Memorial services for late former congressman Charles Rangel announced
Memorial services have been announced for late former congressman Charles Rangel, who died on May 26 at age 94.
Rangel will lie in repose at St. Aloysius Church on West 132nd Street in Harlem on June 9 and 10. Members of the public are invited to pay their respects between noon and 8 p.m. each day.
He will then lie in state at New York City Hall on June 11 and 12.
"We want to show just a high level of respect for a leader. Of my knowledge, there's only two congressmen I can recall from Harlem, and that was the great Congressman Adam Clayton Powell [Jr.] and the Congressman Charlie Rangel, and so we're looking forward to show him the respect that he's due," Mayor Eric Adams said.
A funeral service for Rangel will be held at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Midtown at 9:45 a.m. on June 13. The mass will be open to the public. Seating will be limited.
Charles Rangel dies at 94
Rangel was a Harlem native who served in the House of Representatives for 46 years. He was a Korean War veteran, the dean of the New York Congressional Delegation, a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus and the first Black chair of the House's Ways and Means Committee.
He was also one of the so-called "Gang of Four" coalition along with fellow Harlem natives Basil Paterson, Percy Sutton and former Mayor David Dinkins.
In 2008, Rangel faced a series of ethic violations alleging he failed to abide by tax laws, and in 2010, Congress voted to censure him after he was convicted of 11 counts of violating House rules. He went on to be reelected to two more terms.
State flags were flown at half-staff in his honor on Monday and Tuesday, and Gov. Kathy Hochul has ordered flags to be lowered on the day of his funeral service.
Rangel is survived by his son and daughter, as well as three grandsons.
