By Richard Caines

SALISBURY — Nearly 500 people gathered at the Wicomico Youth and Civic Center on May 2 to pray in unison for the greater Salisbury community and the United States.

Officials of the 12th annual Salisbury Area National Day of Prayer breakfast called it one of the largest National Day of Prayer events in Maryland. The Salisbury breakfast, held on the same day as the annual National Day of Prayer, was organized by a committee of area community leaders and chaired by Bonnie Luna.

The theme of the 73rd annual National Day of Prayer was “Lift Up the Word – Light Up the World,” based on the text of 2 Samuel 22:29-31.

“The National Day of Prayer website tells us that since the time of our Nation’s founding, public prayer has been a central part of our heritage,” said Don Hackett, executive director of Dove Pointe. “The tradition of designating an official day of prayer began with the Continental Congress in 1775.”

The event was decided to the memory of Jack Savage, a Salisbury Christian leader who died last year at the age of 82. Savage’s daughter Christina Savage Wilson gave the invocation to kick off the event.

“It is our privilege to dedicate the breakfast to Jack’s memory,” Hackett said. “Jack was a founding member of the Prayer Breakfast Committee and faithfully served as co-chair for 12 years.”

The guest speaker for the event was Dr. Jerry Regier, founder of the Family Research Council and a former senior official in three presidential administrations and in two gubernatorial administrations in Florida and Oklahoma.

Regier touched on his faith, how he used it to help guide his path over his decades-long public service career and the lessons he learned from the "pop quizzes" of life. 

“When I’m under constant pressure and wonder why I took a particular job or why I ended up in such a situation, I remember his calling and his faithfulness,” Regier said.

Reach Managing Editor Richard Caines at rcaines@iniusa.org.