NAMES IN THE NEWS : Mayor Barry Is Surprise Speaker
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RIVIERA BEACH, Fla. — Actor Ben Vereen and Washington Mayor Marion Barry showed up at the same church service and addressed the congregation.
Vereen was expected, but Barry surprised worshipers at New Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church with his appearance Sunday and a short speech admitting a dependence on alcohol.
“Part of the recovery process is having a spiritual focus,” said the Rev. Thomas Masters, the church’s pastor. “We were full of love, forgiveness and support for him.”
Masters said he did not know why Barry chose his church, but that Vereen is performing locally.
The church is about a mile from the Hanley-Hazelden Center in West Palm Beach. Barry began a 28-day treatment program at the center Jan. 22 after the FBI and Washington, D.C., police arrested him and charged him with cocaine possession.
Barry sat with the congregation during the three-hour service, clapping and nodding to the songs and speeches, members said. He gave an impromptu, five-minute talk near the end of the visit, they said.
Barry said he was dependent on alcohol but did not mention cocaine, churchgoer Stephanie Strong said.
“He said he had a friend bigger than the U.S. attorney, and that friend is Jesus Christ,” she added.
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