The Rev. Tyler C. Millner Sr., pastor of Martinsville’s Morning Star Holy Church for the past 33 years, will deliver his final sermon on Sunday, Dec. 31.

Planning for this retirement began in 2018, the same year he was awarded the Virginia Union University Lifetime of Service Award for his leadership in honoring the legacy of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., as well as his service to the community.

He was ordained in 1971 and believed his role should be one of service.

“The Black pastor has to serve the community,” Rev. Millner said in a recent telephone interview. “Dr. King was a sterling example of that. He worked to empower folks.”

Rev. Millner did as well. After earning his master’s in divinity from Chicago’s McCormick Theological Seminary, he became director of minority affairs with Virginia Power.

“There was no script and no program to follow,” he recalled. “The role grew as I grew with the company.”

One of the things he worked to do was involve the utility in efforts to interact and connect with minority communities. Rev. Millner said his greatest success there was helping to develop the corporate connection with VUU.

He co-founded Community Learning Week in 1978 with the late Dr. Grace M. Pleasants, combining speeches and other events, along with a Community Leaders Breakfast, to better recognize and honor the teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Richmond. Virginia Power, now Dominion Energy, became a corporate sponsor and it continues in that capacity today.

The program also became a national model for observing the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday. Signed into law by President Ronald Reagan, it was first observed as a federal holiday on Jan. 20, 1986.

“We’d been doing it here in Richmond for six years by then,” Rev. Millner said proudly of the program he served as project director of for 20 years before stepping down in 1998.

In January 1999, the late Dr. Willie Woodson replaced him and Community Learning Week became Living the Dream Inc. Dr. Ricardo L. Brown, pastor of Fifth Baptist Church in Richmond, has been the nonprofit’s executive director since 2009.

“The ideals and principles of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and others who fought for equality were constantly advocated for under [Rev. Millner’s] leadership,” Pastor Brown wrote in an email.

He added that nearly 46 years later the organization continues to make a difference in the community.

Community Learning Week events were even featured in the inaugural issue of the Richmond Free Press on Jan. 16, 1992.

But Rev. Millner’s impact extends beyond Richmond. He introduced the Blue Ribbon Campaign, a citizen’s awareness program modeled on Community Learning Week, in Martinsville after becoming pastor at Morning Star.

It was his mother, the Rev. Almeda F. Millner, who founded the church in 1950 and pastored it for 39 years until her death.

“In a day and time when women were to be quiet and had no upfront role in the church, she defied all of that,” Rev. Millner said. “She really practiced what she preached.”

That example stayed with him, and now it is Rev. Millner’s genuineness and commitment to his principles that stands out to those who know him.

Delegate Delores L. McQuinn first met Rev. Millner in the 1990s. She said in a recent interview that she has always admired his faith and his willingness to advocate on social justice issues.

“He’s very genuine. What you see is what you get,” Delegate McQuinn said.

“T.C.’s footprints should forever be etched in the history of the Richmond region as one who conscientiously helped to define the legacy of Dr. King.”

Cynthia Downs-Taylor also has known Rev. Millner for many years.

The senior adviser to U.S. Sen. Mark Warner said the pastor’s passion for social justice led him to “not only take an interest, but to take the initiative.”

She also called him a committed friend.

“You can always depend on him to reach out and to show up,” Ms. Downs-Taylor said. “Even though he’s retiring from the church, I hope he’s not retiring from his passion to serve his beloved community,” she added. “I hope he continues to pick up the phone and nudge those of us still out there in the struggle.”

Rev. Millner said retirement will allow him to spend more time with his wife, Rosa M. Millner, and their children and grandchildren. But he also will continue to help out at Morning Star until a new pastor is installed.

As to what else is in store, time will tell. “I’m excited, but I don’t know what I may take advantage of or do differently,”

Rev. Millner said. “I don’t think you’ll get me away from being an advocate — it’s too ingrained. It’ll be part of whatever I do, I suspect.”