This year as we honor Martin Luther King’s work and strive to uphold his legacy, we grieve the twin plagues of coronavirus and racism and the losses they’ve wrought in America,” said Broekhuysen, spiritual leader of Temple Emanu-El. “We come together, virtually as we must, to hold one another in prayer and song and shared strength, to hear one another deeply, and to make hope together.”
Pastor Kenneth Young of Calvary Baptist Church added, “This pandemic has taught us to trust in God and know that God is still able to turn our mourning into dancing.”
The 7 p.m. service takes place via Zoom and Temple Emanu-El’s Facebook page.