Church invites public to celebrate late pastor's life

St. James AME Church invites the public to a celebration of the life of the late Rev. David R. Allen, Sr. at 7 p.m., Friday at the church, 516 North Street.

Allen died in October in St. Louis. He was the longest-serving pastor of St. James AME church, having served for 12 years. He served the community as former president of the Cape Girardeau chapter of the NAACP, a volunteer for the Boys and Girls Club, a chaplain for the Cape City Police Department, and a member of the Downtown Ministerial Alliance. Allen also assisted with the petition to have the Cape Girardeau Public School District protect and honor the national holidays of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and President¹s Day. He was also instrumental in "N It 2 Win It" program, an initiative to prevent the high percentage of minority student dropouts.