Author Chris Edmonds Honored with a Christopher Award

Maryville, Tenn-based author Chris Edmonds received a Christopher Award for "No Surrender: A Father, a Son, and an Extraordinary Act of Heroism That Continues to Live on Today, (HarperOne/Harper Collins). Edmonds wrote the book with author, journalist, screenwriter Douglas Century from White Plains, N.Y. and Western Canada. It is one of 11 books for adults and young people by 16 authors and illustrators honored as the Awards mark their 71st year. They join the creators of nine winning TV/Cable and feature films also being honored.

The Christophers' motto, “It’s better to light one candle than to curse the darkness,” is particularly apt in 2020 said Tony Rossi, The Christophers’ Director of Communications. The celebrated authors, illustrators, writers, producers, and directors whose works exemplify this Chinese proverb also “affirm the highest values of the human spirit,” he said.

Edmonds is senior pastor of Piney Grove Baptist Church in Maryville and chief executive officer of Roddie’s Code, LLC, and The Roddie Edmonds Foundation. The organizations are committed to extending the legacy and leadership of Master Sergeant Edmonds to future generations. He also teaches Leadership Development to military leaders at the University of Alabama at Huntsville. He earned his bachelor's degree in business at the University of Tennessee and, later, a master's degree in religion at Liberty Theological Seminary.

Edmonds became a history detective decades after his father Roddie had died, determined to learn what his World War II POW experiences had been. He tracked down men who had served with the Master Sergeant, including Lester Tanner, a best friend who credited Roddie with saving his life. In addition to Tanner, who was Jewish, Frankie Cerenzia, a devout Catholic was another dear friend. Roddie Edmonds was a man of faith from the Methodist tradition.

Tony Rossi, The Christophers’ Director of Communications said "One of the biggest tests of Roddie Edmonds' moral courage occurred when he and 1,300 of his fellow soldiers were prisoners in a Nazi prison camp. An order came over the loudspeaker, saying, 'Tomorrow morning at roll call, all Jewish Americans must assemble…Only the Jews. No one else. All who disobey this order will be shot.

"Roddie turned to Lester, Frankie, and his other men and said, 'We’re not doing that. Tomorrow we all fall out just as we do every morning.' Then, Roddie sat by himself and prayed, knowing this approach could get him killed. He also knew that following the order meant certain death for the Jewish soldiers in his command. All night long, Roddie reflected on Proverbs 28:1, 'The wicked flee when no man pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion.'”

Century Coauthored Hunting El Chapo (Harper, 2018) as well as several New York Times bestsellers, including Under and Alone (Random House, 2005) and Takedown: The Fall of the Last Mafia Empire (G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 2002), a finalist for the 2003 Edgar Award in the category of Best Fact Crime Book. He also coauthored If Not Now, When? Duty and Sacrifice In America’s Time of Need (Berkely, 2008), which won the 2010 Colby Award.

The Christophers, a nonprofit founded in 1945 by Maryknoll Father James Keller, is rooted in the Judeo-Christian tradition of service to God and humanity. The ancient Chinese proverb—“It’s better to light one candle than to curse the darkness”— guides its publishing, radio, and awards programs. More information about The Christophers is available at www.christophers.org.