Center Line gathers for National Day of Prayer

CENTER LINE — In 2002, Center Line residents Jackie Lancaster and Kathy Hanselman decided it was time the city came together for the National Day of Prayer, held annually on the first Thursday in May.

So they organized Center Line’s first National Day of Prayer ceremony in May of that year.

They have continued the tradition for more than 20 years. With help from friend Denise Neumann, they held their annual observance at noon May 2 outside the David W. Hanselman Municipal Complex.

About 20 people, including city employees, gathered. This year’s theme nationwide was “Lift Up the Word-Light Up the World” from 2 Samuel 22:29-31. The service lasted about 30 minutes.

Early on, Debbie Raleeh, a trustee with the Cpl. Richard W. Menge Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 6756, led the crowd in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.

In unison, the group said prayers for the Center Line City Council as well as city employees, including those who work at City Hall and for the Public Safety Department. They bowed their heads for local and state politicians including Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Devotions, too, centered around families, teachers, churches, business leaders, military personnel, and those in the media.

“It’s all about calling America together to pray,” Lancaster said. “People all throughout the United States will be praying today.”

“We love the Lord Jesus with all our heart,” Hanselman said. “We want our community to know him as well and our city to follow him.”

Hanselman is the widow of David Hanselman, who served on the Center Line City Council for 28 years. He also was Center Line’s mayor from 2009 until he died in 2015. Current Center Line Mayor Bob Binson and City Manager/Clerk Dennis Champine also attended.

“Thank you for coming out for the National Day of Prayer. All denominations of all religions can pray to their respective God and whatever it is that they do,” Binson said. “Another thing about this ‘Lift Up the Word-Light Up the World,’ it spoke about forgiveness and there’s not a lot of that going on in our world today. A lot of division in politics and in people’s ideas. I think it’s important that we realize that we can forgive each other and disagree.

“My seventh grade teacher taught me that forgiveness is very important because if you have anger and hate in your heart, you carry that with you everywhere that you go,” Binson said. “In some cases, the person that you’re angry with doesn’t even know about it. So you’re the one that’s always angry.”

Letting their voices be heard, music was part of the afternoon when the group sang “My Country ‘Tis of Thee,” “America the Beautiful” and “God Bless America.”

The National Day of Prayer was started by President Harry S. Truman and first observed on July 4, 1952.  The observance was changed to the first Thursday in May by President Ronald Reagan in 1987.