Terry Benedict, Bradley Trevor Greive, Jaroslaw Wajk, Allen and Andrea Steele are masters at building bridges. No, they don't construct the physical structures that connect landmasses but, rather, they assemble the tenuous, fragile bridges of human relati
Terry Benedict, Bradley Trevor Greive, Jaroslaw Wajk, Allen and Andrea Steele are masters at building bridges. No, they don’t construct the physical structures that connect landmasses but, rather, they assemble the tenuous, fragile bridges of human relationships. Through film, music, stories and public relations they touch lives, they inform, they share with the world what it means to live a life of hope. And on March 23, these five received the Bridge Award in recognition of their outstanding communication achievements in sharing the church’s message of hope.
The only recipient able to accept in person at the awards ceremony in Washington D.C. was filmmaker Terry Benedict. He was recognized for his documentary, “The Conscientious Objector,” which tells the story of the late Desmond T. Doss, Sr., a Seventh-day Adventist who was a non-combatant soldier in World War II, refusing to bear arms. Doss served his country as a medic and became a hero when he saved the lives of 75 of his fellow soldiers during a May 5, 1945 battle on the island of Okinawa in Japan.
The film was originally intended for the church’s Pathfinders, said Reger Smith Jr., an associate communication director who presented the award. Benedict went above and beyond the allotted budget for the documentary, however, and made the story worthy of a national audience.
The film has won awards at several film festivals, and Benedict is now part of a team that will turn Doss’ story into a major motion picture.
“[Terry] Benedict created a film that can be shown to the whole world. The story has gone beyond boundaries ... and has touched soldiers and pacifists alike. This is a story that truly builds bridges,” Smith said.
Accepting the award, Benedict said, “making this documentary was not just about reporting facts, it is about getting to the heart of matter, touching and influencing people with our message. Evangelism is not just about preaching from a podium in a sanctuary. It is about going out and reaching people, which this story gave me an opportunity to do. Most denominations for decades, hundreds of years even, have not embraced the arts as a tool of evangelism. And that is the way to reach the human condition on the inside [of the church] but on the outside as well. I thank God to be able to build bridges to the outside [of the church] using the arts.”
On the day that Benedict accepted the award, Doss died at the age of 87.
Australian author Bradley Trevor Greive, was recognized for his books. Greive, a New York Times best selling author, has written 16 books that have sold 12 million copies around the world. He is also an international wildlife conservationist.
Greive sent a recorded acceptance speech: “I thank my parents for sharing their Christian beliefs with me. I once wasn’t a devout churchgoer but when I joined the [Australian] army those Christian values proved vital especially in dark times. Those Christian values have led to so many opportunities for a Christian sense of brotherhood all over the world.”
For their years of work in public relations and at Adventist World Radio (AWR) in the United Kingdom, Allen and Andrea Steele received a Bridge Award. The Steeles moved from AWR to Avondale College in Australia in 2000 where Allen helped to develop the college’s communication program. He is currently assistant to the president for advancement. Andrea, who works as a receptionist at the school, is considered the “director of first impressions.”
The final Bridge Award recipient, Jaroslaw Wajk from Warsaw, Poland, has used his expertise in music to reach out to the hearing impaired. He started a music project with the hearing impaired from his church, called “Bogu” or as it is translated in English, “For God.” The group combines aural music with music through actions. Many of the group’s works have appeared in music festivals. With “Bogu” or with a smaller ensemble, Wajk is on the road 20 days a month, singing to audiences of thousands of people.
Wajk who was a prominent rock star in his country in the 1980s and 1990s, later met and married Lidia. He joined the Adventist Church and is now focused on reaching out to drunks, drug addicts, and the homeless. He invites them to church, gives them a hot meal and offers to help them clean up their lives.
“I sing in images,” he said in a written statement accepting the award. “These songs are like photographs from the mind. In my country people are not asking what day is holy but whether God exists, and what a prayer is.”
He said he hopes the church will reform the way it presents its message because “religious customs have driven people away. There are too many mediocre projects and plans that are realized just because there is a stamp of approval of ‘churchiness.’ It’s like a stamp of ‘happy Christians’ who do not have to go into the world, to meet people or speak their language.”
The Bridge Award was established by the Communication Department at the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s World Headquarters. It recognizes meritorious contribution to Seventh-day Adventist communication through avenues of public church awareness, visionary thinking, excellence in responsible journalism and professional mentoring, in addition to outstanding achievements in media, public relations and public affairs.
The award is offered in harmony with the vision statement of the Church’s communication strategy: “Seventh-day Adventists will communicate hope by focusing on the quality of life that is complete in Christ.” The first Bridge awards were presented on April 5, 2001 at the Seventh-day Adventist World Headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, United States.
Addressing the awards gathering was one of last year’s Bridge Award recipients, Dr. Bert B. Beach, a long-time church leader and also considered a consummate bridge builder addressed the importance of bridge building. Beach explained that being a communicator included finding ways to bridge the distance between the church and the community. “To do this you can’t be hidden in the inner sanctum of the church,” he said.