The sixth annual UFT faith-based breakfast brought together about 130 religious clergy from across the city on April 14 to discuss partnerships with the union to benefit schools and communities alike. 

“The UFT is not just about contracts and grievances; we’re a part of the community,” said Anthony Harmon, an assistant to the president and the UFT director for parent and community outreach.

Joseph Maldonado, the pastor of the Lower East Side Fellowship church in Manhattan, gave the keynote address, emphasizing the “spirit of unity” that can accomplish many things. 

“We come from different denominations and backgrounds, but we come together because you can’t do it by yourself,” he said. 

This year, they were joined by a surprise guest from outside New York City: Sybrina Fulton, the mother of Trayvon Martin. Martin, 17, was shot to death in 2012 in Sanford, Florida, by a former neighborhood watch captain. The acquittal of the shooter ignited protests across the country. 

“She turned her grief into advocacy,” Harmon said in his introduction. 

The audience gave Fulton a standing ovation as she took the stage at UFT headquarters. 

“We need to get back to the basics of respecting one another — regardless of race, income level, religion or sexual orientation,” said Fulton, who has established the Trayvon Martin Foundation devoted to ending gun violence and strengthening families. 

She praised Hillary Clinton for reaching out to her and other mothers who lost children in clashes with the police or in gun violence. “She reached out to us last year, listened and took notes herself,” Fulton said. “You can’t fake compassion. We knew she understood.” 

Dillon Burgin, the pastor of the Harmony Tabernacle Church in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, said it was his first time attending the breakfast. “The information about the homework hotline and the after-school programs stood out,” he said. “It’s something I will share with the members of my congregation, many of whom have children in the public schools.” 

Burgin said he also looks forward to discussing greater community outreach for the UFT’s Albert Shanker College Scholarships that many families may not know about.