National prayer rally for Nolan Wells set Aug. 19, New Birth’s Jamal Bryant to deliver keynote address

BILOXI, MS– On the day Nolan Xavier Wells should have celebrated his 19th birthday, his family, faith leaders and supporters from across the country will gather in Biloxi for a National Prayer Rally honoring his life and calling for truth, transparency and accountability.

The rally will take place on Wednesday, Aug. 19, 7 p.m. , at Greater St. John AME Church, 551 Division St., Biloxi, Mississippi 39530. Jamal Bryant, nationally recognized faith leader and senior pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Stonecrest, GA, will deliver the keynote address.

The gathering will serve as both a solemn moment of prayer and a national call to action surrounding the death of the 18-year-old black college student and athlete. Wells disappeared on July 4 after traveling with friends to Horn Island, off the Mississippi Gulf Coast. His body was discovered along the island’s shoreline two days later. His cause and manner of death have not been publicly determined, and his family continues to seek a complete, independent and transparent investigation into what happened.

Aug. 19 should have been a day filled with birthday wishes, laughter and hope for Nolan’s future. Instead, it will become a day for people across the country to speak his name, stand with his family and demand the answers they deserve, organizers said.

“Nolan Wells should be turning 19 on the 19th, but tragically he’s not,” said Bryant. “Prayer has the power to unite us, strengthen our resolve and move us toward the justice and accountability this moment demands.”

Bryant will join the Wells family, clergy members, community leaders and concerned citizens in lifting a collective voice for justice. The rally will call upon federal authorities to conduct a thorough review of the circumstances surrounding Nolan’s disappearance and death, while urging anyone with credible information to come forward.

This national moment comes amid growing calls for federal involvement. Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, the Rev. Al Sharpton, U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath and other leaders have joined Nolan’s family in seeking greater transparency and accountability. The family has maintained that unanswered questions, inconsistent information and the absence of a publicly established cause of death demand a more comprehensive investigation.

Organizers said the rally is not only about how Wells died. It is also about how he lived and the future that was taken from him. Nolan was a beloved son, family member, friend, student and athlete whose life carried promise and purpose. His family is asking the nation to remember his humanity, honor his dreams and stand with them until every available fact is brought into the light.

Supporters who cannot attend in person are encouraged to observe Aug. 19 as a day of prayer for Nolan, share his story responsibly and join the call for a full and transparent investigation.