MLK family matriarch, Naomi Ruth Barber King, has died at 92
ATLANTA - Civil rights activist and King family matriarch, Naomi Ruth Barber King, has died at the age of 92, according to the A.D. King Foundation.
Mrs. King passed away peacefully in Atlanta on March 7. The King Foundation says she will be remembered as a beloved mother, grandmother, great grandmother, and a beacon of light to those in the churches and communities she served.
In 1950, Mrs. King married Rev. Alfred Daniel (A.D.) Williams King, a Baptist minister, civil rights leader, and the younger brother of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Mrs. King and A.D. were frequently by Dr. King’s side supporting him and his leadership in the civil rights movement. They were present at the creation of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) in 1957; when students in Greensboro, North Carolina launched the sit-in movement in 1960; through the Birmingham campaign of 1963; during 1963’s March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom; and throughout the 1965 campaign to vote in Selma.
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After A.D.’s untimely death in 1969, Mrs. King kept his legacy alive by establishing the A.D. King Foundation, an organization dedicated to the empowerment of youth and women and the advancement of strategies for nonviolent social change.
Mrs. King was known affectionately as the "Butterfly Queen." A 2022 documentary about her life is titled "The Butterfly Queen: From Tragedy to Peace."
She embraced her role as "First Lady" of the churches her husband pastured and she served as a friend and mentor to many in the Christian community until her final days.
"We are comforted with the assurance that Mrs. King is now in her eternal home in the presence of her Savior, and that she was met in Heaven by her husband, A.D. King; her brother-in-law, Martin Luther King Jr; her sister-in-law, Coretta Scott King; her daughter, Darlene King; and her sons, Alfred King II and Vernon King. She is survived by her daughter, Alveda King; her son, Derek King; as well as several grandchildren," her family said in a statement.
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In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the A.D. King Foundation at www.adkingfoundation.com.