Aretha Franklin Told Her Pastor: 'I Am Going to Be All Right'
Cassandra Spratling
Special to the Free Press
4:26 p.m. ET Aug. 16, 2018
A steady stream of people gathered at New Bethel Baptist Church Thursday morning after hearing of the death of Aretha Franklin.
The church was made famous by her father, the Rev. C.L. Franklin.
Among those who stopped by the church was the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who arrived in town Wednesday to pay his respects to Aretha and her family.
"She sang before popes and presidents, but nothing was more important to her than singing for her local church," Jackson said.
Franklin was a famous gospel singer as a child before she became a global superstar. She held annual musical events at the church throughout her life.
"She was not only a great singer, but she was a caring person," Jackson said. "As big as her music was, her heart was even bigger."
Jackson noted Franklin's final performance was Nov. 2, 2017, at the Elton John AIDS Foundation in New York.
"It is almost poetic that her last concert with Elton John was for AIDS victims. She was sick herself and she was singing for AIDS victims," he said.
"I am glad she had the opportunity for heavenly transition," New Bethel Baptist Church pastor Rev. Robert Smith Jr. said. "... with the promise of Christ you not only have life but eternal life."
Smith said he visited with Franklin recently, and she was at peace.
"She said 'I am going to be all right,' She loves God and she loves the church," he said.
Also among the visitors was the wife of Wayne State University President M. Roy Wilson, Jaqueline Wilson.
Wilson brought a bouquet of white lilies to the church to lay it among among the other flowers being placed at the pulpit.
"I was saddened the fact that she is a Detroiter and I live here now. I was moved. I wanted to bring flowers," said Wilson, who said she grew up listening to Franklin, and her favorite song is "Amazing Grace."
Sylvester Porter, 78, of Detroit also was in the church and has a personal connection to the Franklin family. He said he and Cecil Franklin, Aretha's brother, played snare drums together at the former Northern High School marching band.
He said that he wanted to pay his respects because of what her music meant to black people.
"Her music came at a time when we needed it." Porter said. "It touched the hearts of the common people."
Many of the church's visitors spent time in a historical gallery at the church called the "History Room" which is full of photos of Franklin, her father and other dignitaries such as Martin Luther King Jr., Coretta Scott King and former Detroit Mayor Coleman Young.
There is even a framed photo of Franklin's "Amazing Grace" album.
The scene at the church ranged from somber to celebratory. A number of people were sitting quietly in the pews and paying their respects. And a growing memorial of flowers and balloons graced the pulpit. Outside there was a man dancing as a steady stream of cars driving by was playing her music.
Jackson said he just visited her on Wednesday.
"We had prayer twice. I was able to touch the warm of her hands and kiss her forehead one more time," he said.
Jackson and Franklin have known each other since they were both teenagers. He remembers the Rev. Franklin telling the congregation "My daughter is going to sing. She is going to be a star."
Jackson said she sang the gospel hymn "Never Grow Old" then "Ave Maria" that day.
He described her as a singer servant, "a sharing, caring person."
"She'll be here as long as we have her music," Danny Meadows, 62, of Detroit.
Meadows said something told him to come to the church, even though he hadn't heard of Franklin's death.
"Even when things were gloomy her music got us dancing and kept our spirits up."
Cassandra Spratling is a former reporter for the Free Press.
Special to the Free Press
4:26 p.m. ET Aug. 16, 2018
A steady stream of people gathered at New Bethel Baptist Church Thursday morning after hearing of the death of Aretha Franklin.
The church was made famous by her father, the Rev. C.L. Franklin.
Among those who stopped by the church was the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who arrived in town Wednesday to pay his respects to Aretha and her family.
"She sang before popes and presidents, but nothing was more important to her than singing for her local church," Jackson said.
Franklin was a famous gospel singer as a child before she became a global superstar. She held annual musical events at the church throughout her life.
"She was not only a great singer, but she was a caring person," Jackson said. "As big as her music was, her heart was even bigger."
Jackson noted Franklin's final performance was Nov. 2, 2017, at the Elton John AIDS Foundation in New York.
"It is almost poetic that her last concert with Elton John was for AIDS victims. She was sick herself and she was singing for AIDS victims," he said.
"I am glad she had the opportunity for heavenly transition," New Bethel Baptist Church pastor Rev. Robert Smith Jr. said. "... with the promise of Christ you not only have life but eternal life."
Smith said he visited with Franklin recently, and she was at peace.
"She said 'I am going to be all right,' She loves God and she loves the church," he said.
Also among the visitors was the wife of Wayne State University President M. Roy Wilson, Jaqueline Wilson.
Wilson brought a bouquet of white lilies to the church to lay it among among the other flowers being placed at the pulpit.
"I was saddened the fact that she is a Detroiter and I live here now. I was moved. I wanted to bring flowers," said Wilson, who said she grew up listening to Franklin, and her favorite song is "Amazing Grace."
Sylvester Porter, 78, of Detroit also was in the church and has a personal connection to the Franklin family. He said he and Cecil Franklin, Aretha's brother, played snare drums together at the former Northern High School marching band.
He said that he wanted to pay his respects because of what her music meant to black people.
"Her music came at a time when we needed it." Porter said. "It touched the hearts of the common people."
Many of the church's visitors spent time in a historical gallery at the church called the "History Room" which is full of photos of Franklin, her father and other dignitaries such as Martin Luther King Jr., Coretta Scott King and former Detroit Mayor Coleman Young.
There is even a framed photo of Franklin's "Amazing Grace" album.
The scene at the church ranged from somber to celebratory. A number of people were sitting quietly in the pews and paying their respects. And a growing memorial of flowers and balloons graced the pulpit. Outside there was a man dancing as a steady stream of cars driving by was playing her music.
Jackson said he just visited her on Wednesday.
"We had prayer twice. I was able to touch the warm of her hands and kiss her forehead one more time," he said.
Jackson and Franklin have known each other since they were both teenagers. He remembers the Rev. Franklin telling the congregation "My daughter is going to sing. She is going to be a star."
Jackson said she sang the gospel hymn "Never Grow Old" then "Ave Maria" that day.
He described her as a singer servant, "a sharing, caring person."
"She'll be here as long as we have her music," Danny Meadows, 62, of Detroit.
Meadows said something told him to come to the church, even though he hadn't heard of Franklin's death.
"Even when things were gloomy her music got us dancing and kept our spirits up."
Cassandra Spratling is a former reporter for the Free Press.
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