The Rev. Thomas L. Walker at a funeral this weekend at the Rocky Mount Event Center was remembered for his work as a minister, for his advocacy of voter education and voter registration and for his work to advance civil and human rights.

Walker, 77, died on Sept. 14. He was pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church since 1970 and was a gospel artist famous for a recording titled, “One Day at A Time.” Walker, a native of Edgecombe County, also served from 1982 to 1994 on the Edgecombe County Board of Commissioners. The funeral, which was held Saturday, lasted for more than two hours.

Those at the dais for the gathering who spoke about Walker included former U.S. Rep. G.K. Butterfield; current U.S. Rep. Don Davis; N.C. Rep. Shelly Willingham; City Councilman Reuben Blackwell; City Councilman Andre Knight; and the Rev. James Gailliard.  Additionally, Nash County Commissioner Gwen Wilkins read aloud resolutions as well as messages expressing condolences. Two such messages were from Gov. Josh Stein and his predecessor, former Gov. Roy Cooper, who is a Nash County native. Wilkins also handed Blackwell a state flag sent by Stein to take to Walker’s widow, Theresa Walker, who was sitting in the front row of the audience. The flag had flown over the state capital on Friday.

Butterfield, a Democrat who represented North Carolina’s first congressional district on Capitol Hill from 2004 to 2022, drew applause and cheers when he summed up his feelings by saying, “Thomas Walker spoke truth to power.”

Butterfield said that he believes Walker’s leadership made Rocky Mount and the Twin Counties a better place to live, work and raise a family. “Thomas Lorenzo Walker now belongs to the ages,” he said.

Butterfield spoke of Walker having played a key role in shifting Rocky Mount from having City Council members elected at large to having council members elected from wards. When the council members were elected at large, the body was composed of mostly white residents. The current council has a 5-2 Black majority.

Butterfield pointed out that a successful legal challenge to the old system could be traced back to 1977.

Butterfield said that was when Walker discovered the then-council was planning to annex numerous large pieces of land on the Nash County side, which if had been permitted would have diluted Black voting strength.

Butterfield also emphasized that in the 1980s, under Walker’s leadership, almost 10,000 Black residents were added to the voter registration rolls. 

And he said, “The African Americans who served and have served in the past on the City Council have done great service to Rocky Mount, including the building of this event center where we are seated today.”

Willingham, a Democrat who represents N.C. House District 23, said that Walker was a man of strong faith who had both great intelligence and a gift for leadership.

District 23 comprises Edgecombe, Martin and Bertie counties.

Willingham also said that Walker was his friend, his advisor and his confidant.

“I admired him for his perseverance,” Willingham said. “Regardless of what the odds may be of success, he didn’t quit. He went ahead anyway.”

Willingham also said that at the same time, Walker was a humble man.

“He was able to communicate and interact with people from all walks of life,” Willingham said. “He dealt with everyone. He never put anyone down.”

Willingham also said of Walker, “He was a man of our time — and he had a lot of wisdom. And he appreciated and had a lot of appreciation for the struggles of our forebearers, as well as the insight to lead us in the future.”

Blackwell spoke of Walker’s collaboration with business and elected officials to strengthen the community.

Blackwell also spoke of Walker having advocated for having affordable housing, health care and of Walker having led with innovation, creativity and courage.

“Whether you liked him or whether you fought against him, you could not deny what he did for this city, for this region and for this nation,” Blackwell said.

Knight, who was wearing the uniform of a sanitation worker, spoke about the time Walker came to a council meeting in September 2023, a meeting that would become dominated by discussion about the pay of sanitation workers. 

Walker at the meeting spoke about the struggle in the 1960s to get people elected to the council whom he and others believed would be more sensitive to the needs of all the people.

“And now we find ourselves going over the same thing over and over again,” Walker said at the meeting. “One of the worst things you can have is amnesia — and this council apparently has it.”

Walker said at the meeting that he believed the city was brought to its knees in 1978 after a sanitation workers strike following the unjust arrest of since-deceased sanitation worker Alexander Evans.

He also said at the meeting that while he was having to use a walker to move about, he would be using a walker to march with the sanitation workers if something was not going to be done to help them.

Gailliard, who is the senior pastor at Word Tabernacle Church, said he recognized that much of the ground he stands on was first tilled by Walker.

“He plowed fields of faith when it wasn’t easy,” Gailliard said. “He planted seeds of justice when it wasn’t popular.”

Gailliard said that the late Rev. Gardner C. Taylor, who was a close friend of the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., emphasized that while preaching is fire in the bones, it also is truth spoken with tears.

“For over five decades, Dr. Walker preached that kind of truth — and he shed those kinds of tears,” Gailliard said.

Davis, a Democrat who represents North Carolina’s first congressional district on Capitol Hill, spoke about Walker having called him about wanting to get people excited to vote.

Davis said that he came over, shared a speech and talked about local issues.

Davis said that the thought came into his mind to tell Walker, “In spite of it all, we must still take one day at a time.”

Davis said that Walker used a scooter to move about but that as a result of what he told Walker, “I’ve never seen that scooter go into another gear.”

And he told Walker in spirit, “You don’t need that scooter anymore.”

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