It is not enough to cite the dream if you are not going to live the dream. These are the words and belief of the Rev. Tyler C. Millner Sr., pastor of Morning Star Holy Church in Martinsville. He is the recipient of the Virginia Union University Lifetime of Service Award that will be presented Friday morning at the 40th Annual Community Leaders Breakfast honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Rev. Millner was a founder of the annual event that draws several hundred people from across the area each year. Known initially as Community Learning Week, Richmond’s commemoration, now called Living the Dream, has become a national model for observing the King holiday.

“I feel so humbled because I have always turned the spotlight on someone else or some other program or projects,” Rev. Millner says. “You don’t work to win honors. You work to serve.”

A gifted public speaker, fundraiser and community activist, Rev. Millner built upon the legacy of his mother, the Rev. Almeda F. Millner, the founder of Morning Star Holy Church, which she pastored for 39 years.

“After she preached it, she tried to live her word,” he says. “That’s what I try to do. My congregation knows if I said it, I’m going to try to do it. I’m not bluffing.”

He is passionate about the ministry and outreach, caring about youths, especially black males, and church leadership development.

“I think if the church is going to be relevant in the future, it must mentor and minister to the needs of the black male,” Rev. Millner says. “We have some challenges in that regard. I think being a good family man and a good provider has certainly been a positive influence on young men in my congregation.”

In addition to Community Learning Week, he has developed several creative programs that advance the cause of social justice and cultural preservation. Among them is a citizen’s awareness program, Blue Ribbon Campaign, organized as an education and outreach ministry in the Martinsville community.

The pastor believes that the King holiday is not a day off. It is a day to serve the community.

“Clearly Dr. King provides for us a unique moral pattern for both improving race relations and helping ourselves as a people and as a country,” he says. “He gave value to all Americans, regardless of race, color, creed or sexual persuasion.

“He was a shining star of hope and possibility. He wants us to continue to beat the drum for freedom and sound the alarm and still be an expression of hope,” he says. “Being hopeful is part of what leaders are required to be.” Meet this week’s Personality and social justice advocate, Rev. Tyler C. Millner Sr.:

Latest accomplishment: Recipient of the Virginia Union University Lifetime of Service Award.

Date and place of birth: July 27 in Martinsville.

Current home: Axton in Henry County.

Alma maters: Bachelor’s degree, Johnson C. Smith University; master’s of divinity, McCormick Theological Seminary; special studies, Harvard University and New York University.

Family: Wife, Rosa M. Millner; children, Tyler Jr., 40, Telecia, 38, Alex, 35, and Martina, 33.

Community involvement: Martinsville Ministerial Association; NAACP; Tuesday Night Forum (public policy and issues); Bread for the World; New College Institute volunteer; and Higher Education Forum.

What this honor means to me: That the work I have done has made an impact and the long days and nights and sacrifices have been worth it.

When Community Learning Week was founded: 1978.

Purpose of Community Learning Week, now known as Living the Dream Inc.: To celebrate the life, works and teachings of Dr. Martin L. King Jr.; to provide an opportunity for community education; to provide an opportunity for civic and social groups to network; and to provide a framework for action beyond celebrating the dream.

Our communities can honor Dr. King’s legacy by: Committing to live the dream and truly create the “beloved community.”

A perfect day for me: To have helped someone, done something good for the family, to have discovered a great idea or concept and to have engaged in dialogue on some theological, political and/or social issue.

Something I love to do that most people would never imagine: Cook.

A quote that I am inspired by: “We have a wonderful history … and it is going to inspire us to greater achievement” by Dr. Carter G. Woodson.

How I unwind: Reading and a good ballgame.

Outlook at start of day: To be positive and deposit something worthwhile with others.

The best thing my parents ever taught me: To be authentic, true to yourself and to your family.

The person who influenced me the most: My mother, the Rev. Almeda F. Millner.

The book that influenced me the most: “The Mis-Education of the Negro” by Dr. Carter G. Woodson.

What I’m reading now: “The Art of Work: A Proven Path to Discovering What You Were Meant to Do” by Jeff Goins.

My next goal: To prepare for retirement.