PATERSON, N.J. (PIX11) - On a piece of hallowed ground in Paterson, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave a sermon in 1968. Just days later, in Memphis, Tennessee, his life was cut short.
But in the neighborhood, his spirit is still felt by those whose voices carry his message.
"It's powerful and it's significant," said Carl Clark, a pastor at St. Peter's Church in Paterson.
Clark once gave a sermon in the former Community Baptist Church of Love, where Dr. King preached, and sat in the same chair.
"The chair was refurbished," said Clark. "It's an honor to be able, I guess, to follow in the same footsteps to be able to be a help and blessing to the community."
On Monday, Paterson's religious leaders gathered near the church to honor his legacy of service and fighting for civil rights.
"He did it for the down-and-outers," said James Kuykendall, pastor of Agape Christian Ministries. "He did it for those who had no voice. He was the voice and he was the prototype, he was the example that we today should continue to advocate."
One of the many tenets Dr. King fought for was guaranteed income -- a program adopted by the City of Paterson, which now gives $400 a month for 12 months to randomly-selected qualifying residents.
"This is what Dr. King stood for," said Mayor Andre Sayegh, "standing for economic justice."
John Algera was the pastor of Madison Avenue Christian Reformed Church in Paterson for four decades. Growing up, he says he didn't know much about Dr. King's work. Now, he says he has several commitments to carry on his mission:
"To racial reconciliation across all races, to believing the stories of people of color that many white people do not believe, and to working for justice in every way I can," said Algera.
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