By Fletcher Word
The Truth Editor
Bishop Robert Culp, the retired long-time pastor of First Church of God, was honored om Thursday, January 15 – the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr – as Toledo Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz presented him with a key to the city in recognition of his decades of service to the community.
In 1961, Rev. Culp joined the First Church of God. “Sixty-five years ago, he joined that church,” said Kapszukiewicz. “Since then he has done almost everything,” added the mayor as he rattled off the numerous organizations, committees, groups, causes, schools that Bishop Culp has been a part of and, in many cases, led during the last six decades.
Kapszukiewizc spoke about an event in 1968 – the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. The death of the civil rights leader resulted in protests and chaos in a number of cities. At that point, stressed the mayor, Rev. Culp had been in place only since 1961 but he was one of the voices here in Toledo to “provide calm and perspective.” It was the start of a decades-long positive influence that Bishop Culp has had on the Toledo community.
During his years in Toledo, he has established the Christian School, the FACTS and FORWARD programs for substance abuse and the Four Corners Project to serve youth and children. Nationally his influence has been far-reaching as several “spiritual sons” pastor churches from Pasadena, CA, to Brooklyn, NY. He was consecrated a bishop in 2014.
In the Toledo greater community, Bishop Culp has held numerous offices and leadership positions, including: president of the Toledo Chapter of the NAACP, president of Covenant Development Corporation, founder and board chairman of Toledo Academy Charter School, founder and board member of Family House homeless shelter, founder of Sparrow’s Nest operated by the Cherry Street Mission Ministries and a founding member of the Toledo Urban Federal Credit Union.
He is currently a member of the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance, Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) and Civilian Review Board, the Lucas County Fatherhood Committee, the Hope for Toledo Board and he is co-chairperson of the Toledo Community Coalition.
During the program last Thursday, also acknowledging Culp’s influence over the years was Sharon Speyer, strategic advisor to the University of Toledo. Speyer previewed the City of Toledo and UToledo’s virtual program – the 25th annual MLK Unity Day celebration on January 19 during which Bishop Culp would be the keynote speaker.
Calling Bishop Culp “a moral anchor,” Speyer said he exemplified what a man of faith should be. “Faith must be carried into our society by what you say and how you act,” she said extolling his “lifetime of service.”
Bishop Culp spoke after he received the key to the city from the mayor.
He thanked those who took him under his wing when he arrived in Toledo, convinced that this would be the place where he would spend the rest of his life as a church leader.
“They taught me to be a pastor in this city,” he said of those mentors and the lessons they taught him. First and foremost they taught him to listen.
“If you listen, you will learn some very important lessons,” he said. “If you listen and learn, your life will be a real joy and it will give you a chance to lead.”
Several other speakers paid tribute to the honoree, including one of his four children, Lisa Culp, who recalled growing up in a household with such an esteemed leader but had to go away to college to realize just how great her own father was.
At college, Lisa Culp learned about slavery and the Underground Railroad, along with the lessons about “great people” who led the struggle for civil rights. She realized that she had “left greatness back at the house.”
“It’s been a pleasure for us to grow up with someone like this in our home,” she added.