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New York
Church
Prays for
Gospel Singer Pastor
 (AP) - In the midst of mourning,
members of the congregation led by gospel singer Timothy Wright raised
their voices in praise and remembrance on Sunday, praying for their
pastor's recovery and grieving the deaths of his wife and grandson in a
head-on car crash. Congregants at the Grace Tabernacle Christian Center
refused to be bowed by sorrow following the crash, which critically
injured the Grammy-nominated Rev. Wright and killed co-pastor Betty
Wright and their 14-year-old grandson.
Women
in Sunday white and men in dark suits pounded their feet and sang
joyful gospel tunes, forgoing solemnity to praise God and share
memories of the Wright family.
"We honor the Lord for his goodness and his kindness. We say, in spite
of everything: God is still good," the Rev. Frank Williams told the
crowd.
Timothy Wright, the church's 61-year-old founder, was in critical
condition, but speakers at the services reassured congregants that he
was conscious and led them in fervent prayers for his health.
"He shall live," Williams said. "He has impacted too many people. He
has paid some of our rents when he couldn't even pay his own."
Williams recalled Betty Wright's sharp sense of humor and strength,
calling the 58-year-old "the most powerful, phenomenal woman."
"Their blood and sweat are in the walls," he said of the Wrights and
the Pentecostal church, located in the Crown Heights section of
Brooklyn.
After congregants held hands in prayer, leaders called all former
members of the choir forward to join the current group of singers. Amid
the pews, tearful churchgoers danced and clapped along with the songs.
One woman, bent and sobbing, had to be led from the room.
Along with the N.Y. Fellowship Mass Choir, Timothy Wright was nominated
for a Grammy award for best traditional soul gospel album for 1994's
"Come Thou Almighty King." He has released more than a dozen gospel
recordings, including "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus," which came out last year.
The Wrights, who have five sons, were returning from a Church of God in
Christ conference in Detroit when their vehicle was struck Friday, said
Leroy Johnson, a trustee at Grace Tabernacle. Their grandson D.J.
Wright died the next night, according to a nursing supervisor at a
hospital in Danville, Pa.
The Pennsylvania crash also killed 44-year-old Lewisburg, Pa., resident
John Pick, who drove the wrong way on eastbound Interstate 80 into the
Wrights' vehicle, police said. The crash was being investigated.
It was a sudden tragedy for members of the Brooklyn church, where on
Sunday morning white-clad ushers handed out programs, apparently
printed before the accident, that still listed Timothy Wright as the
scheduled speaker. The pamphlet also said, "Program subject to change
by order of the Holy Spirit."
At Sunday's service, the Rev. Willy Robinson sought to comfort congregants.
"I'm not going to tell you don't cry ... I've been crying," he said.
"You're going to feel bad for a while, but God's going to bring you
through.
"We're going to see her and them again."
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