[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 4 (Tuesday, January 21, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E109]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 TRIBUTE TO REV. JOSEPH M. ROLLINS, JR.

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOSE E. SERRANO

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 21, 1997

  Mr. SERRANO. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to Rev. Joseph M. 
Rollins, Jr., who was honored on January 18 for his long and fruitful 
career as a community activist and pastor of Saint Augustine 
Presbyterian Church, at 838 East 165th Street in my congressional 
district, the South Bronx.
  Reverend Rollins, a third generation Presbyterian minister, will be 
retiring as pastor of the church at the end of this year after 24 years 
of service. The tribute in his honor, entitled ``This Is Your Life'', 
highlighted his tireless work in the fight for civil rights and his 
dedication to the service of his fellowship and community.
  Reverend Rollins was born in Newport News, VA, in 1926. He is the 
great grandson of a former slave, Mrs. Clements, who gained her freedom 
at the age of 11. Reverend Rollins holds a degree from Johnson C. Smith 
University, in Charlotte, NC, an institution which was formerly 
associated to the Presbyterian Church. In 1954, Reverend Rollins 
organized the Trinity Presbyterian Church in Tallahassee, FL.
  A man of tremendous faith, he was among the first who believed in 
peaceful dissent as a catalyst of equal rights for all people 
regardless of color. In 1955, he was involved in the organization of 
the first bus boycott in Tallahassee, right after the arrest of three 
students from Florida A & M University. Reverend Rollins was among 
those who marched with Martin Luther King, Jr., during the civil rights 
movement.
  In 1963, he came to New York City and served as associate executive 
for the Commission on Religion and Race for the Presbyterian Church. In 
1968, he became the executive of the National Committee of Black 
Churchman, an ecumenical movement.
  He was also a member of the National Presbyterian Black Caucus, and 
served in many community organizations, including Community Board #3, 
the South Bronx Leadership Forum, and 163 Improvement Council, all 
three in the Bronx.
  Reverend Rollins has received two honorary degrees from University of 
Dubuque, IA and Inter-Denominational Theological Center in Atlanta, GA. 
He is the widower of Julia Rollins, with whom he had two children, 
Cecilia and Metz Rollins, and is the grandfather of three.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Rev. 
Joseph M. Rollins, Jr. for his lifelong commitment to his ministry and 
for his community activism, which has so well served all of us 
countrymen.

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