May 5 is the National Day of Prayer, and King’s Daughters Medical Center will host an observance starting at 7:15 a.m. in front of the radiology outpatient entrance.

“A tent will be set up with a few instructions and a prayer,” KDMC Senior Executive Assistant Sharon Hughes said. “Then the walk around the hospital will begin.”

The walk will make a complete circle around the hospital and end back at the tent. There will be 10 prayer stations, each representing a different department, person or thing to pray for.

Following the walk, a short devotion will be shared by Kenny Goza.

“Every day for me is a day of prayer,” Goza said. “That’s what founded our country, and I think we’ve gotten away from that. So it’s an important day for me.”

Goza said he’s still working on his devotion.

“I’m not going to be speaking a long time,” Goza said. “I’m going to be on point and brief.”

The National Day of Prayer has roots that go back beyond the founding of the United States, but its current incarnation was signed into law on April 17, 1952. Since 1988, its date has been set to the first Thursday of May. On that day, tradition dictates that the president of the United States issues a proclamation each year.

“For many of us, prayer is an important expression of faith — an essential act of worship and a daily discipline that allows reflection, provides guidance and offers solace,” President Barack Obama said in his 2015 proclamation. “Through prayer we find the strength to do God’s work: to feed the hungry, care for the poor, comfort the afflicted and make peace where there is strife. In times of uncertainty or tragedy, Americans offer humble supplications for comfort for those who mourn, for healing for those who are sick and for protection for those who are in harm’s way. When we pray, we are reminded that we are not alone — our hope is a common hope, our pain is shared, and we are all children of God.”

For the entire 24-hour period, KDMC will also have 10-minute slots to pray in the KDMC chapel. Interested parties should contact Hughes at 601-835-9488 or shughes@kdmc.org.