Rev. Dr. Otis Moss Jr. and Edwina Moss
90th Birthday Celebration
Olivet Institutional Baptist Church
8712 Quincy Ave. Cleveland
February 19, 2025

Theologian, pastor and civic leader, the Reverend Dr. Otis Moss, Jr. is one of America’s most influential leaders. He and his wife Edwina Hudson Moss married on July 23, 1966. They have dedicated their lives to service and the community recognized them on the occasion of their 90th birthdays (both in February) with a gala celebration.

Edwina and Otis Moss Jr. January 2025

Rev. Dr. Otis Moss Jr. and Congressman Louis Stokes

Reverend Moss has been actively involved in advocating for the achievement of education, civil and human rights and social justice issues for all of his adult life. His board memberships have included The Cleveland Museum of Art and the Cleveland Foundation. Dr. Moss served as the Chairman of the Morehouse College Board of Directors for over ten years. He served as board member and Regional Director of SCLC during Dr. King’s tenure as founding president. He also served as national board member and trustee of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Non-violent Social Change.

His work in the international community has taken him to Hong Kong, Brazil, Taiwan, Japan, West Africa, South Africa Israel, India and Switzerland. He served as an advisor to former President Carter at Camp David and in 1994 he was the special guest of former President Clinton at the Peace Treaty signing between Israel and Jordan. He formally served on President Obama’s White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnership Council. In 2009, he co-lectured with Rajmohan Gandhi, the Grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, during a multi-city tour of India illuminating the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi.

In 1997, in conjunction with University Hospitals Health System and Olivet Institutional Baptist Church, Dr. Moss provided the vision to establish the Otis Moss, Jr.-University Hospitals Health Center that offers a wide range of medical services to the greater Cleveland community.

See more from Rev. Dr. Moss' Hall of Fame bio.

A more updated biographical sketch was provided by Eleanor Hayes of Hayes Group Communications. From humble beginnings, Otis built an immensely successful career as a pastor, civic leader, and one of the country's most respected and influential leaders. However, one of his most cherished roles is father and husband.

Otis always puts family first. Otis is married to Edwina Hudson Moss. The couple got married on July 23, 1966. Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Dr. Samuel W. Williams were co-officiants for the wedding ceremony on the Morehouse College campus. It was a small and beautiful ceremony with family and close friends. Jean Young (wife of Mayor Andrew Young) was Edwina's Matron of Honor, and Reverend James A. Wilborn, Pastor of Union Baptist Church was Otis' Best Man. Today, fifty-eight years later, they are still celebrating a joyous courtship and a beautiful marriage. They raised three children and have five grandchildren and two great-granddaughters. Despite the pulls and pressures of being a hands-on pastor, sought-after speaker, lecturer, and consultant, Otis centered time on his family. The needs of his wife, children, grandchildren, and extended family have always been a priority.

Edwina is quoted as saying, "He (Otis) is really my number one champion in terms of encouraging me and pushing me forward. We have an understanding that Olivet was his responsibility, and I didn't have any business meddling in it. I felt very strongly about that, plus, I wanted to develop my own image - and he agreed with me on that - that I have a lot to offer myself." (Source: Reflections: African American Achievements in Cleveland)

While Otis has received numerous individual awards for his leadership and service, he credits much of his success to Edwina, whom he calls a "committed co-worker for human rights, civil rights, and equal rights." Otis says, "That commitment to peace and equality has been a part of our commitment to each other throughout our adult lives. Even as we face sunset, and we slow down physically, we attempt to heighten our commitment morally and spiritually." (Crain's 2021)

Edwina Hudson was born on February 3, 1935, in Atlanta, Georgia to Edward and Alice Hudson. She has three siblings Don Aloin (deceased, Beverly, and Rahn. While her family lived in the housing projects, University Homes was located in the middle of Clark College, Morehouse College, and Spelman College; she grew up in a very supportive and educational environment. Edwina attended Wheat Street Baptist Church with the Reverend William Holmes Borders, who would invite people in to speak, like Mary McLeod Bethune, Lillian Smith, and W.E. B. Du Bois. As a young person, the messages coming from these voices had an impact on her. Education and the Church were the cornerstones of Edwina's childhood and the backdrop of her strength.

Edwina cites having Black teachers who constantly encouraged her as a positive aspect of her Southern childhood. She grew up with positive role models on both sides of her family. On her father's side were successful entrepreneurs. Her aunt designed children's clothes, and some of her clients included the offspring of President Dwight Eisenhower and Richard Nixon. Her uncle was an insurance salesman who started his own company and became one of the wealthiest Blacks in the South. On her mother's side, a long line of strong women championed determination and education. Her mother was one of the organizers of an elementary school for Black children in Atlanta and one of the organizers of a Presbyterian church.

Her mother and father divorced when she was a young teen, and she moved to Vallejo, California, where she was exposed to racism, which led her to join the Youth Council of the local NAACP chapter and take on several leadership roles, including President. During high school, Edwina joined an Afro-Cuban dance group. This artistic involvement continued while she was in college. Afro-Cuban dance is a fusion of African, Spanish, and Caribbean dance styles that originated with enslaved Africans in Cuba. The art form is deeply connected to religion, music, and storytelling.

Edwina moved back to Atlanta and worked for her uncle's insurance company, where she met Wyatt Tee Walker, the Executive Director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), who asked Edwina to work for him. Edwina recalls attending a rally where the students were upset with the adult community over an agreement with a local department store. The place was packed, students were hanging off the rafters - and then Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. walked in and started talking, and the whole church calmed down. He was the only speaker who was able to redirect the anger in that crowd. After that, she went to work for the organization. Edwina worked with Walker until he left the organization and then worked with Andrew Young when he became Executive Director. She also worked closely with Ralph Abernathy, Randolph Blackwell and Jesse Jackson.

Edwina's strong feelings about unfairness and racism gained, in her childhood, were her impetus for working with SCLC, as well as her kinship with the women who made the backbone of the Civil Rights movement. Women like Jean Young, Elizabeth Knox Blackwell, Coretta Scott King, Juanita Abernathy, Dorothy Cotton, Septima Clark, and Ella Baker were the organizers, logistics experts, and sometimes the spokespeople.

Edwina said her work with SCLC brought her back to the Church. Her relationship with the Church led her to marry the man she is married to today - which Edwina describes as the greatest blessing of her life. "Otis brought the personal qualities, values, and commitment to the holy issue of non-violence." (Source: Life in Stilettos, April 4, 2018)

The Mosses have three children: Kevin Edmund Moss, Daphne Rachelle Moss (deceased), and Otis Moss III. They are also the proud grandparents of five grandchildren, Kevin E. Moss II (deceased), Alexis L. Moss, Andre A. Moss, Elijah Wynton Moss, Makayla Elon Moss, and two great-granddaughters, Nikayla Cole-Moss, and Alora Hobson.

Kevin is married to Elizabeth Medina-Moss, and he is the father of Kevin E. Moss II (deceased), Alexis L. Moss, and Andre A. Moss. They have six grandchildren, Sergio, Nikayla, Xavier, Alora, Julian, and Lumi.Reverend Dr. Otis Moss, III, is married to Monica Brown Moss, and they are the parents of Elijah Wynton and Makayla Elon.

Next were personal reflections from Rev. Dr. Jawanza and Mrs. Allison Colvin, Pastor and First Lady of Olivet Institutional Baptist Church.

Mrs. Allison Colvin and Rev. Dr. Jawanza Colvin

Dr. David Thomas, President of Morehouse College

US Senator Sherrod Brown (Retired)

Rev. Dr. Raphael Warnock

Karen and James Jones

Rev. Dr. Kevin R. Johnson,



Mrs and Rev. Dr. Kevin R. Johnson

Judi Feniger

Patricia Hoover

Rev. Dr. Marvin McMickle, President (retired) Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School and Pastor Emeritus, Antioch Baptist Church in Cleveland gave his personal remarks.

Rev. Dr. Marvin McMickle

Kevin Moss



Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III

The Honorable Reverend Andrew Young

Rev. Dr. Otis Moss Jr. and Edwina Moss

Oprah Winfrey