ABHMS publications, Rev. Dr. Anna Piela honored with 2026 DeRose-Hinkhouse Awards
VALLEY FORGE, PA (ABNS 06/19/2026)—American Baptist Home Mission Societies (ABHMS) and its publication, The Christian Citizen, received two DeRose-Hinkhouse Memorial Awards from the Religion Communicators Council (RCC). Rev. Dr. Anna Piela, editor of The Christian Citizen, received a third award. The 2026 honors, for works published in 2025, were awarded in April at a banquet during the council’s three-day annual convention in Cincinnati.
Named in memory of Victor DeRose and Paul M. Hinkhouse, former leading New York City printers with a shared commitment to excellence in communications and longtime friends of the council, the DeRose-Hinkhouse awards are presented annually to active RCC members who demonstrate excellence in religious communications and public relations.
ABHMS’ marketing and communications team earned a category-winning award in Annual Reports—Single Work for the organization’s 2024 annual report, “Equipping Disciples Across Generations,” chronicling the activities and initiatives of its ministries that year.
The Christian Citizen topped the Articles and Stories—Series category for its three-part “Ramadan Passover series,” which explored points of connection and contrast between the two sacred observances.
Editor Piela, who is also ABHMS’ senior writer, was honored in the Newspapers—Single Work category for her article “Is taking Ozempic during Ramadan cheating?” The piece, published by Religion News Service and featured in The Christian Citizen Weekly, examines how Muslims consider the use of weight-loss medications while observing the daytime fast during Ramadan.
“We are honored to receive this recognition from the Religion Communicators Council and from colleagues who understand both the craft and the calling of religious communications,” said Curtis Ramsey-Lucas, ABHMS director of Marketing and Communications. “At its best, our work helps people see more clearly how faith takes shape in the lives of individuals, congregations, and communities.”
During the convention, Ramsey-Lucas was elected to the council’s board of governors, which helps guide the RCC’s work supporting communications professionals across a wide range of faith traditions.
The 2026 awards continue a trend of national recognition for ABHMS and its publishing ministries. In 2025, ABHMS and The Christian Citizen received five DeRose-Hinkhouse Memorial Awards, including honors for The Christian Citizen Weekly, its new website, and ABHMS’ 2023 annual report.
Earlier this year, Piela, along with her husband, Rev. Dr. Michael Woolf, received the Jitsuo Morikawa Award for Relating Christian Faith to Contemporary Life from American Baptist Churches of Metro Chicago. Named for the late American Baptist pastor, scholar, and denominational leader whose ministry emphasized the connection between Christian faith and public life, the award highlights the work of Piela and Woolf in helping churches address Islamophobia and engage contemporary issues through a Christian lens, including immigration enforcement and Middle East conflicts.
Founded in 1929, the Religion Communicators Council is an association of communications professionals who serve a diverse range of faith-based organizations in communications, public relations, advertising, and development.
A complete list of 2026 DeRose-Hinkhouse Memorial Award recipients is available at Religion Communicators Council.
For more information about The Christian Citizen and to sign up for The Christian Citizen Weekly newsletter, visit christiancitizen.us.
To learn more about all of ABHMS’ publishing ministries, visit abhms.org.
American Baptist Home Mission Societies partners with American Baptists to promote Christian faith, cultivate Christ-centered leaders and disciples, and bring healing and transformation to communities across the United States and Puerto Rico.
American Baptist Churches USA is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with approximately 5,000 congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.