Christian Leadership Alliance

Vision, Strategy, and Goals

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Risky Business

Ted Engstrom placed a huge bet—and children were the winners.
Marty Lonsdale | Outcomes, Apr/May 2008

The idea was new, daring, and scary-big. In 1975, Russ Reid, a direct-marketing executive in Pasadena, sat down with his longtime friend and client, Ted Engstrom, then president and CEO of World Vision. In a few short years, the organization had, with help from the Russ Reid Agency, recruited thousands of regular monthly donors whose gifts ensured food and education for deserving children in Third-World countries. A good story to tell, unless you were one of the millions of other kids World Vision sought to serve.

Russ already had Ted's ear. Prior to 1971, World Vision teams had been bringing needs to light by caravanning 16-millimeter films to churches across the U.S. The picture suddenly changed when Russ dared to ask, "What if you brought the same stories of an unschooled Kenyan boy or a malnourished Haitian girl into the homes of millions of people with the immediacy and urgency of live television?" Ted leaned forward.

The idea was unheard of at the time. It would be a one-hour television special hosted by a trusted, well-known presenter such as Art Linkletter. Testimonial endorsements from Christian public figures—World Vision child sponsors themselves—would inspire and encourage viewers to pledge their support.

Being a hard-nosed businessman, Ted believed in doing his due diligence. He asked the good, necessary questions:

• What would it require? Expert on-camera talent, first-class filmmaking, a professional-looking studio set and the infrastructure to fulfill donor pledges.
• How long would it take to create a one-hour special? About six months.
• Where would the rollout take place? Perhaps Cleveland.

Over the coming days and weeks the two men talked strategy, logistics, and, of course, cost. Teams of people were brought in. Brainstorming, opinions, boxed lunches, and prayer were in no short supply.

One day, Ted asked, "What if the idea doesn't work?"

"Then," said Russ, "you'll have the most expensive church film in history."

Undaunted, Ted said, "Yes." The first broadcast, called "Children of Zero," revealed the conditions of needy youngsters living on an island near Hong Kong. A second TV special, "Search for Survival," introduced viewers to an impoverished farmer struggling to eke out an existence in Bangladesh.

People responded, and many young lives were changed. Yet, even after four years of successful one-hour TV specials, Russ envisioned something bigger.

One day in 1975, he presented the idea of a five-hour telethon, aired in strategic cities. This was a quantum leap of time, energy, and resources to film the stories and produce the broadcasts.