What began as a dinner out in Houston for Dan Lourie, ended in a night he will never forget: Eight hours spent speaking with Martin Luther King Jr.
“You know, I have to confess that in the beginning, he was just another guy,” Lourie said, “It got better and better the more you heard him speak, and what he said...he was one of a kind."
Lourie was 30 years old when he had the opportunity to talk with Dr. King. Lourie was out to dinner with his wife when Martin Luther King Jr. walked in and asked if anyone wanted to have a conversation with him. About 10 people got up and met in a room with King.
“It just changed your life, even though it was early, we had eight hours with him, and we learned stuff,” Lourie said, “In fact, I went up north to see him again, and there were 30,000 people in front of me!”
From that moment on, Lourie led a life of activism. Looking back on that October day, in 1967, even though Lourie can’t remember specific topics of conversation—he remembers the feeling of being in a room with Martin Luther King Jr.
“Just terrific, you know, one of the smartest people I think I’ve ever known, and he had 8 hours with us,” Lourie said.
