Condi: The Condoleezza Rice Story by Antonia Felix Page B

Chicago. Montview Presbyterian teamed up with Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church and Park Hill Methodist to found the Parkview Action Committee. This organization successfully curbed white flight from the neighborhood when black families began moving in. “The membership of these churches got together and said, ‘We’re not going to have that happen in our community,’” said Russ Wehner, a long-time member of Montview Presbyterian who knew the Rices, “and together we created an economically, socially, and racially integrated community.” According to the church’s biography, The Spirit of Montview: 1902-2002 , “church members were asked to sign a nondiscriminatory two-way pledge when buying or selling real estate. Montview joined other churches . . . in working to make Park Hill Denver’s first racially integrated community, indeed one of the first in the United States.”
    In the 1960s, Montview’s senior pastor Arthur Miller invited black leaders to speak at the church before most everyone else. “He got Martin Luther King, Jr., to come to Denver and preach at Montview during the height of the Civil Rights movement,” said Wehner, “and it took an enormous amount of courage on his part because this was before it was an acceptable thing to do.” In 1969, Montview invited Duke Ellington to perform his “Second Sacred Service” at the church. The production included the Montview choir and members of the Denver Symphony Orchestra, and it was a widely attended, sensational event in the history of the church and the community.
    As one of four associate pastors, John Rice preached about once every month, worked as a counselor, and directed an adult education program called the 49ers. The study group derived its name from the Colorado Gold Rush and was also scheduled to last forty-nine minutes. “Under Rice’s direction, the popular 49ers Contemporary Forum flourished,” states the church’s biography. Most of John’s work at the church involved pastoral duties such as visiting shut-ins and sick parishioners in the hospitals. His position as a dean and instructor at the university prevented him from being a full-time clergyman. Wehner recalled that Reverend Rice was a prominent figure in the community and a highly respected member of the clergy. “He brought an enormous amount of prestige to the church because of his affiliation with the university and because he was an African-American person who was very well respected,” he said.
    Just as he did with his students at the university, John helped his fellow parishioners at Montview look at things from a new perspective. “When John came on the staff he worked with a group we had organized called The Integration of Montview,” said former pastor Richard Hutchison. “He was very helpful and gave us all a real revelation at one meeting. We were talking about how we could attract more black members, and he said, ‘Well, do all of you agree with integration?’ We answered that of course we did, and he then asked us where the nearest black Presbyterian church was located. We told him there was one just a couple of miles away. Then he asked, ‘Why don’t some of you join it?’ We realized that we believed in integration, but we put the burden of doing it onto blacks.
    “John was always forthright, honest, and challenging,” Richard continued, “a very interesting man. He was so honest and secure in his selfhood that he didn’t get defensive or angry. Condi inherited some of that from him.”
    The classical music tradition at Montview was very appealing to Condi. They sang masterworks from all periods of the sacred repertoire, and were known as one of the best choirs in the city. “She had a beautiful voice,” said fellow choir member Margaret Wehner. “She also gave a piano recital at the church, and that’s why I felt at that time she was going on in music. I remember her very outgoing, bubbly personality—she was a talented and lovely young