On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, North Carolina Wesleyan College recognized the Rev. Dr. Standley Moore and his wife, Evelyn Moore, of Elm City, NC, with a Diversity Award for their participation in the American Civil Rights Movement. The Moores were personal friends of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his family, and other well-known civil rights leaders in the 1960s.

The Moores were honored in Wesleyan’s Everett Gymnasium at 7:15 p.m. before a crowd of students and visitors attending the women’s and men’s basketball games with Methodist University. Game tickets were free to the public in honor of the MLK celebration.

In presenting the award to the Moores, Wesleyan President James A. Gray III read from a letter he received for the occasion from Martin Luther King III. “To everyone gathered in Rocky Mount today, I just want to say that each of you is a vital part of the movement to make my father’s dream a reality,” the letter stated. “Your commitment to become educated and empowered citizens of the community is the kind of force that continues to be needed in order to advance the ideals of equality, hope, and the inspiration to fulfill the dream of the beloved community….”

The Moores, who are natives of Jamaica, came to the United States in 1959 to attend Carver Bible College in Atlanta. They also attended American Baptist Theological Seminary, where both received bachelor’s degrees in Christian education. Dr. Moore earned his doctorate in divinity from the International Baptist Institute. The Moores first met the King family in Atlanta, where Mrs. Moore was a close friend of Dr. King’s parents. The Moores developed a close friendship with the King family and worked with many well-known civil rights leaders in the 1960s, including Medgar Evers and Ralph Abernathy.

Dr. Moore is retired from a career in social work in Kansas City and his wife is retired from a long career as a school teacher there. He remains active as pastor of the Church of God in Elm City.

Immediately after the men’s basketball game, a candlelight procession marched from Everett Gymnasium to Wesleyan’s Dunn Center for the Performing Arts, where the college’s Gospel Choir performed.

Other Wesleyan activities in observance of MLK Day focused on community service opportunities for students to assist Habitat for Humanity, the Red Cross, Down East Partnership for Children, and Sterling House.