[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 22 (Monday, February 3, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E121]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





            THE LIFE OF REVEREND DR. WALLACE HARTSFIELD, SR.

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                          HON. EMANUEL CLEAVER

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, February 3, 2020

  Mr. CLEAVER. Madam Speaker, it is with a heavy heart that I rise 
today to honor the life and memory of the late Reverend Dr. Wallace 
Hartsfield, Sr., a prominent religious and civil rights leader who 
devoted his life to the uplifting of mankind. Rev. Hartsfield's passion 
for community was only rivaled by the fierce adoration he had for his 
wife, four children, and many grandchildren. On Thursday, January 23, 
2020, Rev. Hartsfield passed away after a deeply inspiring ninety years 
of life.
  Born on November 13, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia, Rev. Hartsfield was an 
only child, raised by his mother in Jacksonville, Florida. Reverend 
Hartsfield proudly served his country, completing a three-year tour of 
duty with the United States Armed Services in the Philippines before 
going on to attend Clark College, where he graduated in 1954. Rev. 
Hartsfield later earned his Master of Divinity from Gammon Theological 
Seminary and went on to serve churches in South Carolina, Georgia, 
Florida, and Wichita before settling in Kansas City. He served as 
senior pastor of Metropolitan Missionary Baptist Church, one of Kansas 
City's largest African-American churches, from 1962 to 1968 and again 
from 1972 until his retirement in 2008. Rev. Hartsfield's son, Pastor 
Wallace S. Hartsfield, II succeeded his father's tenure at Metropolitan 
Missionary Baptist and continues the legacy of faith and leadership 
that his father established.
  In connection to his lengthy and dedicated career of spiritual work, 
Rev. Hartsfield played a crucial role in the civil rights movement. 
Growing up in the segregated south, he was no stranger to the dark and 
deeply painful realities of our nation's history. Rev. Hartsfield 
committed himself to the fight for a more just world, using the 
negative experiences he endured and witnessed as motivation in the 
fight for equality and a better life for African Americans. Marching 
alongside Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and working with Reverend Jesse 
Jackson on the PUSH campaign to improve economic opportunities for 
African Americans, Rev. Hartsfield embodied true leadership, 
compassion, and activism.
  In all that he approached, Rev. Hartsfield did so with a fervent 
passion and steadfast desire for change. By serving on local, regional, 
and national boards, including as Chairman of the Congress of National 
Black Churches and President of the Baptist Ministers Union, creating 
the Concerned Clergy Coalition in an effort to combat crime, and 
leading a multi-million dollar campaign for Kansas City health centers, 
Rev. Hartsfield proved time and time again that he was truly a man of 
unparalleled dedication.
  As an unwavering voice for doing what was morally just, Rev. 
Hartsfield helped to positively shape the future for generations to 
come. By serving as a beacon of light through dark moments in our 
history and ushering in hope in times of hopelessness, Rev. Hartsfield 
leaves behind a monumental legacy of service, courage, and 
perseverance.
  Madam Speaker, please join Missouri's Fifth Congressional District in 
honoring the life of Reverend Dr. Wallace Hartsfield, Sr. Let us carry 
forth with the same sense of duty and compassion of Rev. Hartsfield, 
always remembering his profound words: ``I may not have the power to 
change things, but I can be a voice for change.''

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