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Fosua Wins DeRose-Hinkhouse Award

NOTE: Photographs are available at http://photos.gbod.org

The Rev. Safiyah Fosua

The Africana Worship Book series

"It is both exciting and humbling to have Africana receive this recognition. This prestigious award from an interfaith group of religious communicators helps us to see Africana's usefulness in communities outside of Africana."

The award recognizes the achievements of RCC members who demonstrate excellence as religion communicators. Entries in various categories were judged by the communications faculty of Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois. The awards honor the late Victor DeRose and Paul M. Hinkhouse, who were leading lithographers in New York City.

"As an editor, I saw the writers grow exponentially from year to year into an amazing community of writers; it was so affirming to have the judges commend their worth as writers and communicators." Africana is the term used to describe those persons, regardless of where they live, who can trace their ancestry back to Africa .

Edited by Valerie Bridgeman Davis and Safiyah Fosua, Africana Year C contributors are: Maxine Allen, Eugene Blair, Gennifer Benjamin Brooks, Carolyn W. Dandridge, T. Anne Daniel, Joseph W. Daniels Jr., Junius Dotson, Bryan K. Fleet, Sharletta Green, Cynthia A. Bond Hopson, Sherrie Dobbs Johnson, Ray Jordan, Judah Prayze, Kwasi Kena, Darlene A. Moore, Toni Payne, Tony Peterson , Jeanette Pinkston , Ciona Rouse, Kelvin Sauls, Kevin Smalls, Lillian Smith, Marilyn Thornton, Cheryl Walker, Brian Courtney Wilson, and Stacey Cole Wilson.

Paul Black, coordinator of the DeRose-Hinkhouse awards, reported that the judges had to make some difficult choices due to the high quality of the submitted entries.

"The excellence in your members' work is very impressive. All the judges found such outstanding work, beautifully done and very effective," remarked Terry Lynn Johnson, ABC APR, associate professor in the journalism department at Eastern Illinois University.

The RCC is an interfaith association of religion communicators at work in print and electronic communication, marketing, and public relations. Established in 1929, it is the oldest association of religion communicators in America. There are twelve local chapters around the country as well as members-at-large in cities where a chapter does not exist. The chapters meet monthly, providing an outlet for education and networking for the members. The chapters also serve to promote excellence in the communication of religious faith and values as well as understanding among diverse faith groups.

Fosua, already thinking about her next project, says that a logical next step for worship in churches of African descent would be to take a deeper look at music issues. The 2008 General Conference of the UMC authorized a study "to determine the need for an official United Methodist hymnal for North American Christians of African descent in the Wesleyan heritage" (Petition 80217). She is a member of The Africana Hymnal Study Committee, which has been constituted and begins its work in a few weeks.

A complete list of the 2009 DeRose-Hinkhouse award winners can be found at www.religioncommunicators.org.

In 2010, RCC will be meeting with 89-plus organizations at the Religion Communicators' Congress in Chicago, Illinois, April 7-10, at the Downtown Marriott Hotel on The Magnificent Mile. Please see www.rccongress2010.org for more information.

The General Board of Discipleship's mission is to support annual conference and local church leaders for their task of equipping world-changing disciples. An agency of The United Methodist Church, GBOD (www.gbod.org) is located at 1908 Grand Ave. in Nashville, Tenn. For more information, call the Media Relations Office toll free at 877-899-2780, ext. 7017.