MIAMI – As Kendrick Meek stood in front of the copper colored coffin that was carrying his mother, he felt a sense of peace. He had already shed a few tears. He hardly slept and had hardly eaten. None of that mattered, however, because Rep. Carrie Meek – the woman who gave birth to him and became the first black Florida MP to sit in Congress since the Post-Civil War Reconstruction – was in a better place after a long illness.
“She is home now,” Kendrick said as a procession of well-wishers gathered outside Booker T. Washington Senior High School in Overtown.
The three-day celebration of Meek’s life began on Sunday afternoon with a tour of the high school auditorium, adorned with American flags, palm trees, and flowers. The tour was the first public opportunity to show respect to Meek, who died at home on November 28 at the age of 95. It was well attended by elected officials and residents alike.
Rep. Carrie Meek, D-Fla., Speaks during the service at Mount Tabor Missionary Baptist Church in Miami on July 7, 2002. Wilfredo Lee / Associated Press, file
“This was a woman who was a demonstration of what public service should be: tough, smart, loving and extremely loyal to no end,” said US Representative Mario Díaz-Balart, a Republican who is part of Miami-Dade County represents.
Elected officials from both parties were present to pay tribute, including Miami-Dade District Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, District Commissioners Audrey Edmonson and Kionne McGhee, and Mario Díaz-Balart’s brother, former Miami Congressman Lincoln Díaz-Balart.
Meek wore a navy blue dress accented by her first congressional pin and lay under a 96-square-foot American flag as a police officer changed guards every 15 minutes. White flowers, baby palms, and four smaller flags surrounded each side of her open coffin, as did two wreaths – one pink, the other red, white, and blue, courtesy of the US House of Representatives. Seven other American flags, carried by Kendrick and his daughter Lauren, lined both sides of the auditorium. Gospel music played as attendees walked down the aisle to an exhibit “fit for a queen,” said Cynthia Jones of Miami.
“She fought for the people who can’t fight for themselves,” said Jones. “She was the spokeswoman for the least, the lost and the marginalized.”
As Levine Cava went to Meek’s coffin, she and Kendrick shared a few words. Levine Cava later praised Meek’s ability to face injustice and her unique approach to public service.
“While confronting people – and she wasn’t afraid – she did it in a gentle, friendly way that made it very convincing, very, very hard to say no,” said Levine Cava.
Her colleagues remember Meek for her legacy as a social justice activist in Congress and as a lifelong educator and mentor to young people in her district. Prior to joining Congress, Meek served on the Florida legislature.
She retired from public office in 2002, but remained active for social causes through the Carrie P. Meek Foundation, based in Miami-Dade County.
On Monday, relatives will be holding an evening wake on the North Campus of Miami Dade College at the William and Joan Lehman Theater from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Meek’s funeral and homecoming service will be held Tuesday on the Miami Gardens campus of the Antioch Missionary Baptist Church at 21311 NW 34th Avenue. The service will be presided over at 11 a.m. by Pastor Arthur Jackson III
Instead of flowers, the family is asking for donations to the Carrie Meek Foundation, Inc., 4000 NW 142nd St. in Opa-locka.
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