[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 176 (Thursday, November 17, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2078]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             HONORING THE REVEREND DR. DAVID C. FORBES, SR.

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DAVID E. PRICE

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 17, 2011

  Mr. PRICE of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to bring to 
the attention of my colleagues the remarkable life of service of the 
Reverend Dr. David C. Forbes, Sr. of Raleigh, North Carolina.
  Dr. Forbes is the founding Pastor of Christian Faith Baptist Church, 
and he is retiring from the church after 21 years of faithful ministry. 
His work there culminates a lifetime of service to the cause of social 
justice and to the betterment of the community.
  Dr. Forbes came of age during the civil rights movement of the 1960s. 
He embraced his place in history, helping to found the Student Non-
Violent Coordinating Committee, later led so ably by our colleague, 
Rep. John Lewis. Dr. Forbes quickly made his mark as a leader. He has 
spent the last fifty years answering the prophetic call to justice and 
leading others to join him.
  After graduating from Shaw University with a degree in education, 
David Forbes spent his early career focused on the needs of young 
people. He taught middle school students in Wilson, North Carolina, and 
then headed north to New York, where he worked as a teacher, youth 
center director, and VISTA coordinator. Along the way, he earned a 
master's degree in social work from Adelphi University and transitioned 
to the world of higher education, spending more than a decade teaching 
at Virginia Commonwealth University.
  It was during this time that Dr. Forbes found his calling as a 
minister, and, eventually, came home to North Carolina. He spent 6 
years as senior minister of Martin Street Baptist Church in Raleigh 
before becoming the founding pastor at Christian Faith Baptist. 
Christian Faith Baptist isn't just a place of worship; it is an 
activist congregation dedicated to serving the least among us and to 
achieving what Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. called the ``beloved 
community.'' Through David's leadership, the church has taken on many 
missions both locally and internationally, such as sponsoring free HIV/
AIDS testing clinics; providing Saturday meals for the needy; funding 
scholarships for young men; and supporting the children of incarcerated 
parents.
  Dr. Forbes' partner in all things was his wife of nearly 50 years, 
Hazel Baldwin Forbes, who passed away last year. Hazel shared David's 
passion for education and the church, and she and my wife Lisa found 
they had much to talk about as fellow social workers. She was also a 
gifted musician, and served as choir director and accompanist at 
Christian Faith.
  Dr. David Forbes leaves a rich legacy at Christian Faith, one that 
will be both remembered and upheld. I speak for many North Carolinians 
in honoring him as a ``good and faithful servant'' who has helped build 
a better and more just world in everything he has done.

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