NEW YORK – Hundreds of messages offering prayers and honoring the legacy of David Wilkerson flooded Twitter and Facebook as Christians learned of the passing of a "true hero" who founded Times Square Church and World Challenge.

Wilkerson died in a fatal car crash in East Texas Wednesday afternoon. He was 79.

His wife, Gwendolyn Wilkerson, 70, was injured and airlifted to a local hospital. more >>

It has been less than 24 hours since the death of David Wilkerson, the beloved founding pastor of Times Square Church in Manhattan, N.Y., founder of Teen Challenge, and bestselling author of The Cross and the Switchblade. David was 79 years old when he died.

Don Wilkerson, 71, the youngest brother of David, spoke to The Christian Post Thursday morning about the backstory of his brother’s work with gang members and drug addicts in New York City, and the qualities that endeared him to the youths that roamed the dangerous streets of “the city that never sleeps.”

Besides being the brother of David Wilkerson, Don is the co-founder of Times Square Church and co-founder of Teen Challenge. He is currently the director of Teen Challenge Brooklyn – the first Teen Challenge center that opened 53 years ago. There are now 233 Teen Challenge centers in the United States and 1,181 centers in total worldwide. Teen Challenge is an evangelical Christian recovery and discipleship program that teaches biblical principles to help young adults struggling with addictions, including drug and alcohol problems. more >>

The Rev. David Wilkerson, the founding pastor of Times Square Church in Manhattan, N.Y., died in a severe car crash in East Texas Wednesday afternoon. His wife, Gwendolyn Wilkerson, was injured and airlifted to a local hospital.

Wilkerson, 79, crashed his car into an 18-wheeler tractor-trailer rig on US Highway 175, outside of Cuney, about 95 miles southwest of Dallas, according to East Texas’s KLTV 7. The Department of Public Safety said the accident happened around 1 p.m.

The driver, who was not wearing a seatbelt at the time, was declared dead at the scene. By late Wednesday night, hospital officials said 70-year-old Gwendolyn Wilkerson, who was wearing a seatbelt, was in fair condition with cuts and bruises. The driver of the 18-wheeler, Frederick Braggs, 38, suffered lacerations from his rig driving off the bridge and into a riverbed, according to KLTV 7. He was also taken to the hospital. more >>

Pro-God ads will hit some 1,000 subway cars throughout New York City beginning Friday, announced the New York church sponsoring the campaign.

Times Square Church, located in the heart of Times Square in New York City, will launch its ad campaign in hundreds of subway cars and on 50 platform posters in Manhattan stations at the end of this week.

Ads will boldly feature the words “God is” in the center,surrounded by words describing God’s qualities in colorful fonts. Among the “God is” attributes are: with you, willing to help, able to protect, a father, a husband to the widow, your friend, aware of your struggle, a good listener, the one who loves you, power to change, incredible, ready to forgive, there when no one else is, looking at you, Jesus. more >>