Let's give another round of applause for the Wilberforce Choir. It is truly invigorating for me to be a part of this electric evening. It is also quite an honor to be on stage with our keynote speaker, the Reverend Doctor Floyd H. Flake.

On Monday, when we kicked off the city's Martin Luther King activities and Ball State's Unity Week at the Celebration Breakfast, I invited everyone to join me in attending tonight's event. When I spoke about Martin Luther King, I referenced his call for all of us to adopt a drum major instinct. His message was for people to lead the parade rather than lag behind it. His intent was to inspire everyone to become leaders and role models in their professional as well as their personal lives.

Dr. King knew instinctively that leaders and role models were the key ingredients to help advance a community.

I think we can all agree that Dr. Floyd Flake has certainly done his part to help advance the communities in which he serves.

Dr. Flake has never been a stranger to leadership and hard work. At the age of eight, he had his own paper route. By 15, he began preaching. And just four years later—still just a teenager—he became a pastor.

Like the great Dr. King, Dr. Flake is a strong national figure in social and academic communities. He is the president of Ohio's Wilberforce University—the oldest private African-American university in the nation. He is also the senior pastor of the 18,400-member strong Allen African Methodist Episcopal Cathedral of New York in Jamaica, Queens.

Even in Dr. Flake's more secular jobs, there's no question that he served his communities well. Even before he began his service as a United States Congressman, in which represented his constituents for 11 years with great dignity, he cited that the position was only a temporary career move. Citing that his foundation is spiritual—because he stands on a ground of faith—he stated that he chose to go to Congress as long as everyone knew he was serving in an equally important dual capacity as pastor of his church.

I, like many of you, am thankful to have such a noteworthy drum major addressing our community this evening. With more than just a few years of preaching under his belt—and thousands of inspiring sermons—I'm sure we'll cherish this year's Unity Week for the dynamic and memorable message we are about to receive.

Please help me welcome the Reverend Doctor Floyd H. Flake to Ball State.