D.C. to hold vigil for ailing Aretha Franklin tomorrow

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Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, is photographed in Detroit on Jan. 12, 2009. [[Gannett, Santa Fabio/USA TODAY/File)

D.C. vigil for ailing Aretha Franklin to offer prayer, music

By BRIAN McCOLLUM
Free Press Pop Music Writer



Ailing Aretha Franklin has asked her fans for prayers, and one Washington, D.C., group is ready to deliver in a prominent way.


Members of the Pray at the Pump Movement [[PAPM) will gather Thursday for a vigil outside the White House, aiming to bolster Franklin’s fight against what the Free Press and other media have reported is pancreatic cancer.



“Aretha has done a lot of concerts at the White House during her life, so we thought it was the right place to do something to promote hope,” said PAPM director Rocky Twyman, a well-known community service leader in the D.C. area. “We wanted to do something big, and the White House is visited by a lot of people around the world.”



The two-hour public vigil will start at 1 p.m. on the north side of the White House and will include performances by local musicians.



PAPM was founded in 2008 to combat high gas prices via prayer gatherings across the United States.



“We think it really worked,” Twyman said. “We really believe in the power of prayer."



Twyman said he wants Franklin to know that fans around the world are seeking divine help for her health concerns. Neither Franklin or her spokesperson has divulged the exact nature of her illness.



“Hopefully this will give her some strength to keep on fighting,” he said.


Read more: D.C. vigil for ailing Aretha Franklin to offer prayer, music | freep.com | Detroit Free Press http://www.freep.com/article/2010122...#ixzz19Y7ejE00

[Edited 12/29/10 16:16pm]

I was reading this at work today. Also, here is another article about her illness.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jay-weston/arethas-illness-leads-to-_b_799512.html