SAN ANTONIO – Like the man whose face adorns the outside wall of her East Side church, Rosa L. Wilson had a dream.
Part of their work was transforming the Greater Faith Institutional Church, housed in a tiny building that was once a nightclub, into a beacon of hope for the surrounding community.
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“I made a promise to my late husband that this land would always be for the people,” she said, referring to the property on Martin Luther King Drive where the church is located. “Hope is here and it will never die.”
After the death of her husband in 2010, Wilson was overseen of the church in which she now serves as bishop and chief apostle.
The mural on Martin Luther King Drive shows the civil rights activist of the same name speaking to a crowd. (KSAT 12 news)
In 2012 she worked with local artist David Blancas and numerous sponsors to create a mural depicting Pastor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. demonstrates addressing a crowd and being painted on the front wall of the building.
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She and her husband had always tried to honor the murdered civil rights activist.
In the early days of the MLK day march in San Antonio, the couple were instrumental in coordinating some of the related events.
“The first celebration before March, Dr. Martin Luther King took place on our property, ”said Wilson.
While that portion of the city’s annual celebrations has now moved across the street to the Martin Luther King Junior Academy parking lot, the church and its mural still play a prominent role in the celebrations.
It serves as the unofficial starting point for the approximately five-kilometer march that attracts hundreds of thousands of participants every year.
The mural is often used as a backdrop for selfies during the city’s annual Martin Luther King Day march. (KSAT 12 news)
Wilson says people often use the mural as a backdrop for “selfies” during the MLK vacation and beyond.
“I’ve had people come from all over the world,” she said. “I show up (and they say),” Well, we saw this mural and we just want to come and take pictures. “
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Wilson’s images offer people much more than just a place for photographic memories, but a place where they can begin to realize dreams.
Your community participates in several ministries aimed at helping those around you.
One example is the recent back-to-school campaign where children were offered free school supplies.
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