Rev. Joseph E. Lowery Celebrates 98th Birthday in Grand Style

ATLANTA - EntSun -- As actress, Cassi Davis, and journalist, Roland S. Martin, kept the program moving, civil rights pioneers Christine King Farris and Rev. C. T. Vivian, joined new-school leaders like Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, nearly 100 student Change Agents, and over 500 attendees to celebrate Rev. Dr. Joseph E. Lowery's 98th birthday. Presented recently by the Joseph and Evelyn Lowery Institute for Justice and Human Rights (Lowery Institute), the evening included performances by award-winning vocalists Regina Belle and Y'Anna Crawley.

"Many of the soldiers in the Civil Rights Movement who traveled with us on our journey to justice are no longer here," Rev. Vivian noted in his moving remarks to Rev. Lowery. "It's truly a privilege for me to be here to celebrate your birthday with you," added the former lieutenant to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

"Joseph Echols Lowery was one of the founding pastors with Dr. King of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference," Ambassador Andrew Young commented.

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Rev. Lowery shared, "I feel blessed to be here to celebrate my birthday with my family, friends and so many chaplains of the common good. I'm proud to see the Lowery Institute Change Agents, who are our future leaders, and alumni of the institute who've graduated and are continuing to be of service to people in need."

Themed "Celebrating the Work and the Man," the biennial birthday bash raises funds to help the Lowery Institute perform its mission to continue the advocacy work of Rev. Dr. Lowery and his late wife, Dr. Evelyn Gibson Lowery. Much of that work is achieved through their Change Agent program which focuses on civil and human rights, social justice, civic engagement and community health.

"The Change Agents asked my dad what he wanted wanted when they interviewed him for their weekly podcast.," said Cheryl Lowery, president and CEO of the Lowery Institute. "He said he wanted them to get people registered and make sure they vote. They decided to gather names from people across the country to sign a birthday card and also pledge to vote. They collected over 200 names from California to Africa."

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Known as the "Dean" of the Civil Rights Movement, Rev. Lowery was close confidante to Dr. King and played an integral role in the passing of the 1965 Voting Rights Act and four decades later proudly delivered the benediction during President Obama's Inauguration.

Sponsors supporting Rev. Lowery's birthday celebration and the institute's year-round programming include: Delta Air Lines, Georgia Power, Georgia Pacific, AT&T, The Coca-Cola Company, William Josef Foundation, and Kroger. The daily digital news show, #RolandMartinUnfiltered, served as media sponsor.

For more information or to donate the Lowery Institute visit http://www.loweryinstitute.org. .