CityView Magazine

32 June 2021 A Judge … Judge Patricia Timmons-Goodson will tell you that Dr. Edwards played a significant role in her life, too, from the pulpit and beyond. "First and foremost, in my faith," says Timmons-Goodson, a member of First Baptist Church on Moore Street since 1981. "He helped me in thanking and praising the Lord in good times as well as bad times. I think of him to this day when things don't go my way." And it was aer law school at UNC-Chapel Hill, when Timmons-Goodson says she was working in the Cumberland County District Attorney's office, and when she first gave thought of serving on the District Court bench. Dr. Edwards, she says, championed her vision. He championed her way. "He was instrumental," says Timmons-Goodson, whose judicial career includes appointment in 1977 by Gov. Jim Hunt to the N.C. Court of Appeals and in 2006 by Gov. Mike Easley to the N.C. Supreme Court. "He was a huge leader in this community," Timmons-Goodson says. "He was my pastor; he was my mentor, and he was my friend." A Neighbor … "I and my family are fortunate to have known personally C.R. Edwards my entire life," Ricardo Morgan says. "Not only in the community and as our pastor at First Baptist Church on Moore Street, but as our neighbor and community leader. He exemplified concern for humanity, compassion, humility and God's love and amazing grace. His leadership by example for individuals, our congregation, our neighborhood and this city and state are the stories that legends are made of." Jew yl Edwards Dunn is pictured at First Baptist Church on Moore Street, where her father was pastor for 37 years. (Photo by Tony Wooten) And Grandchildren, Too e Rev. C.R. Edwards also touched the life of a Westarea Elementary School teacher. "When I would sit and listen to him or watch him from a distance or speak to someone about him, I would always say, 'at's my granddaddy,' " says Jeweyln Dunn, a music teacher. "I am still learning of all of his accomplishments. He did things because he believed they were supposed to be done and because he had a heart for the people." He touched the life of a grandson. "He cared genuinely about the well-being of his community," Ohmar Dunn says. "He touched those in ways that it mattered and that would be lasting. He was always teaching through his life so that others could be better." The Rev. C.R. Edwards was a presence, and his footprints are deep in this community still. Remembering A Father For Jewyl Dunn, the Rev. C.R. Edwards was all the more in her life. "is 'Giant of a Man' was always my father," she says. "He was tall in stature, but he was also tall in grace. Humanity and doing for others was important to him and he worked hard to preserve it. We moved to Fayetteville from Washington, North Carolina when I was 2-years-old because of the call from First Baptist to be their pastor. at was, for him, the ultimate assignment. He loved First Baptist Church. First Baptist was always a consideration before he did anything." e Rev. C.R. Edwards was a disciple of his Lord and savior first, a man of fair play, equality and justice for all, too. "e Civil Rights Era was obviously a crucial time," Jewyl Dunn says. "First Baptist was a beacon of light for the movement. We protected and fed the marchers and those involved. I was under the age of 16 at its height and was not allowed to march and protest, but I remember the threats to our family, the name calling, the cross burning in front of our house, and the specific instructions for going downtown to the movies and shopping. I knew what to do 'in case.' He and my mother prepared me well."

• Cover