The MLK Council of Elders

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Rev. Curtis W. Harris was born July 1, 1924 in Surry County, Virginia. He was reared in the inner city of Hopewell, Virginia where he received his primary education in its public school system. Rev. Harris graduated from Carter G. Woodson High School and also became certified in Clinical Training for Pastors from the Medical College of Virginia. He also studied at the Urban Training Center for Christian Mission in Chicago, Illinois and at Virginia State University.

Rev. Harris remembers his childhood as one spent in poverty. Though they were poor, he was taught early in life the importance of sharing with those who were not so fortunate. This sharing trait was the most influential factor in Rev. Harris's call to the ministry, and attributed to the roles that he later played in helping to liberate his people. Observing the unselfishness of his mother as she divided and shared with others whatever she had, was instrumental in helping to mold Rev. Harris into a caring and sharing individual. Rev. Harris was licensed as a Minister on July 13, 1957 and ordained on April 1, 1959. These were both done under the direction of Dr. G.W. King who was the pastor of Union Baptist Church at that time.

In 1960 he organized the Hopewell Improvement Association, which is an affiliate of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. He was elected as the Vice President at that time. He was also arrested in 1960 and sentenced to 60 days in jail for his participation in a "Sit In" at George's Drug Store in Hopewell, VA. There were 75 others arrested for trespassing at that same time. During that same year, Rev. Harris led a protest against the segregation of the swimming pool and cemetery in Hopewell. This protest led to the pool being closed and later filled in with cement.

Rev. Harris became a member of the National Board for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1961. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was the president at that time. That same year, the legislative committee of the Virginia General Assembly cited Rev. Harris for contempt because of his unwillingness to disclose the names of other members of the organization or answer other questions asked by the "Boatwright" committee. During the trial in Hopewell, VA on March 29, 1962, ministers from all parts of the Old Dominion accompanied Rev. Harris to court, including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Thus was the direction of his future set and the road paved for his other many historical endeavors.

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