Funeral services set for Rev. Charles G. Adams as tributes pour

Bill Laytner, Detroit Free Press
Updated ·2 min read
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Rev. Charles G. Adams of Hartford Memorial Baptist Church in Detroit raises his hand during a reading of scriptures.
Rev. Charles G. Adams of Hartford Memorial Baptist Church in Detroit raises his hand during a reading of scriptures.

Statements of praise have come from Detroit’s mayor and city councilmembers, as well as from Michigan’s lieutenant governor, following the death of the Rev. Charles G. Adams on Nov. 29, as mourners awaited word of the funeral services (set for Dec. 14-15; details below).

Adding unwanted attention to Adams' church in northwest Detroit, Hartford Memorial Baptist, was a bomb threat that caused evacuation of the building at 8:40 a.m. on Sunday, at the end of the morning’s first service. Later, Detroit police who investigated found the body of a man outside a vehicle near the church. Investigators found no link between the body and the bomb threat, a Detroit police spokesman said on Monday. The death appeared to be from a drug overdose and police have yet to identify who caused the bomb scare, the spokesman said.

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Visitation is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 14. At 5 p.m. there will be a speakers' tribute and a concert featuring the Brazeal Dennard Chorale. The funeral service will be on Friday, Dec. 15, beginning with a processional at 9 a.m., followed by the service at 10 a.m. All will take place at the church, 18700 James Couzens Highway, Detroit. Among the statements of praise for Adams were these:

  • Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan called Adams “a tireless fighter for the people of Detroit, in particular our seniors and children,” adding that Adams “did more than offer words of hope and inspiration from his pulpit; he created opportunity by purchasing and developing land (near the church), including the Hartford Village senior citizen community.”

Rev. Charles G. Adams
Rev. Charles G. Adams

  • Michigan Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist said Adams was “a deeply ecumenical leader who spoke equally and easily to presidents and everyday people. Under his leadership, Hartford Memorial Baptist Church delivered countless services to support the success of Detroiters, such as tutoring, Head Start, and affordable housing. He was a deeply moral man, a crusader against racial injustice, and a leader against the apartheid regime in South Africa.”

  • Horace Sheffield III, pastor of Detroit’s New Destiny Fellowship church, said Adams’ work “with my father, through the NAACP (and other groups) set an enviable example of how one’s life should be more aptly judged by how much someone gives and not by how much they have."

Contact Bill Laytner: blaitner@freepress.com

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit's mayor praises late Rev. Charles G. Adams ahead of funeral