Bishop Peggy A. Johnson receives the Philip Hasenstab Award of Excellence in Deaf Mission and Evangelism August 2, 2014, Chicago, Illinois During the historic meeting of the United Methodist Committee on Deaf and Hard of Hearing Ministries, officers of the United Methodist Congress of the Deaf, who met with the Evangelical Lutheran Deaf Association and Episcopal Deaf Church, the first award for excellence in United Methodist Deaf mission and evangelism was given to Bishop Peggy A. Johnson. Her work of 18 years ministry at Christ Church of the Deaf, UMC and present work as Bishop of the Eastern Pennsylvania-Delaware Conference demonstrated growth in both evangelism and mission. Her work in Kenya and Zimbabwe resulted in not only sending Deaf mission teams for the first time to those countries, but also identified and mentored a Deaf woman who later became the first ordained Deaf woman in the Methodist Church in Kenya. As Bishop she has advocated tirelessly for the Deaf, and has written a denomination-wide curriculum for the United Methodist Women, called "The Church and People with Disabilities." Her other published work is Deaf Ministry: Make a Joyful Silence. In appreciation of her work, the officers of the United Methodist Congress of the Deaf and the United Methodist Committee on Deaf and Hard of Hearing Ministries created the first ever award to recognize a person for excellence in Deaf mission and evangelism. The award is named in memory of Rev. Philip Hasenstab who led the Chicago Mission for the Deaf at Chicago (Methodist Episcopal) Temple, the largest Deaf church in the United States during the early 20th century.