BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — A Melbourne pastor is remembering his father's connection with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as the nation celebrated the civil rights icon's legacy on Monday.
Both men inspired him to commit his life to the ministry.
Pastor Quintin Woods is a reverend of more than 30 years who traded the gridiron for the pulpit.
As a college football standout in Alabama, he began serving God while still in school.
"The Lord revealed to me so clearly, that you would no longer run touchdowns on the field, but you are going to run touchdowns for me," Rev. Woods tells us.
Years later a door opened for him to serve as pastor of Mt. Moriah Missionary Baptist Church in Melbourne. Reverend Woods says his inspiration to serve God came from his father, Bishop Calvin Woods Sr.
He along with Quintin's uncle Abraham met Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Birmingham in 1962 during the early days of the civil rights movement and became a member of his staff.
"Because of the Klu Klux Klan and the threats, they were afraid to pick Dr. King up at the airport, and my dad would pick him up and take him to the different meetings they would be having during that time," he explains.
Calvin Woods was beaten and arrested in a 1963 protest of the city's segregated bus system, and later joined the March on Washington later that year.
He's continued fighting for equality in the decades since King's death in 1968. His son, who has been preaching for thirty years, says his father's and Dr. King's work endures today.
"I'm able to do some of the things I've been blessed to do because of their commitment and sacrifice," says Rev. Woods.
An Alabama state marker honoring Bishop Woods life's work is on display in a downtown Birmingham park. It was intentionally damaged in August 2021. No one has been charged in the crime and work is underway to replace it.
Reverend Woods is attending a ceremony in Birmingham honoring his father's legacy coming up on February 26.