It was the encouragement
in the ministry of Jack Blanco
00:00:01.06\00:00:04.35
that kept my
eyes fixed on Christ.
00:00:04.38\00:00:06.89
Jack's allegiance
is absolutely to God
00:00:06.92\00:00:10.47
as his King and
Savior and to the Scripture
00:00:10.50\00:00:13.75
that reveals God to him.
00:00:13.78\00:00:15.67
He really was a living example
00:00:15.70\00:00:17.74
of what it meant to be a
devoted follower of Jesus.
00:00:17.77\00:00:21.60
The story that they
want to tell others,
00:00:21.63\00:00:27.54
not of themselves, but of God.
00:00:27.57\00:00:33.52
I think that's what's one of
the geniuses of his ministry,
00:00:33.55\00:00:37.06
were he was truly
interested in other people.
00:00:37.09\00:00:41.33
In my life, here
I saw God's teacher.
00:00:41.36\00:00:46.93
He seems to be uncomfortable
00:00:46.96\00:00:48.65
when people praised the
"Clear Word" and he said,
00:00:48.68\00:00:51.77
"You know, it's
God, it's not me."
00:00:51.80\00:00:54.85
Jack Blanco story is filled
with extraordinary experiences.
00:01:03.88\00:01:07.94
He seized the hope that
God brought into his life.
00:01:07.97\00:01:11.14
You and I can also have a story
00:01:11.17\00:01:13.06
of extraordinary experiences
00:01:13.09\00:01:14.90
if we accept the hope
that God has for our lives.
00:01:14.93\00:01:19.02
That's what makes this
story important to tell,
00:01:19.05\00:01:21.75
embrace hope in
your life as you watch
00:01:21.78\00:01:24.50
the Jack Blanco
story and be blessed.
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A person's life
story never stands alone,
00:02:53.91\00:02:57.14
just as creeks and tributaries
00:02:57.17\00:02:58.98
from across the
continent flow into rivers
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and eventually
merge into the ocean.
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There are always
others who influence
00:03:04.22\00:03:06.42
and impact an individual in
ways that make a difference.
00:03:06.45\00:03:10.77
The life of Marion
Blasius was a river
00:03:10.80\00:03:13.57
that flowed into
Jack Blanco's life
00:03:13.60\00:03:16.31
and together through the years,
00:03:16.34\00:03:18.37
they emptied themselves
into a ministry for God
00:03:18.40\00:03:21.12
that spanned the globe.
00:03:21.15\00:03:23.39
Having a godly
mother and grandmothers
00:03:23.42\00:03:25.35
influenced Marion
and help prepare her
00:03:25.38\00:03:27.79
for a life of
service as a Bible worker,
00:03:27.82\00:03:31.07
teacher, missionary, mother,
00:03:31.10\00:03:34.41
and wife of a pastor.
00:03:34.44\00:03:36.40
Growing up in
Chicago during the 1920s
00:03:36.43\00:03:39.00
was a dangerous affair.
00:03:39.03\00:03:40.69
Corruption, crime
and violence seem to ooze
00:03:40.72\00:03:43.57
from crevice in the city.
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In the midst of this chaos,
00:03:45.69\00:03:47.64
Mother Lilly taught
young Marion to place her trust
00:03:47.67\00:03:50.91
in a God loyal to His promises.
00:03:50.94\00:03:54.06
The faithful love
of the Lord never ends!
00:03:54.09\00:03:56.88
His mercies never cease.
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Great is His faithfulness.
00:03:59.27\00:04:01.29
His mercies begin
afresh each morning.
00:04:01.32\00:04:03.74
Marion recalls her
grandmother fondly.
00:04:03.77\00:04:06.33
I remember one day I said,
00:04:06.36\00:04:08.57
"Grandma, it's
starting to rain."
00:04:08.60\00:04:10.76
She said, "Don't worry,
we're not made of sugar.
00:04:10.79\00:04:14.19
We won't melt."
00:04:14.22\00:04:15.56
We would go down to
catch the streetcar,
00:04:15.59\00:04:19.54
and then ride the streetcar
to the end of the line,
00:04:19.57\00:04:23.23
then get on the
Chicago-Milwaukee Railroad
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and ride that 'til
the tracks went up,
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then we'd get off
and walk down the stairs
00:04:30.24\00:04:34.49
to the North Shore Church.
00:04:34.52\00:04:36.17
Mother Lilly always
had Bible study interest.
00:04:36.20\00:04:39.06
During her
childhood and teenage years,
00:04:39.09\00:04:41.02
Marion trained for ministry,
leading others to Jesus
00:04:41.05\00:04:44.35
as she watched her
mother and grandmother
00:04:44.38\00:04:46.44
reach out to people.
00:04:46.47\00:04:47.90
When I was in high school,
00:04:47.93\00:04:50.25
our church had
evangelistic meetings.
00:04:50.28\00:04:53.37
We invited the church members
00:04:53.40\00:04:56.39
that were baptized to
come to our house to worship.
00:04:56.42\00:05:00.91
I made a little goal device.
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When we made our
goal for Sabbath School,
00:05:03.86\00:05:06.60
I'd turn on the light.
00:05:06.63\00:05:08.11
Although Marion and her mother
were faithful to their beliefs
00:05:08.14\00:05:11.28
and told others about Jesus,
00:05:11.31\00:05:13.30
there was a shadow
in their family life.
00:05:13.33\00:05:15.99
Marion's parents were separated.
00:05:16.02\00:05:18.20
Daily, Marion
prayed that her father
00:05:18.23\00:05:20.09
would make a
decision to follow Jesus.
00:05:20.12\00:05:22.61
It wasn't easy to
wait for an answer.
00:05:22.64\00:05:24.97
As a youth, Marion discovered
00:05:25.00\00:05:27.02
God doesn't
always answer a prayer
00:05:27.05\00:05:29.08
according to human time.
00:05:29.11\00:05:31.03
She developed a
willingness to wait on God
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which built a foundation for her
00:05:33.51\00:05:35.37
to lead others to Jesus.
00:05:35.40\00:05:38.38
In North
Chicago, Katie Keissling,
00:05:38.41\00:05:41.31
a teenage German
immigrant struggled to survive.
00:05:41.34\00:05:44.67
My mom came over from
Germany when she was 17,
00:05:44.70\00:05:48.20
so she came about 1922.
00:05:48.23\00:05:52.51
She was working in
a bakery in Chicago,
00:05:52.54\00:05:55.27
working 10 hours a day
00:05:55.30\00:05:56.98
and like many, many immigrants
had to work like that.
00:05:57.01\00:06:01.65
Katie arrived in her new
country with little money
00:06:01.68\00:06:04.34
and was often
bewildered by the big city.
00:06:04.37\00:06:06.66
It was nothing like
the quiet Bavarian hills
00:06:06.69\00:06:09.20
she had left behind.
00:06:09.23\00:06:10.70
Shortly after she
arrived in Chicago,
00:06:10.73\00:06:13.26
Katie med Fredric Ross,
00:06:13.29\00:06:14.85
an immigrant
from Vienna, Austria,
00:06:14.88\00:06:16.96
who had been in
the United States
00:06:16.99\00:06:18.17
for several years.
00:06:18.20\00:06:19.59
Katie was impressed
with Frederick's knowledge
00:06:19.62\00:06:21.58
of American
customs and language.
00:06:21.61\00:06:23.69
He advised Katie on
where to apply for work
00:06:23.72\00:06:25.97
and helped her find lodging.
00:06:26.00\00:06:27.79
Together, Katie and Frederick
00:06:27.82\00:06:29.09
talked about
their hopes and dreams.
00:06:29.12\00:06:31.36
They enjoyed warm spring
nights and crisp autumn days.
00:06:31.39\00:06:34.79
Although Katie spend
long hours at the bakery,
00:06:34.82\00:06:37.46
she looked forward to
her time with Frederick.
00:06:37.49\00:06:39.95
Little by little
love began to grow.
00:06:39.98\00:06:43.72
Sadly Frederick took
advantage of Katie's love.
00:06:43.75\00:06:46.79
One day Katie
could no longer ignore
00:06:46.82\00:06:48.92
what she didn't want
to admit, even to herself.
00:06:48.95\00:06:52.58
She knew she was pregnant
00:06:52.61\00:06:53.90
and would have
to tell Frederick.
00:06:53.93\00:06:56.01
How would he receive the news?
00:06:56.04\00:06:57.97
Did she have the
courage to form the words
00:06:58.00\00:07:00.20
and say them out loud to
someone else, even Frederick?
00:07:00.23\00:07:03.96
One evening, Frederick suggested
00:07:03.99\00:07:05.66
they take a walk
in the nearby park.
00:07:05.69\00:07:07.77
Katie knew the time had come.
00:07:07.80\00:07:09.90
They had spent many
special moments together there.
00:07:09.93\00:07:12.99
Once the words were spoken,
00:07:13.02\00:07:14.65
Katie felt as though
her secret was lighter.
00:07:14.68\00:07:17.00
Frederick seemed pleased
00:07:17.03\00:07:18.43
and they discussed
what would happen next.
00:07:18.46\00:07:20.60
Katie even allowed herself
the luxury of daydreaming about
00:07:20.63\00:07:23.84
the new little family
unit they would become.
00:07:23.87\00:07:26.63
Her fantasies would soon
be replaced with bitter tears.
00:07:26.66\00:07:30.76
One evening she
called his apartment
00:07:30.79\00:07:34.70
and there was no answer.
00:07:34.73\00:07:37.13
That was little strange.
00:07:37.16\00:07:39.66
And you know, in those days
00:07:39.69\00:07:43.59
you go back through the 1920s,
00:07:43.62\00:07:46.93
you know, everybody
didn't just own a car
00:07:46.96\00:07:49.48
and whizzing wherever,
00:07:49.51\00:07:51.92
you know, where
they wanted to go.
00:07:51.95\00:07:54.28
So you had to
get on the streetcar
00:07:54.31\00:07:56.04
and do this and that.
00:07:56.07\00:07:58.51
So you know,
she called, next day
00:07:58.54\00:08:01.63
she called again and no answer.
00:08:01.66\00:08:04.72
Fear began to overwhelm Katie.
00:08:04.75\00:08:06.91
Could something have
happened to Frederick?
00:08:06.94\00:08:08.84
Was he ill or worse?
00:08:08.87\00:08:11.30
She waited another
day and said, well,
00:08:11.33\00:08:12.76
I think I need to go
over there to find out.
00:08:12.79\00:08:16.17
Talked to
landlady, what's happened,
00:08:16.20\00:08:17.88
so she went over
there and landlady said, no,
00:08:17.91\00:08:22.90
he left a couple of days ago.
00:08:22.93\00:08:25.15
You mean he's not here. No.
00:08:25.18\00:08:26.73
Where did he go? I don't know.
00:08:26.76\00:08:29.11
What about all his things?
00:08:29.14\00:08:31.10
No, he took them with
them or sold them, whatever.
00:08:31.13\00:08:34.84
So she took my mother
upstairs in his apartment
00:08:34.87\00:08:38.97
and the apartment
was empty, nobody there,
00:08:39.00\00:08:41.35
no forwarding
message, nothing, gone.
00:08:41.38\00:08:44.64
So here you have a single mother
00:08:44.67\00:08:46.68
and of course pregnant.
00:08:46.71\00:08:48.53
As Katie stumbled
out of the apartment,
00:08:48.56\00:08:50.58
her soul felt as
cold as the Chicago wind
00:08:50.61\00:08:53.10
that whipped her small
frame. Frederick was gone.
00:08:53.13\00:08:56.65
Alone, Katie
would face the stigma
00:08:56.68\00:08:59.06
of being an unwed mother.
00:08:59.09\00:09:00.80
In spite of the
heartache and hurt,
00:09:00.83\00:09:03.14
the tiny baby made
its way into the world
00:09:03.17\00:09:05.18
on a hot June day in 1929,
00:09:05.21\00:09:07.79
rejected by his earthly
father even before birth,
00:09:07.82\00:09:11.27
little Johann Jacob Kiessling
was loved dearly by his mother.
00:09:11.30\00:09:15.30
I was born premature,
00:09:15.33\00:09:17.58
born weighing
only about 4 pounds.
00:09:17.61\00:09:21.49
And, but I'm still here.
00:09:21.52\00:09:25.39
Obviously, I survived.
00:09:25.42\00:09:27.25
What do you know
about your father?
00:09:27.28\00:09:28.95
I know nothing about my father.
00:09:28.98\00:09:31.65
My mother was so hurt over
00:09:31.68\00:09:34.12
what she called the betrayal,
00:09:34.15\00:09:36.24
she didn't wanted
to talk about it, ever.
00:09:36.27\00:09:40.02
She finally told me his name.
00:09:40.05\00:09:41.97
His name was Frederick Ross,
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but he was from Vienna, Austria.
00:09:45.69\00:09:48.17
And of course, my mother
was originally from Bavaria,
00:09:48.20\00:09:52.42
southern part of Germany,
00:09:52.45\00:09:54.35
but it was here in
this country that they met.
00:09:54.38\00:09:56.16
Katie Keissling
loved her little son
00:09:56.19\00:09:58.29
and didn't want to
be separated from him.
00:09:58.32\00:10:00.54
Without money,
Katie and baby Jacob
00:10:00.57\00:10:02.66
would nowhere to live.
00:10:02.69\00:10:04.17
Mom having to work 10
hours a day in a bakery,
00:10:04.20\00:10:07.66
she had to find
babysitters to care of me
00:10:07.69\00:10:10.55
while she was working,
00:10:10.58\00:10:11.86
then she'd pick
me up in the evening.
00:10:11.89\00:10:13.48
But one time she
came home early from work
00:10:13.51\00:10:17.68
and as she approached the door,
00:10:17.71\00:10:20.62
she could hear me crying inside,
00:10:20.65\00:10:23.35
and so she knocked on the door
00:10:23.38\00:10:25.19
and the people opened the door
00:10:25.22\00:10:27.09
and they were sitting
around the table eating supper.
00:10:27.12\00:10:30.66
And my mother
could tell I was crying
00:10:30.69\00:10:33.74
because I was hungry.
00:10:33.77\00:10:35.75
I mean, there is a certain cry
00:10:35.78\00:10:36.86
when the baby is
hungry and she says,
00:10:36.89\00:10:39.43
"Oh, haven't you given
him anything to eat yet?"
00:10:39.46\00:10:41.98
They said, "No, we told
him if he stopped crying,
00:10:42.01\00:10:44.52
then we will
give him food to eat,
00:10:44.55\00:10:47.04
but if he keeps crying
00:10:47.07\00:10:48.10
we're not going to
give him anything."
00:10:48.13\00:10:50.06
So this is the
kind of treatment,
00:10:50.09\00:10:52.37
you know, that I had
from some of the babysitters.
00:10:52.40\00:10:54.96
Katie was appalled
that her precious son
00:10:54.99\00:10:57.22
was being treated so callously.
00:10:57.25\00:10:59.17
It wasn't long before
her boy had a new caretaker.
00:10:59.20\00:11:02.50
And then she found
some other babysitters
00:11:02.53\00:11:04.79
and this was in the
apartment about three stories up
00:11:04.82\00:11:10.36
and as she came home early
00:11:10.39\00:11:11.91
and I like to
play out on the porch.
00:11:11.94\00:11:15.69
The slats covering the porch
00:11:15.72\00:11:19.45
must have been farther apart
00:11:19.48\00:11:21.99
and I was out there playing
00:11:22.02\00:11:23.81
and there was a broom out there
00:11:23.84\00:11:25.80
and I was trying to
get that broom loose
00:11:25.83\00:11:28.44
which was stuck under a chair
00:11:28.47\00:11:30.62
and pulled real
hard and the broom,
00:11:30.65\00:11:34.39
you know, gave way
and I just felt backwards
00:11:34.42\00:11:40.19
and fell through the slat.
00:11:40.22\00:11:42.15
As Jacob tumbled off the porch
falling three stories down,
00:11:42.18\00:11:45.87
his mother was returning from
her work day to take him home.
00:11:45.90\00:11:48.95
Just about that time, my
mother was coming the stairs,
00:11:48.98\00:11:53.20
and she sees this bundle,
00:11:53.23\00:11:55.88
okay, flying through
the air hitting the ground,
00:11:55.91\00:12:00.85
bouncing off the ground and oh,
00:12:00.88\00:12:04.82
she looks and it's,
you know, it's her baby.
00:12:04.85\00:12:08.51
And so she turns
around and runs down
00:12:08.54\00:12:11.20
almost tripped on the way down,
00:12:11.23\00:12:13.61
almost fell, and there I was,
00:12:13.64\00:12:17.31
you know,
unconscious and I don't remember
00:12:17.34\00:12:23.36
any other thing
that she told me.
00:12:23.39\00:12:26.22
All I remember she
said, you were unconscious,
00:12:26.25\00:12:28.35
we rushed you to the hospital.
00:12:28.38\00:12:30.37
How long I was in
the coma, I have no idea.
00:12:30.40\00:12:33.14
Katie had an Aunt
Katie and Uncle Jack
00:12:33.17\00:12:35.81
who also lived in Chicago.
00:12:35.84\00:12:37.78
Baby Johann Jacob was nicknamed
00:12:37.81\00:12:39.97
Jacky after his uncle.
00:12:40.00\00:12:42.10
The couple saw
the stress and strain
00:12:42.13\00:12:44.05
the young mother was under
00:12:44.08\00:12:45.18
as she tried to
raise little Jacob,
00:12:45.21\00:12:47.08
now Jacky, on her own.
00:12:47.11\00:12:49.32
My mother's aunt
felt sorry for her,
00:12:49.35\00:12:53.84
and said, "Why don't
you come and live with us.''
00:12:53.87\00:12:56.19
My great aunt and great uncle,
00:12:56.22\00:12:57.53
they love me, I love them,
00:12:57.56\00:12:59.58
and their kids love me and yeah,
00:12:59.61\00:13:01.74
it was a sort of a
happy family situation.
00:13:01.77\00:13:04.51
During those years of struggle,
00:13:04.54\00:13:06.05
Katie clung to her faith in God.
00:13:06.08\00:13:08.07
It gave her hope and peace.
00:13:08.10\00:13:09.72
She wanted her son to
come to love God as she did.
00:13:09.75\00:13:12.90
The whole family was Catholic.
My mother was Catholic.
00:13:12.93\00:13:15.16
I went to the Catholic Church,
00:13:15.19\00:13:17.13
and so I went to
Catholic parochial school.
00:13:17.16\00:13:19.69
What I remember about school
is the kindness of the nuns.
00:13:19.72\00:13:23.44
Every morning they
would come and ask us,
00:13:23.47\00:13:28.11
first, second graders, whatever
and even older ones, you know,
00:13:28.14\00:13:31.70
how many of you did not
have breakfast this morning?
00:13:31.73\00:13:36.25
Now it's not that I
didn't have breakfast
00:13:36.28\00:13:38.02
but sometimes I purposely
ate very little breakfast
00:13:38.05\00:13:42.20
so I was still hungry
00:13:42.23\00:13:45.06
because I loved the
attention of the nuns.
00:13:45.09\00:13:48.05
And they were so
kind and so gentle,
00:13:48.08\00:13:50.91
I will never forget them.
00:13:50.94\00:13:53.08
I can't.
00:13:53.11\00:13:54.44
No, there are some
very good people there
00:13:54.47\00:13:56.06
in the Catholic
Church, absolutely.
00:13:56.09\00:13:58.84
As Jacky grew
up, his mother Katie
00:13:58.87\00:14:01.16
longed to return to
Germany to visit her relatives,
00:14:01.19\00:14:04.01
she wanted him to
know his extended family.
00:14:04.04\00:14:06.81
Katie saved every extra dollar
00:14:06.84\00:14:08.70
she could afford until
she had the exact amount
00:14:08.73\00:14:11.05
needed to purchase two tickets.
00:14:11.08\00:14:13.35
At first Jacky wasn't
sure about leaving home
00:14:13.38\00:14:15.83
and going to a far country,
00:14:15.86\00:14:17.26
but his excitement began to grow
00:14:17.29\00:14:18.96
as he thought about
visiting his grandparent's farm.
00:14:18.99\00:14:21.78
In 1938, Jacky and his
mother said goodbye to Chicago
00:14:21.81\00:14:25.82
and left for Katie's homeland.
00:14:25.85\00:14:27.52
He was enthralled
with the adventure
00:14:27.55\00:14:29.12
of traveling by boat and train.
00:14:29.15\00:14:32.21
When we arrived in Germany,
00:14:32.24\00:14:34.80
the train of course
pulled into the station.
00:14:34.83\00:14:37.67
As soon as the train stopped,
00:14:37.70\00:14:39.83
my grandparents got on the train
00:14:39.86\00:14:42.35
and my grandmother went
ahead first, when she saw me,
00:14:42.38\00:14:46.68
you know, when she saw us,
00:14:46.71\00:14:48.68
she gave my mother a big hug
00:14:48.71\00:14:49.97
and then she reached down
and gave me a big hug and,
00:14:50.00\00:14:52.96
you know, and she
seemed to be so proud
00:14:52.99\00:14:55.45
of seeing a new
grandson and then of course
00:14:55.48\00:14:58.61
with the name
Keissling, member of the family.
00:14:58.64\00:15:02.80
Jacky loved being with
his uncles Fritz and Joseph
00:15:02.83\00:15:05.65
and his Aunt Connie at their
home in Hohenberg, Germany.
00:15:05.68\00:15:08.49
Well, when I stayed
here at the farmhouse,
00:15:08.52\00:15:10.40
I stay on the second floor.
00:15:10.43\00:15:12.75
The farm was in
the back of the house,
00:15:12.78\00:15:14.90
you know,
that's where it started
00:15:14.93\00:15:16.96
and went clear up to
the woods way back there.
00:15:16.99\00:15:19.24
In the winter it got very cold,
00:15:19.27\00:15:21.82
and there was no
heat on the second floor.
00:15:21.85\00:15:23.91
There was actually ice
on the inside of the window,
00:15:23.94\00:15:27.31
not only thin ice
but I mean thick ice.
00:15:27.34\00:15:31.19
Living on the farm
00:15:31.22\00:15:32.36
was a new
experience for little Jacky.
00:15:32.39\00:15:34.48
There was much to
explore when he first arrived.
00:15:34.51\00:15:37.23
Being in this barn
after all these years
00:15:37.26\00:15:40.18
brings back a lot of memories.
00:15:40.21\00:15:41.81
Farm work filled Jacky's days.
00:15:41.84\00:15:44.04
Wheat and hay were
two of the main crops
00:15:44.07\00:15:45.97
his grandfather raised.
00:15:46.00\00:15:47.64
Even though it has
been more than 75 years
00:15:47.67\00:15:49.87
since Jack worked on the farm,
00:15:49.90\00:15:51.95
he hasn't forgotten the
skills he learned as a boy.
00:15:51.98\00:15:55.21
Jacky learned many
new things on the farm.
00:16:04.18\00:16:06.67
When his uncles were
called into the army,
00:16:06.70\00:16:08.51
his responsibilities grew.
00:16:08.54\00:16:10.50
And so to run the
farm, it was just grandfather
00:16:10.53\00:16:13.94
and myself and my
mother's younger sister
00:16:13.97\00:16:17.34
and she was only about
4 years older than I was.
00:16:17.37\00:16:20.10
So there's a lot of work to do,
00:16:20.13\00:16:21.26
so it wasn't long before
my grandfather taught me,
00:16:21.29\00:16:23.89
you know, how to plow,
00:16:23.92\00:16:24.96
how to use the oxen in
the field and all that.
00:16:24.99\00:16:27.81
Anyway, it was feeding
time, they were hooked together,
00:16:27.84\00:16:31.65
okay, so there
was a little wagon
00:16:31.68\00:16:33.30
and they took off running.
00:16:33.33\00:16:35.30
Time to go to the barn.
00:16:35.33\00:16:36.57
And time to come home to eat,
and there was a little fence
00:16:36.60\00:16:40.14
just on the other
side of the barnyard.
00:16:40.17\00:16:43.15
And I knew at the
speed they were going,
00:16:43.18\00:16:46.81
they wouldn't be able to stop,
00:16:46.84\00:16:48.84
they'd plow right into the fence
00:16:48.87\00:16:50.58
and what do you do,
00:16:50.61\00:16:52.47
you know, with
subsistence farming
00:16:52.50\00:16:54.54
when two oxen are hurt
and those are the only ones
00:16:54.57\00:16:57.68
that we could
use for the plowing.
00:16:57.71\00:17:00.45
And so I ran as fast as I could
to try to keep up with them
00:17:00.48\00:17:04.35
and I caught up with them just
before they got to the fence
00:17:04.38\00:17:08.03
and I was able to stop them.
00:17:08.06\00:17:09.45
When the time came to
return home to America,
00:17:09.48\00:17:12.45
grandfather persuaded
Katie to let the boy remain
00:17:12.48\00:17:15.11
for a year on the farm.
00:17:15.14\00:17:16.76
You know, she
kissed me and huged me
00:17:16.79\00:17:19.26
and then said goodbye
00:17:19.29\00:17:20.82
and stands on the
back platform of the train
00:17:20.85\00:17:25.05
and the train pulls away
and she is going like this,
00:17:25.08\00:17:28.50
I said, oh my man, I
broke down and cried.
00:17:28.53\00:17:31.24
I cried for
three days, literally.
00:17:31.27\00:17:34.26
The values of self respect
00:17:34.29\00:17:35.88
that Jacky's
mother and grandparents
00:17:35.91\00:17:37.70
instilled in him served
him throughout his life.
00:17:37.73\00:17:40.57
They taught him to live
00:17:40.60\00:17:42.04
in a way that
honored the family name.
00:17:42.07\00:17:44.75
One thing about my grandfather,
00:17:44.78\00:17:46.91
he was a man of faith.
00:17:46.94\00:17:49.48
And if there's one thing
00:17:49.51\00:17:50.67
that he taught
me is honesty, okay.
00:17:50.70\00:17:53.43
No prevarications,
no lying or whatever.
00:17:53.46\00:17:57.20
Even my mother was the same way.
00:17:57.23\00:17:58.84
Taught me what was right,
00:17:58.87\00:18:00.04
to be honest, not lying,
not stealing or whatever.
00:18:00.07\00:18:03.49
And my
grandfather reinforced that,
00:18:03.52\00:18:06.16
and I think that's a
very important lesson
00:18:06.19\00:18:07.82
for people to
learn, young and old.
00:18:07.85\00:18:09.96
While world
politics grew tumultuous,
00:18:09.99\00:18:12.52
life on the farm continued.
00:18:12.55\00:18:14.47
Jack attended
the village school.
00:18:14.50\00:18:16.69
It's amazing to come here
00:18:16.72\00:18:18.72
and see the
school still standing,
00:18:18.75\00:18:21.35
you know, the
school 75 years ago.
00:18:21.38\00:18:24.17
Like many boys, Jack had
a bit of mischief in him.
00:18:24.20\00:18:27.84
The teacher did not like mice.
00:18:27.87\00:18:31.56
Somehow she was just...
00:18:31.59\00:18:33.82
and so we brought a dead mouse
00:18:33.85\00:18:36.83
to school one day, okay,
00:18:36.86\00:18:38.80
and word got back
to my grandfather,
00:18:38.83\00:18:41.03
and I tell you he really
gave me a good talking to,
00:18:41.06\00:18:43.62
he knew how to
talk where it sank in,
00:18:43.65\00:18:46.15
and so he would say, you
know, what have you done,
00:18:46.18\00:18:48.81
first of all to do
to this good teacher.
00:18:48.84\00:18:51.47
And second of all,
00:18:51.50\00:18:52.63
what have you
done to our good name.
00:18:52.66\00:18:54.39
So I learned my lesson
of family responsibility.
00:18:54.42\00:18:58.06
Faith was an important part
of the family's way of life.
00:18:58.09\00:19:01.23
Jack attended worship services
with his relatives each week.
00:19:01.26\00:19:04.61
It was an honor to be
asked to be an altar boy.
00:19:04.64\00:19:08.32
As an altar boy, of
course you serve the priest.
00:19:08.35\00:19:10.29
When I come into this church,
00:19:10.32\00:19:11.48
I have a sense
of, sense of respect,
00:19:11.51\00:19:14.60
the sense of honor,
dignity, sense of holiness.
00:19:14.63\00:19:19.06
On September 1, 1939,
00:19:19.09\00:19:21.70
Adolf Hitler invaded
Poland and World War II began.
00:19:21.73\00:19:25.47
For 12 years the events
00:19:25.50\00:19:27.06
of the Holocaust
terrorized Europe.
00:19:27.09\00:19:29.75
Hitler wanted to
create the superior Aryan race
00:19:29.78\00:19:32.71
by eliminating those
whom he felt were inferior,
00:19:32.74\00:19:35.79
11 million people
including 6 million Jews
00:19:35.82\00:19:39.09
and 1.1 million
children would eventually die
00:19:39.12\00:19:42.50
because they were
targeted by the Nazi regime.
00:19:42.53\00:19:45.24
As war began to
impact the family,
00:19:45.27\00:19:47.23
life in the village
became more difficult,
00:19:47.26\00:19:49.23
church bells were being claimed
by the Nazis for ammunition.
00:19:49.26\00:19:52.90
I was working in the
field with my grandfather,
00:19:52.93\00:19:55.96
and all of sudden
we heard the bells ring
00:19:55.99\00:19:58.87
and my
grandfather stopped working
00:19:58.90\00:20:01.13
and took off his cap
00:20:01.16\00:20:02.45
and we heard a couple
more rings of the bell
00:20:02.48\00:20:05.09
and then all the sudden, crack.
00:20:05.12\00:20:06.82
And now we know
that the German Wehrmacht
00:20:06.85\00:20:10.09
came here to smash the
bells and take them away,
00:20:10.12\00:20:12.71
and that really
hurt my grandfather.
00:20:12.74\00:20:15.04
I'll never forget
how he took off his cap
00:20:15.07\00:20:17.79
and bowed his head and prayed.
00:20:17.82\00:20:19.66
With the attack on Pearl Harbor,
00:20:19.69\00:20:21.35
the United
States entered the war.
00:20:21.38\00:20:23.71
Little Jack was now considered
an enemy of Nazi, Germany,
00:20:23.74\00:20:27.11
and things would rapidly
become too dangerous for him
00:20:27.14\00:20:29.97
to cross the border
and return to America.
00:20:30.00\00:20:32.73
This also cut off
communication with his mother.
00:20:32.76\00:20:35.67
Well, 1941, attack on
Pearl Harbor and so on,
00:20:35.70\00:20:38.94
and of course, it
came over the news
00:20:38.97\00:20:41.04
and my
grandfather heard about it,
00:20:41.07\00:20:43.93
and he was very sad.
00:20:43.96\00:20:45.32
And he came over to
me and told me about it
00:20:45.35\00:20:47.71
and gave me a big hug.
00:20:47.74\00:20:49.52
I could just
feel his sorrow over,
00:20:49.55\00:20:56.21
you know, what
happened to America.
00:20:56.24\00:20:57.91
Jack progressed in school
00:20:57.94\00:20:59.40
and finished
his course of study.
00:20:59.43\00:21:01.17
He wanted to
continue his education
00:21:01.20\00:21:03.14
but that would
mean leaving the farm.
00:21:03.17\00:21:05.47
Jack applied to a trade school
00:21:05.50\00:21:06.86
and received a letter
stating that he was accepted
00:21:06.89\00:21:09.26
into the aeronautical
engineering program.
00:21:09.29\00:21:12.15
Eagerly Jack boarded the train
00:21:12.18\00:21:13.71
and made his way to
Konigs Wusterhausen,
00:21:13.74\00:21:15.80
located just outside of Berlin.
00:21:15.83\00:21:17.86
A man met him at the station.
00:21:17.89\00:21:19.89
He had a brown shirt
on and he had an arm band
00:21:19.92\00:21:22.94
on with a
swastika and a visor cap
00:21:22.97\00:21:26.75
and black
trousers and black boots.
00:21:26.78\00:21:31.55
And he said, yes, you know,
00:21:31.58\00:21:33.40
you're Jack or
Jacob as they called me,
00:21:33.43\00:21:36.41
are you Jacob? Yes.
00:21:36.44\00:21:38.45
Come, follow me.
00:21:38.48\00:21:40.95
Okay.
00:21:40.98\00:21:43.28
I applied to go to school.
00:21:43.31\00:21:44.47
Just come and follow me.
00:21:44.50\00:21:47.41
So he didn't walk
very far and, you know,
00:21:47.44\00:21:51.58
and there was a
barbwire and the guard dogs
00:21:51.61\00:21:54.19
and everything else.
00:21:54.22\00:21:56.76
And that was the
first taste of a labor camp.
00:21:56.79\00:22:00.46
Jack couldn't
believe he had been duped.
00:22:00.49\00:22:02.71
This wasn't a school at all.
00:22:02.74\00:22:04.67
He had just lost his freedom.
00:22:04.70\00:22:06.83
Life in the crowded camp
00:22:06.86\00:22:08.25
became a depressing
pattern of hard work,
00:22:08.28\00:22:10.47
little food and
ill-treatment from the guards.
00:22:10.50\00:22:13.57
The guards would
like some entertainment.
00:22:13.60\00:22:16.12
The in thing in sports
00:22:16.15\00:22:17.86
in those days of
course was boxing.
00:22:17.89\00:22:21.00
You know Joe Louis
was world champion,
00:22:21.03\00:22:23.70
and he defeated the
heavyweight champion,
00:22:23.73\00:22:28.30
the German heavyweight champion
00:22:28.33\00:22:30.35
and so anyway they thought,
well, boxing is a thing,
00:22:30.38\00:22:33.26
so they arranged us
according to our weight.
00:22:33.29\00:22:37.34
The reward for winning
the match would be extra food.
00:22:37.37\00:22:40.96
Every time I was
put into the open space,
00:22:40.99\00:22:43.27
you know, I would
knock the other guy down,
00:22:43.30\00:22:45.43
so then the commander put
me into a little heaver weight,
00:22:45.46\00:22:48.27
little heaver weight.
00:22:48.30\00:22:49.44
Next time he put me into,
you know, fairly heavyweight.
00:22:49.47\00:22:52.76
Well, I wasn't able
to knock that guy down,
00:22:52.79\00:22:55.06
but he wasn't
able to knock me down.
00:22:55.09\00:22:57.49
Enraged at Jack's performance,
00:22:57.52\00:22:59.42
the commander entered the
ring and beat Jack severely.
00:22:59.45\00:23:02.78
Jack lay bleeding on the ground,
00:23:02.81\00:23:04.85
staring at the black
boots straddling his body.
00:23:04.88\00:23:07.69
And the one thought
that came to my mind,
00:23:07.72\00:23:11.01
you may kill this body
00:23:11.04\00:23:13.01
but you're not
going to kill my spirit.
00:23:13.04\00:23:15.74
I am an American...
00:23:15.77\00:23:18.54
and I am going
to stay an American,
00:23:18.57\00:23:21.39
and it's same
thing when I think,
00:23:21.42\00:23:23.06
you know, of the history of
Christians through the ages,
00:23:23.09\00:23:28.18
mean lot of persecution
00:23:28.21\00:23:29.91
and some were
executed and whatever.
00:23:29.94\00:23:33.44
You know, all
these Christian martyrs.
00:23:33.47\00:23:35.41
I know, they must have had
the same kind of thing that,
00:23:35.44\00:23:38.95
you know, you can kill the body,
00:23:38.98\00:23:40.42
but you can't kill my spirit.
00:23:40.45\00:23:41.79
My spirit is committed
and dedicated to Jesus Christ.
00:23:41.82\00:23:45.91
Early one morning
the guards awaken Jack.
00:23:45.94\00:23:48.53
He learned that he
was being transferred
00:23:48.56\00:23:50.36
to another labor camp.
00:23:50.39\00:23:51.93
Upon his arrival
at the Leipzig camp,
00:23:51.96\00:23:54.27
Jack had an experience
that allowed him to escape.
00:23:54.30\00:23:57.13
When we got there and
headed towards the camp,
00:23:57.16\00:24:01.65
I never was in the camp because
what happened, all the sudden,
00:24:01.68\00:24:07.15
I found myself
outside of the camp,
00:24:07.18\00:24:11.45
some distance from
the fence, all by myself.
00:24:11.48\00:24:16.03
I couldn't believe it,
I still remember this day,
00:24:16.06\00:24:18.58
I looked around,
there was nobody there.
00:24:18.61\00:24:21.73
In 2012, Jack and
the documentary team
00:24:21.76\00:24:24.76
found the place where he was
supernaturally transported away
00:24:24.79\00:24:27.76
from the labor camp.
00:24:27.79\00:24:29.09
It now serves as a governmental
scientific research center
00:24:29.12\00:24:32.62
in Leipzig, Germany.
00:24:32.65\00:24:34.51
It was an
emotional moment for Jack
00:24:34.54\00:24:36.30
as he remembered his near
death experience at the hands
00:24:36.33\00:24:39.37
of one of the Third
Reich's most lethal labor
00:24:39.40\00:24:41.95
and concentration camps.
00:24:41.98\00:24:43.81
Jack's experience is
like the biblical story
00:24:43.84\00:24:46.22
of Philip found in Acts 8,
00:24:46.25\00:24:48.28
when God took Philip, bodily
from the road by Jerusalem
00:24:48.31\00:24:51.74
and placed him in another city.
00:24:51.77\00:24:53.53
You must have
gotten close to this
00:24:53.56\00:24:55.36
before you found
yourself inside of this wall.
00:24:55.39\00:24:58.44
Well, that's the point, yeah.
00:24:58.47\00:25:00.07
Wow.
00:25:00.10\00:25:02.46
I'm getting the chill.
00:25:02.49\00:25:04.69
This would have
been the main entrance.
00:25:04.72\00:25:07.58
You had to have
been close to here.
00:25:07.61\00:25:08.86
I'm going to kneel down
here and have a word of prayer.
00:25:08.89\00:25:10.69
Okay.
00:25:10.72\00:25:11.76
Jack was free.
00:25:33.67\00:25:35.51
During the next two days,
00:25:35.54\00:25:36.74
he made his way back
to his grandparent's farm.
00:25:36.77\00:25:39.24
Surprised to see him,
00:25:39.27\00:25:40.51
they thought he
had been at school.
00:25:40.54\00:25:42.32
The next morning grandfather
had bad news for Jack.
00:25:42.35\00:25:46.17
Son, I can't keep you here.
00:25:46.20\00:25:51.25
If they know that I
am harboring a runaway,
00:25:51.28\00:25:55.34
I may be arrested
and there's nobody here
00:25:55.37\00:25:59.00
to care of the farm.
00:25:59.03\00:26:00.27
No, son, you need
to turn yourself in.
00:26:00.30\00:26:04.19
But, yeah, to turn myself
in for the sake of family,
00:26:04.22\00:26:08.36
knowing what lay ahead.
00:26:08.39\00:26:12.22
Jack was sure he would
be returned to Leipzig,
00:26:12.25\00:26:14.88
instead he was sent
to the munitions factory
00:26:14.91\00:26:17.23
at Pegnitz which
was near Nuremberg.
00:26:17.26\00:26:19.68
We had to work 12
hours a day from six to six.
00:26:19.71\00:26:23.17
For breakfast we would
get a cup of black coffee
00:26:23.20\00:26:27.61
and a slice of bread.
00:26:27.64\00:26:29.26
For lunch you got a
bowl of soup, watery soup,
00:26:29.29\00:26:36.67
and then in the
evening a cup of black coffee
00:26:36.70\00:26:38.80
and a slice of bread.
00:26:38.83\00:26:40.51
When I came out of the area,
00:26:40.54\00:26:42.12
I think I weighed
about 85-90 pounds
00:26:42.15\00:26:44.76
or something like that.
00:26:44.79\00:26:46.12
By that time I was
about 16, 17 years old.
00:26:46.15\00:26:50.28
Day after day,
Jack had to listen
00:26:50.31\00:26:52.35
to anti-western propaganda.
00:26:52.38\00:26:54.65
He began to worry
about how his mother
00:26:54.68\00:26:56.39
was being
treated back in America.
00:26:56.42\00:26:58.65
He had to make a
deliberate effort
00:26:58.68\00:27:00.41
not to believe the
words he was hearing.
00:27:00.44\00:27:02.70
There has to be a concentration,
00:27:02.73\00:27:05.40
a conscious concentration
of setting your mind
00:27:05.43\00:27:09.75
against what is evil and wicked.
00:27:09.78\00:27:13.21
We need to set our mind against
00:27:13.24\00:27:15.34
what we hear
and see on the media
00:27:15.37\00:27:17.60
if it's not right and good.
00:27:17.63\00:27:19.06
Survival became the watchword
for Jack in the new labor camp.
00:27:19.09\00:27:22.52
Food was scarce.
00:27:22.55\00:27:23.61
The work was hard
and life was cheap.
00:27:23.64\00:27:26.17
Those who
collapsed were carried away
00:27:26.20\00:27:28.24
and never seen again.
00:27:28.27\00:27:29.48
Jack longed for
freedom and came to find it
00:27:29.51\00:27:31.97
in an unexpected way.
00:27:32.00\00:27:33.54
One day a German
military officer told Jack
00:27:33.57\00:27:36.48
and two of his
friends they were needed.
00:27:36.51\00:27:38.44
And so he says,
yeah, we want you, okay.
00:27:38.47\00:27:42.70
Hitler needs you and
we're going to draft you
00:27:42.73\00:27:45.44
into the German military.
00:27:45.47\00:27:46.95
Here is your uniform.
00:27:46.98\00:27:48.45
All they had these skinny guys,
wear uniforms that didn't fit.
00:27:48.48\00:27:52.24
I remember very
clearly marching along the road
00:27:52.27\00:27:56.53
which went right
by the medical center
00:27:56.56\00:27:59.75
where wounded German soldiers
were sitting on the porch
00:27:59.78\00:28:03.21
and they were looking out
at the scraggly bunch of people
00:28:03.24\00:28:07.42
that's supposed to
be, you know, win the war.
00:28:07.45\00:28:10.04
I can still see the
smirk on their face.
00:28:10.07\00:28:12.88
I mean it was obvious.
00:28:12.91\00:28:14.12
Once again God
intervened in Jack's life.
00:28:14.15\00:28:17.13
Instead of being
transferred to the frontlines,
00:28:17.16\00:28:19.84
Jack and his two friends
were sent back to the labor camp
00:28:19.87\00:28:22.92
where they waited for orders.
00:28:22.95\00:28:24.81
With Jack's change in status
00:28:24.84\00:28:26.79
from prisoner to German soldier,
00:28:26.82\00:28:29.00
the guards at the gate became
less vigilant in his presence.
00:28:29.03\00:28:32.68
One day Jack and his two friends
00:28:32.71\00:28:34.42
were visiting with the
only guard at the gate.
00:28:34.45\00:28:36.97
Suddenly the guard was called
to a situation in the camp.
00:28:37.00\00:28:40.16
And he said, listen,
I've got to go, okay.
00:28:40.19\00:28:43.02
There's nobody
else here right now.
00:28:43.05\00:28:44.96
You stay here.
00:28:44.99\00:28:46.04
Keep an eye on the gate,
00:28:46.07\00:28:48.14
and I'll be
back and he took off.
00:28:48.17\00:28:51.37
We looked at each other.
00:28:51.40\00:28:55.11
Looked around and
looked straight ahead
00:28:55.14\00:28:57.97
and there was a
woods not far away
00:28:58.00\00:29:01.36
and we said, okay,
00:29:01.39\00:29:04.77
we'll watch the gate
and put it behind us.
00:29:04.80\00:29:09.38
And off we took.
00:29:09.41\00:29:10.70
Before long it was
time for the three friends
00:29:10.73\00:29:13.45
to go their separate ways.
00:29:13.48\00:29:14.92
With many miles to
cover, the danger increased.
00:29:14.95\00:29:18.50
Jack never knew
when he might run
00:29:18.53\00:29:20.22
into either German
or American soldiers.
00:29:20.25\00:29:23.04
I remember
walking through the woods
00:29:23.07\00:29:24.78
and all the sudden I
hear some noise behind me.
00:29:24.81\00:29:28.90
You know, I got
behind the little bush
00:29:28.93\00:29:30.91
and I looked and were tanks,
00:29:30.94\00:29:32.53
American tanks
because the American army
00:29:32.56\00:29:34.48
was pushing up into Germany
in small trees like this,
00:29:34.51\00:29:39.25
I mean a tank, no problem.
00:29:39.28\00:29:41.85
As Jack neared Hohenberg,
00:29:41.88\00:29:43.35
he had another encounter
with American soldiers.
00:29:43.38\00:29:45.92
And as I came out of the woods,
00:29:45.95\00:29:49.01
I came to this bank
00:29:49.04\00:29:53.82
and little cliff
and I looked down
00:29:53.85\00:29:56.97
and there I saw American trucks
00:29:57.00\00:30:01.55
with GIs on it,
00:30:01.58\00:30:04.86
and one fellow looked up at me
and gave the hitchhiking sign.
00:30:04.89\00:30:12.05
Oh, did that bring back
00:30:12.08\00:30:13.64
a lot of warm
memories of home, of America.
00:30:13.67\00:30:17.91
After days of walking,
00:30:17.94\00:30:19.49
Jack finally arrived
at grandfather's farm.
00:30:19.52\00:30:22.20
With freedom and
the end of fighting,
00:30:22.23\00:30:24.57
Jack wanted to
return home to America
00:30:24.60\00:30:26.98
and be with his mother.
00:30:27.01\00:30:29.68
The war was drawing to a close.
00:30:29.71\00:30:31.62
Well, I had forgotten my
English after so many years.
00:30:31.65\00:30:36.37
And I had no papers because
the Nazis took the papers away.
00:30:36.40\00:30:41.51
And so I went to the military up
00:30:41.54\00:30:42.97
in Hohenberg and they said,
00:30:43.00\00:30:45.11
you were born in America?
And you can't talk English?
00:30:45.14\00:30:50.04
You have no papers, you
know, go back to the farm.
00:30:50.07\00:30:55.06
And so I did and
just a little while later,
00:30:55.09\00:30:59.81
I get a letter
from the German mailman
00:30:59.84\00:31:05.15
from my mother in
the United States.
00:31:05.18\00:31:08.11
For years there
had been no contact
00:31:08.14\00:31:09.86
between Jack and his mother.
00:31:09.89\00:31:11.79
Then God intervened and
made the impossible happen.
00:31:11.82\00:31:15.14
When Jack went to the
American military authorities
00:31:15.17\00:31:17.54
with the letter from his mother,
00:31:17.57\00:31:19.07
they couldn't believe he
had received correspondence
00:31:19.10\00:31:21.49
through the private
mail system during war time.
00:31:21.52\00:31:24.35
Jack was
instructed to go to Frankfurt.
00:31:24.38\00:31:26.85
So, Jack, it's
been a little while
00:31:26.88\00:31:29.01
since you've have been here
00:31:29.04\00:31:30.07
in Frankfurt,
Germany, 67, 68 years.
00:31:30.10\00:31:34.22
What's it like to be here today
00:31:34.25\00:31:35.39
and what was the
city like back then?
00:31:35.42\00:31:38.09
And I tell you, this city
was just a mass of rubble.
00:31:38.12\00:31:41.69
It had been bombed so severely,
00:31:41.72\00:31:44.75
you know, I asked
directions to the military,
00:31:44.78\00:31:49.20
I had to climb over
rubble in order to get there.
00:31:49.23\00:31:52.65
And of course when I got
there, I gave him the letter.
00:31:52.68\00:31:55.19
How did you get that?
00:31:55.22\00:31:56.27
Well, I said the German mailman.
00:31:56.30\00:31:57.52
There is no private
mail coming through.
00:31:57.55\00:32:01.65
The letter needed to be verified
00:32:01.68\00:32:03.27
before anything
further could be done.
00:32:03.30\00:32:05.94
So I sat there and I
must have been waiting
00:32:05.97\00:32:07.72
there for 2 or 3 hours.
00:32:07.75\00:32:09.81
Finally they
said, we checked it out
00:32:09.84\00:32:11.74
and it is genuine,
00:32:11.77\00:32:13.40
go back to the farm
and we'll contact you.
00:32:13.43\00:32:16.82
I give credit to the
Lord for getting that mail
00:32:16.85\00:32:19.08
through, that letter through.
00:32:19.11\00:32:20.55
Jack couldn't believe it.
He was going home at last.
00:32:20.58\00:32:24.25
Weeks later as the ship
entered the New York harbor,
00:32:24.28\00:32:27.43
seeing the Statue of Liberty,
00:32:27.46\00:32:29.43
he appreciated
freedom as never before.
00:32:29.46\00:32:32.36
The God he had
yet to know deeply
00:32:32.39\00:32:34.75
had made a way
for Jack to be free.
00:32:34.78\00:32:38.16
Marion was busy
as a Bible worker
00:32:38.19\00:32:40.36
in Chicago, Illinois,
00:32:40.39\00:32:41.81
while Jack struggled
with his situation in Germany.
00:32:41.84\00:32:44.90
She faced her own set of
dangerous and challenges.
00:32:44.93\00:32:48.24
I was giving studies to a mother
00:32:48.27\00:32:50.79
and her divorced daughter.
00:32:50.82\00:32:52.76
They lived in a
apartment up over a store.
00:32:52.79\00:32:56.95
As I was driving to their house
00:32:56.98\00:32:59.31
I noticed that every time
I stopped at the stop sign,
00:32:59.34\00:33:03.43
there was a young man
at the wheel of the car.
00:33:03.46\00:33:06.64
He'd smile at me.
00:33:06.67\00:33:08.22
I thought it was funny at first
00:33:08.25\00:33:10.24
because it just
happened at every stop light.
00:33:10.27\00:33:13.28
This continued on
and on and I thought,
00:33:13.31\00:33:16.78
"If I go fast, he goes fast.
00:33:16.81\00:33:19.18
If I go slow, he goes slow.
00:33:19.21\00:33:21.19
Well, I got to
turn off of this road
00:33:21.22\00:33:22.98
pretty soon to
get where I'm going."
00:33:23.01\00:33:24.98
So when I turned off,
00:33:25.01\00:33:26.91
I turned very quickly
and went down the hill.
00:33:26.94\00:33:30.20
Well, he was in the left lane
00:33:30.23\00:33:32.15
while I was
driving down the right lane
00:33:32.18\00:33:34.71
and I went down
to the first house
00:33:34.74\00:33:37.27
at the bottom of
the hill and I said,
00:33:37.30\00:33:39.71
"Quick, quick, look
at your front window.''
00:33:39.74\00:33:42.44
Eventually we saw
the car turn around.
00:33:42.47\00:33:45.73
Marion experienced
one miracle after another
00:33:45.76\00:33:48.35
on the rough Chicago streets.
00:33:48.38\00:33:50.30
One night I was
coming home from that area
00:33:50.33\00:33:53.72
and I saw a net across the road
00:33:53.75\00:33:57.47
and as I
approached it I thought,
00:33:57.50\00:33:59.74
"I'm not stopping here."
00:33:59.77\00:34:01.26
I just stepped on the gas
00:34:01.29\00:34:03.46
as fast as I could and took off.
00:34:03.49\00:34:06.24
When I got home I told
my mother and she said,
00:34:06.27\00:34:09.50
"Call the police."
00:34:09.53\00:34:10.98
The police said, "They
stop cars and take the cars
00:34:11.01\00:34:15.61
and sometimes
even hurt the people."
00:34:15.64\00:34:18.20
Despite these experiences,
00:34:18.23\00:34:19.94
Marion loved
telling people about Jesus
00:34:19.97\00:34:22.37
and she wanted to study more,
00:34:22.40\00:34:24.17
so she could
share more about Him.
00:34:24.20\00:34:26.37
From her youth,
Marion had been trained
00:34:26.40\00:34:28.28
first by her
grandmother and mother,
00:34:28.31\00:34:30.53
who all worked as a
team to reach Bible study
00:34:30.56\00:34:33.26
interest around the metropolis.
00:34:33.29\00:34:35.35
Her formal training came at
Emmanuel Missionary College,
00:34:35.38\00:34:38.92
now Andrews
University, where she studied
00:34:38.95\00:34:41.66
under the great
evangelist, George Vandeman.
00:34:41.69\00:34:44.46
My mom went to college
00:34:44.49\00:34:45.96
in an age when a
lot of women didn't,
00:34:45.99\00:34:49.00
and she graduated
and was one of the first
00:34:49.03\00:34:52.78
Bible workers in
the denomination.
00:34:52.81\00:34:55.76
I had gone to
Moody Bible Institute
00:34:55.79\00:34:58.58
to learn how to
do chalk drawings.
00:34:58.61\00:35:00.58
So the pastor
asked me to do the hand
00:35:00.61\00:35:05.48
that was nailed to the cross.
00:35:05.51\00:35:07.02
I said, "It's
hard to draw a hand."
00:35:07.05\00:35:09.47
But, he said,
"I'll pose for you."
00:35:09.50\00:35:12.75
And all Sunday morning he posed
00:35:12.78\00:35:15.75
and I practiced drawing the hand
00:35:15.78\00:35:18.40
and that night I was able to
do the hand nailed to the cross.
00:35:18.43\00:35:24.08
Little did Marion know she
would soon receive a letter
00:35:24.11\00:35:27.46
from a young man requesting
that she visit his mother.
00:35:27.49\00:35:31.10
That letter would
change Marion's life forever.
00:35:31.13\00:35:36.79
When Johann Jacob Kiessling
left the shores of Germany
00:35:36.82\00:35:40.13
to return home to
the United States,
00:35:40.16\00:35:42.50
he could hardly
contain his excitement.
00:35:42.53\00:35:45.26
He was going to be
reunited with his mother.
00:35:45.29\00:35:47.56
His family has expanded
to include a stepfather,
00:35:47.59\00:35:50.45
Lee Blanco, a half sister Marie,
00:35:50.48\00:35:53.28
and stepbrother Mike.
00:35:53.31\00:35:55.11
Jack still felt a shadow
00:35:55.14\00:35:56.74
from never knowing
his biological father.
00:35:56.77\00:35:59.43
Well, all my
life I had been using
00:35:59.46\00:36:01.72
my mother's
maiden name Kiessling.
00:36:01.75\00:36:04.38
And so when I
came back from the war,
00:36:04.41\00:36:06.01
I still had the name Kiessling,
00:36:06.04\00:36:07.80
but now I found
that I had a stepfather,
00:36:07.83\00:36:10.33
and I had a little
stepsister, Marie of 4 years old
00:36:10.36\00:36:16.84
and my mother I think
still a little bit hurt
00:36:16.87\00:36:22.51
over the whole betrayal
thing for whatever reasons.
00:36:22.54\00:36:26.65
She didn't wanted to have
different names in the family.
00:36:26.68\00:36:30.16
So she asked me, "Would you
be willing to change your name,
00:36:30.19\00:36:33.12
okay, from Kiessling to Blanco."
00:36:33.15\00:36:36.33
I said, "Mother, anything,
00:36:36.36\00:36:37.63
I mean, I'll do anything
for you, sure, no problem."
00:36:37.66\00:36:41.18
So my name was
legally changed to Blanco.
00:36:41.21\00:36:44.21
Now Jack John Blanco was
fully part of the family.
00:36:44.24\00:36:48.10
He was thrilled to
have a younger sister.
00:36:48.13\00:36:50.34
The two spent many
happy hours together.
00:36:50.37\00:36:53.78
Jack's stepfather Lee
00:36:53.81\00:36:55.35
suggested that Jack work
for him in his parent's diner.
00:36:55.38\00:36:58.45
Jack started as a dishwasher
00:36:58.48\00:37:00.20
and eventually
became a short order cook.
00:37:00.23\00:37:03.14
I saw some things
in Chicago south side
00:37:03.17\00:37:07.81
after the war that I
never wanted to touch,
00:37:07.84\00:37:12.40
I remember one
time a fight developed
00:37:12.43\00:37:15.07
right there in the restaurant
00:37:15.10\00:37:16.86
between a husband and a wife.
00:37:16.89\00:37:19.54
And I went there
to try to separate him
00:37:19.57\00:37:23.72
and calm him down and so on.
00:37:23.75\00:37:26.00
The man looked at me,
00:37:26.03\00:37:27.06
he said this is
a family business
00:37:27.09\00:37:28.39
and then if you
get involved in it,
00:37:28.42\00:37:29.74
you're gonna be in it.
00:37:29.77\00:37:31.24
Jack witnessed
many conflicts like this
00:37:31.27\00:37:33.63
and each one left a
strong mark on his memory.
00:37:33.66\00:37:36.28
When I saw all the
effect of hard liquor,
00:37:36.31\00:37:40.78
I said forget it,
I'm not touching it.
00:37:40.81\00:37:44.19
Many of his friends
had rough reputations.
00:37:44.22\00:37:46.67
During one party, three buddies
00:37:46.70\00:37:48.36
invited Jack to
join them in their car.
00:37:48.39\00:37:50.79
Jack innocently followed them.
00:37:50.82\00:37:52.49
A flask of
alcohol was passed around.
00:37:52.52\00:37:54.99
Jack took one drink
thinking it wouldn't affect him.
00:37:55.02\00:37:58.03
I took a little swig.
00:37:58.06\00:38:00.23
It sent me for a loop.
00:38:00.26\00:38:02.76
Jack returned to the party
00:38:02.79\00:38:04.20
but learn something frightening.
00:38:04.23\00:38:05.62
He was no longer
in control of himself.
00:38:05.65\00:38:08.34
The next thing I knew is
00:38:08.37\00:38:10.28
I was the laughing
stock of the party,
00:38:10.31\00:38:12.32
and I was saying
things and doing things
00:38:12.35\00:38:14.57
that I was ashamed of,
00:38:14.60\00:38:15.87
and I wanted to
stop and couldn't stop,
00:38:15.90\00:38:18.01
there was
somebody else in control.
00:38:18.04\00:38:19.76
The incident made
a lasting impression
00:38:19.79\00:38:21.64
on Jack's teenage mind.
00:38:21.67\00:38:23.31
He'd never tasted liquor before
and he never touched it again.
00:38:23.34\00:38:26.81
God was
preparing Jack for a life
00:38:26.84\00:38:28.85
he couldn't even imagine.
00:38:28.88\00:38:32.34
With the end of World
War II, a new kind of war,
00:38:32.37\00:38:35.00
the Cold War began developing.
00:38:35.03\00:38:37.20
The United States
reinstated the draft
00:38:37.23\00:38:39.50
and 19 year old Jack
Blanco became nervous.
00:38:39.53\00:38:42.67
He had grown 6
inches and gained 50 pounds
00:38:42.70\00:38:45.27
since returning from Germany.
00:38:45.30\00:38:47.34
Uncle Sam looked at me and said,
00:38:47.37\00:38:49.30
"Oh, where have you been."
00:38:49.33\00:38:50.57
And I said, "Oh, my,
I'd seen enough of war
00:38:50.60\00:38:53.71
and I'd rather not
go into the infantry."
00:38:53.74\00:38:57.56
Anyway,
volunteered for the air force.
00:38:57.59\00:38:59.29
Then I was shipped down
00:38:59.32\00:39:00.35
to San Antonio,
Texas for a boot camp.
00:39:00.38\00:39:02.83
Although Jack left
the trouble of Chicago,
00:39:02.86\00:39:05.29
it seemed he
was drawn to fights.
00:39:05.32\00:39:07.92
During basic training,
00:39:07.95\00:39:09.04
Jack became
involved in an altercation
00:39:09.07\00:39:11.16
and he was thrown down
on the floor face first.
00:39:11.19\00:39:13.91
His nose was broken.
00:39:13.94\00:39:15.53
That injury would
affect Jack for years to come.
00:39:15.56\00:39:18.32
From San Antonio, Jack
traveled to Cheyenne, Wyoming
00:39:18.35\00:39:21.52
to receive more training
in aircraft communications.
00:39:21.55\00:39:24.74
He also hoped to
find role models.
00:39:24.77\00:39:27.19
He keenly missed a
father figure in his life.
00:39:27.22\00:39:30.08
One evening I was
lying in my bunker
00:39:30.11\00:39:33.28
and thinking about this,
00:39:33.31\00:39:36.15
because my father had
left before I was born,
00:39:36.18\00:39:39.23
so I really didn't have a
model to go by and didn't feel,
00:39:39.26\00:39:44.93
didn't feel
like I had a "father"
00:39:44.96\00:39:47.92
and as I was
thinking about this,
00:39:47.95\00:39:49.67
you know, a
thought came to my mind
00:39:49.70\00:39:51.99
and I know it
was the Holy Spirit.
00:39:52.02\00:39:53.91
Have you ever thought about
00:39:53.94\00:39:57.35
using Jesus
Christ as your model?
00:39:57.38\00:39:59.79
Jack wasn't very familiar
with the gospel stories,
00:39:59.82\00:40:02.36
but he remembered that
the nuns talked about Jesus
00:40:02.39\00:40:04.90
and said that He was
honorable and trustworthy.
00:40:04.93\00:40:08.25
And then the thought came to me.
00:40:08.28\00:40:11.01
Yeah, if I had been--
00:40:11.04\00:40:13.64
if I had been
there 2,000 years ago
00:40:13.67\00:40:15.93
and walking by
the Sea of Galilee,
00:40:15.96\00:40:17.78
and He would look
at me and He would say,
00:40:17.81\00:40:19.30
"Jack, come, follow Me."
00:40:19.33\00:40:22.48
And then I thought,
well, now wait a minute,
00:40:22.51\00:40:23.94
I mean that was 2,000 years ago.
00:40:23.97\00:40:27.33
Okay.
00:40:27.36\00:40:28.54
Yeah.
00:40:28.57\00:40:31.09
Forget it.
00:40:31.12\00:40:32.72
Then the Holy Spirit, I
know, spoke to my conscience
00:40:32.75\00:40:35.85
and my heart again and said,
00:40:35.88\00:40:38.87
He is not dead, He is alive.
00:40:38.90\00:40:42.48
Jack began to imagine walking
along with Jesus in daily life.
00:40:42.51\00:40:46.62
He couldn't
envision going to a bar
00:40:46.65\00:40:48.47
or smoking a
cigarette with Jesus.
00:40:48.50\00:40:51.07
Jack determined that he
didn't want those habits
00:40:51.10\00:40:53.44
to be a part of his life.
00:40:53.47\00:40:55.12
Visiting the base
library regularly,
00:40:55.15\00:40:57.77
he began to read books.
00:40:57.80\00:40:59.35
He discovered a rebound
book with the green cover
00:40:59.38\00:41:02.15
and the word Bible on the spine.
00:41:02.18\00:41:04.83
Just one word.
00:41:04.86\00:41:06.33
Well, I had never
held a Bible in my hand,
00:41:06.36\00:41:09.82
I never read the Bible.
00:41:09.85\00:41:11.93
And so I took it, and I took it
00:41:11.96\00:41:14.06
over to the reading
table, and I opened it up.
00:41:14.09\00:41:18.75
And I'll never forget,
00:41:18.78\00:41:20.64
I saw a picture
there of Jesus standing
00:41:20.67\00:41:25.08
with his arms
outstretched like this,
00:41:25.11\00:41:28.21
and all kinds of people either
sitting or kneeling before Him,
00:41:28.24\00:41:33.46
crippled people,
young people, old people,
00:41:33.49\00:41:37.47
and they're all
looking up to Him.
00:41:37.50\00:41:39.50
And I looked at that picture,
00:41:39.53\00:41:41.75
and I pictured myself, yeah,
00:41:41.78\00:41:46.91
being right
there in front of Him,
00:41:46.94\00:41:48.84
looking at Him,
and I started to cry.
00:41:48.87\00:41:52.37
Jack wanted to keep his
new found book for himself.
00:41:52.40\00:41:55.73
Tempted to lie
that he'd lost the book,
00:41:55.76\00:41:58.03
he realized that
he couldn't do that.
00:41:58.06\00:42:00.56
Reluctantly, he returned
the book to the base library
00:42:00.59\00:42:03.53
before he departed
to his next station.
00:42:03.56\00:42:06.10
Little did he know
00:42:06.13\00:42:07.27
how much this
mislabeled little book
00:42:07.30\00:42:09.37
would change his
life's direction.
00:42:09.40\00:42:11.95
Jack scoured many bookstores
on his furlough back in Chicago
00:42:11.98\00:42:15.52
to find a copy of the
book he'd read in Cheyenne.
00:42:15.55\00:42:18.61
With time running out
before he left for Guam,
00:42:18.64\00:42:21.44
he took a train
to a used book store
00:42:21.47\00:42:23.73
on the north side of Chicago.
00:42:23.76\00:42:26.67
And I got there
and there was a sign
00:42:26.70\00:42:28.13
on the door, out to lunch.
00:42:28.16\00:42:30.58
You know, be back at 1 o'clock.
00:42:30.61\00:42:34.31
Went back at 1
o'clock he wasn't there.
00:42:34.34\00:42:37.86
So I paced up
around the sidewalk.
00:42:37.89\00:42:40.14
Jack waited and watched
the door for nearly an hour.
00:42:40.17\00:42:43.52
Just as he was about to give up,
00:42:43.55\00:42:45.47
at 1:45 he saw
an elderly gentlemen
00:42:45.50\00:42:48.14
hobbling down the
sidewalk with the cane in hand.
00:42:48.17\00:42:51.71
I was standing
there by the entrance,
00:42:51.74\00:42:54.47
and he looks at me, he
says, well, young fellow,
00:42:54.50\00:42:56.43
what can I do for you?
00:42:56.46\00:42:58.19
I said, well, I'm
looking for a Bible
00:42:58.22\00:43:00.19
in question and answer form.
00:43:00.22\00:43:03.16
He thought a minute
00:43:03.19\00:43:04.63
and kind of scratching his head.
00:43:04.66\00:43:08.12
Well, he said, I may
have something for you.
00:43:08.15\00:43:13.84
The clerk pulled a ladder
over to a set of dusty shelves
00:43:13.87\00:43:16.66
and climbed up to
the highest shelves
00:43:16.69\00:43:18.25
at ceiling level
and selected a book.
00:43:18.28\00:43:20.93
Placing it in
Jack's hands he asked.
00:43:20.96\00:43:23.41
He said, is this the book?
00:43:23.44\00:43:25.14
Is Bible the question and answer
00:43:25.17\00:43:26.59
that you're looking for?
00:43:26.62\00:43:28.56
And I kind of hesitated
00:43:28.59\00:43:29.68
because it wasn't the same size.
00:43:29.71\00:43:32.88
Jack read the
cover and saw the title
00:43:32.91\00:43:35.29
Bible Reading
for the Home Circle.
00:43:35.32\00:43:37.38
I said, well to
the old man I said,
00:43:37.41\00:43:39.31
let me check it out.
00:43:39.34\00:43:40.39
So I turned to the section
00:43:40.42\00:43:41.76
that had to do with
the State of the Dead.
00:43:41.79\00:43:44.23
I said, wow, I don't
understand everything
00:43:44.26\00:43:47.08
but I know this is the same,
00:43:47.11\00:43:48.32
it says the same thing
that the other one said.
00:43:48.35\00:43:50.47
Yeah, I said, I will take it.
00:43:50.50\00:43:52.01
How much?
00:43:52.04\00:43:53.20
Jack was ready
to pay $20 or more.
00:43:53.23\00:43:55.91
He couldn't believe
his luck when the man said,
00:43:55.94\00:43:58.40
well, for you soldier $2.
00:43:58.43\00:44:01.02
I want to be
clear to our audience.
00:44:01.05\00:44:02.44
Yeah.
00:44:02.47\00:44:03.51
This is the Bible Readings
from that bookstore that day.
00:44:03.54\00:44:07.60
No, this is it, absolutely.
00:44:07.63\00:44:10.55
With the precious
book in his possession,
00:44:10.58\00:44:12.61
Jack was soon on his way to Guam
00:44:12.64\00:44:14.41
at the onset of the Korean War.
00:44:14.44\00:44:16.70
Though his
communications responsibilities
00:44:16.73\00:44:18.98
on the airbase led
to long and tense hours,
00:44:19.01\00:44:22.04
Jack quit drinking
caffeinated beverages.
00:44:22.07\00:44:24.76
Step by step he was changing
00:44:24.79\00:44:26.92
what he put into this body.
00:44:26.95\00:44:28.59
Other airmen
noticed the difference.
00:44:28.62\00:44:30.85
One day a friend Carl
Pintredge called Jack aside.
00:44:30.88\00:44:34.58
I understand you're religious.
00:44:34.61\00:44:36.33
I'm taking a
correspondence course
00:44:36.36\00:44:39.20
and I'm
learning a lot of things.
00:44:39.23\00:44:41.43
But listen, he
said, if you're religious,
00:44:41.46\00:44:44.12
let me loan you this book.
00:44:44.15\00:44:45.87
It's called Desire of Ages.
00:44:45.90\00:44:47.72
That night Jack
began to read the book
00:44:47.75\00:44:50.12
and couldn't put it down.
00:44:50.15\00:44:51.70
He was impressed that the author
00:44:51.73\00:44:53.50
was inspired to be
able to write such words.
00:44:53.53\00:44:56.36
Carl soon invited Jack
to study the Bible with him.
00:44:56.39\00:44:59.70
Jack learned about the Sabbath,
00:44:59.73\00:45:01.59
but it brought a
crisis to his new faith.
00:45:01.62\00:45:03.89
When I read Catholic Bible,
00:45:03.92\00:45:06.32
Ten Commandments
were little different
00:45:06.35\00:45:07.79
than what I was taught.
00:45:07.82\00:45:09.92
And I said, oh, they lied me.
00:45:09.95\00:45:13.19
No, I mean it was
just like taking a knife
00:45:13.22\00:45:15.56
and stabbing it in my chest.
00:45:15.59\00:45:17.45
I thought, what am I gonna do,
00:45:17.48\00:45:18.94
I mean, what church
am I gonna belong to?
00:45:18.97\00:45:21.76
So I said, I know
what I'm gonna do,
00:45:21.79\00:45:24.22
I'm going to keep
God's commandments
00:45:24.25\00:45:27.07
including the
seventh-day Sabbath.
00:45:27.10\00:45:29.61
If I'm the only one in the world
00:45:29.64\00:45:33.02
and that is still
my conviction today.
00:45:33.05\00:45:38.62
Carl announced one
Friday he had met people
00:45:38.65\00:45:41.12
from a church on the island
who believed the same things
00:45:41.15\00:45:43.87
that the young
airman had studied.
00:45:43.90\00:45:45.85
The two were excited to
know they were not alone,
00:45:45.88\00:45:48.36
they had no idea,
00:45:48.39\00:45:49.62
they were about to be introduced
00:45:49.65\00:45:50.99
to a family of
millions of like believers.
00:45:51.02\00:45:54.20
The next day they
attended the church
00:45:54.23\00:45:55.97
with the Sabbath keepers.
00:45:56.00\00:45:57.37
They began to unwrap
the truth as it is in Jesus.
00:45:57.40\00:46:00.50
This truth brought
perfect peace to him
00:46:00.53\00:46:03.11
in spite of the
war time setting.
00:46:03.14\00:46:04.94
With this
encounter, friendships grew,
00:46:04.97\00:46:07.85
Jack and Carl
chose to be baptized
00:46:07.88\00:46:10.15
at the foot of suicide
cliff in the Pacific Ocean.
00:46:10.18\00:46:13.61
Jack eagerly wrote to his mother
00:46:13.64\00:46:15.49
about his new hope in Jesus.
00:46:15.52\00:46:17.70
He was now a
Seventh-day Adventist.
00:46:17.73\00:46:20.75
Soon Carl shipped out to Korea.
00:46:20.78\00:46:23.11
Alone Jack had to take
his stand for the Sabbath.
00:46:23.14\00:46:26.26
His commanding
officers were unhappy with this,
00:46:26.29\00:46:29.04
but Jack could not be moved,
00:46:29.07\00:46:31.01
even if meant a court-martial.
00:46:31.04\00:46:33.72
Our early
Adventists who stood firm
00:46:33.75\00:46:36.05
for their faith
really pioneered a way
00:46:36.08\00:46:40.37
that helped the
military come to understand
00:46:40.40\00:46:44.68
religious accommodation better.
00:46:44.71\00:46:46.95
And I believe that Jack Blanco
00:46:46.98\00:46:49.57
and his
experience during the '50s,
00:46:49.60\00:46:52.43
as he stood up when
it was most difficult,
00:46:52.46\00:46:55.49
helped to make it easier
for others that followed.
00:46:55.52\00:46:58.70
Jack was able to hold his ground
00:46:58.73\00:47:00.55
for his new faith in God.
00:47:00.58\00:47:02.38
That test was less
difficult for Jack to deal with
00:47:02.41\00:47:05.81
than the letter he received
from his mother that read,
00:47:05.84\00:47:09.01
"I raised you as a Catholic,
00:47:09.04\00:47:11.29
if you change your
beliefs, I'll disown you."
00:47:11.32\00:47:14.69
What would Jack do
with such a response?
00:47:18.07\00:47:20.80
He had been separated
from his mother for years
00:47:20.83\00:47:23.15
while confined to
the German labor camp.
00:47:23.18\00:47:25.52
Would he risk losing
his relationship again?
00:47:25.55\00:47:28.24
I remembered reading in
the Bible where Jesus said,
00:47:28.27\00:47:30.70
"If any man sets his hand
to the plow and looks back,
00:47:30.73\00:47:35.26
he is not worthy of me."
00:47:35.29\00:47:37.62
Whoa.
00:47:37.65\00:47:38.68
So I set my face like a
flint, looked straight ahead,
00:47:38.71\00:47:44.03
went ahead and was baptized.
00:47:44.06\00:47:45.71
In the mean time of course,
I didn't hear from my mother.
00:47:45.74\00:47:47.71
I mean, I wrote her every
day for 6 months, not an answer.
00:47:47.74\00:47:53.66
Half a year later,
00:47:53.69\00:47:55.01
Jack received the
long-awaited letter
00:47:55.04\00:47:57.00
from his mother with the message
00:47:57.03\00:47:58.69
that he was welcome to come home
00:47:58.72\00:48:00.14
while on furlough.
00:48:00.17\00:48:01.37
Ooh, there is a breakthrough.
00:48:01.40\00:48:03.93
Jack decided to contact
the Adventist Church in Chicago
00:48:03.96\00:48:07.28
and asked them to send
someone to visit his mother.
00:48:07.31\00:48:09.94
A letter of response arrived
00:48:09.97\00:48:11.52
from a young woman named Marion,
00:48:11.55\00:48:13.79
who had taken up the task.
00:48:13.82\00:48:15.69
I got a letter
from the Bible worker,
00:48:15.72\00:48:19.83
and I read it, and well,
I went to see your mother
00:48:19.86\00:48:23.52
and I had a warm welcome
00:48:23.55\00:48:26.49
but she's really not
interested in Bible studies
00:48:26.52\00:48:30.75
or visits, whatever and so on.
00:48:30.78\00:48:34.52
That was disappointing.
00:48:34.55\00:48:36.15
Jack tossed the
letter into the trash can.
00:48:36.18\00:48:38.44
Then he felt
compelled to retrieve it
00:48:38.47\00:48:40.27
in what later came to
light as a providential move.
00:48:40.30\00:48:44.13
During Jack's furlough his
mother cautiously embraced him.
00:48:44.16\00:48:47.41
She also shared that she thought
00:48:47.44\00:48:48.96
he should meet the Bible worker
00:48:48.99\00:48:50.71
who had visited her
several months before.
00:48:50.74\00:48:53.15
Jack called Marion
and made plans to see her
00:48:53.18\00:48:55.29
at church the following Sabbath.
00:48:55.32\00:48:56.72
So I went into
the church sanctuary
00:48:56.75\00:48:59.12
and sat near the front
and just little while later
00:48:59.15\00:49:02.91
this young woman comes up to me,
00:49:02.94\00:49:05.54
taps me on the
shoulder and said,
00:49:05.57\00:49:08.15
'What is your name."
00:49:08.18\00:49:09.77
I said, "Well, Jack Blanco."
00:49:09.80\00:49:13.14
Over the weeks a
sincere friendship
00:49:13.17\00:49:14.99
developed
between Jack and Marion.
00:49:15.02\00:49:17.29
She began to teach him
how to give Bible studies.
00:49:17.32\00:49:20.13
Marion Blasius was Jack Blanco's
00:49:20.16\00:49:22.44
first Bible teacher.
00:49:22.47\00:49:24.07
Quickly they grew in the word
while they slowly fell in love.
00:49:24.10\00:49:28.79
When it came time
for Jack to return
00:49:28.82\00:49:30.49
to his military assignment,
00:49:30.52\00:49:32.14
he wondered if
Marion was interested
00:49:32.17\00:49:34.12
in a deeper relationship.
00:49:34.15\00:49:38.17
I said goodbye to Marion.
00:49:38.20\00:49:39.24
And I was
packing and all of sudden
00:49:39.27\00:49:42.66
I felt this
impression, call Marion.
00:49:42.69\00:49:46.28
I said what for,
in my mind, you know.
00:49:46.31\00:49:49.98
Call Marion.
00:49:50.01\00:49:52.11
So I pick up the phone
00:49:52.14\00:49:54.18
and I called her
and she answered.
00:49:54.21\00:49:56.49
Jack and Marion met
under the quiet trees
00:49:56.52\00:49:58.85
here at the
University of Chicago.
00:49:58.88\00:50:01.21
Jack broached the
subject of keeping in touch.
00:50:01.24\00:50:04.25
Marion's response was cautious.
00:50:04.28\00:50:06.21
She needed time.
00:50:06.24\00:50:07.74
Marion wanted to get the advice
00:50:07.77\00:50:09.23
of her former
pastor, Elder Osgood.
00:50:09.26\00:50:12.03
He said, "I'm
going to be interested
00:50:12.06\00:50:13.83
in the man you marry."
00:50:13.86\00:50:16.73
And I said, "Well,
I appreciate that."
00:50:16.76\00:50:19.81
She took me to the train station
00:50:19.84\00:50:22.39
and we said goodbye.
00:50:22.42\00:50:24.20
So I expected her
response not to be so cautious,
00:50:24.23\00:50:28.85
so I'm thinking
about all this on the train
00:50:28.88\00:50:30.59
and I started to cry.
00:50:30.62\00:50:33.07
I still remember.
00:50:33.10\00:50:34.83
Tears start coming down,
of course soldiers don't cry,
00:50:34.86\00:50:39.29
so I wiped the tears away.
00:50:39.32\00:50:41.35
Jack was faithful in his
church attendance in Washington.
00:50:41.38\00:50:44.76
After Jack shared his personal
testimony at a youth meeting,
00:50:44.79\00:50:48.11
the pastor
Elder Osgood suggested
00:50:48.14\00:50:50.15
Jack get to know his former
Bible worker from Chicago.
00:50:50.18\00:50:53.71
He thought they
would make a good fit.
00:50:53.74\00:50:56.04
Jack's heart was
as light as a feather,
00:50:56.07\00:50:58.02
for he already knew her
00:50:58.05\00:50:59.66
and now he had Pastor
Osgood's stamp of approval.
00:50:59.69\00:51:02.96
Jack proposed
and Marion said yes.
00:51:02.99\00:51:06.57
They were married
on September 28, 1952.
00:51:06.60\00:51:10.96
In fact, at our wedding
00:51:10.99\00:51:16.04
Jack said, "I don't
want to kiss you publicly
00:51:16.07\00:51:23.35
until after we're married."
00:51:23.38\00:51:25.70
So after we were
married the pastor said,
00:51:25.73\00:51:30.11
"You may kiss your wife."
00:51:30.14\00:51:36.21
We didn't know how--
00:51:36.24\00:51:40.67
We went from side to
side and people laughed.
00:51:40.70\00:51:47.21
The Lord could not have
given me a better companion.
00:51:47.24\00:51:52.39
I knew that she
would love the Lord
00:51:52.42\00:51:54.60
more than she loved me,
00:51:54.63\00:51:56.08
and she knew
that I love the Lord
00:51:56.11\00:51:58.24
more than I loved her.
00:51:58.27\00:51:59.61
Following the wedding,
00:51:59.64\00:52:00.86
Jack and Marion
returned to Washington State
00:52:00.89\00:52:03.39
where Jack had to complete
his time in the military.
00:52:03.42\00:52:06.93
The couple knew that they
were being called to ministry.
00:52:06.96\00:52:09.50
But what exactly
did that mean for them
00:52:09.53\00:52:11.61
at the onset of a life together.
00:52:11.64\00:52:15.58
If you really
want to be effective
00:52:15.61\00:52:17.43
and really want to reach people,
00:52:17.46\00:52:19.09
you need to get your education.
00:52:19.12\00:52:20.61
The pastor of the
Chicago Church suggested that
00:52:20.64\00:52:25.81
I go to Union
College in Lincoln, Nebraska.
00:52:25.84\00:52:30.45
He was impressed by
what they were doing
00:52:30.48\00:52:32.64
and all that.
00:52:32.67\00:52:33.90
And in those days if
you were new Adventist
00:52:33.93\00:52:39.62
and you were interested in
taking theological training,
00:52:39.65\00:52:43.19
they were looking
for recommendations.
00:52:43.22\00:52:45.38
When the registrar learned
00:52:45.41\00:52:46.58
that Jack was married to
Marion, the Bible worker,
00:52:46.61\00:52:49.45
that was recommendation enough.
00:52:49.48\00:52:51.53
Once again Marion was helping
00:52:51.56\00:52:53.23
to launch Jack into
his calling to ministry.
00:52:53.26\00:52:56.37
I was eager to get
into fulltime ministry.
00:52:56.40\00:52:59.58
And so what I did
is I took, you know,
00:52:59.61\00:53:02.73
the heaviest load I
could get in courses.
00:53:02.76\00:53:04.81
After graduating
from Union College,
00:53:04.84\00:53:07.20
Jack headed to seminary.
00:53:07.23\00:53:08.99
As a military veteran,
00:53:09.02\00:53:10.38
Jack could attend
college on the G.I. Bill.
00:53:10.41\00:53:12.98
But that didn't pay
all the Blanco's bills
00:53:13.01\00:53:15.60
especially with the
new born Cheryl Anne.
00:53:15.63\00:53:18.33
In those days they didn't
sponsor you to the seminary.
00:53:18.36\00:53:21.49
If you went, you
went on your own.
00:53:21.52\00:53:22.89
I drove to Washington D.C.
and then I had to get a job
00:53:22.92\00:53:26.83
and the only job I
could get was delivering milk.
00:53:26.86\00:53:30.52
So that meant getting up
at 2 o'clock in the morning,
00:53:30.55\00:53:35.29
going to the
place, loading my truck.
00:53:35.32\00:53:37.92
At one house, they
had put in a new lawn,
00:53:37.95\00:53:41.01
and they had little sticks
00:53:41.04\00:53:42.95
and they had a wire
around those little sticks.
00:53:42.98\00:53:46.51
Well, at 3
o'clock in the morning,
00:53:46.54\00:53:48.51
I didn't see those
little, tiny sticks
00:53:48.54\00:53:51.32
and those little wires
and I grabbed the milk bottles
00:53:51.35\00:53:55.17
and start running
towards the front door
00:53:55.20\00:53:57.32
and I tripped on one of
those-- splash, on the sidewalk.
00:53:57.35\00:54:02.27
I want to tell
you, I cut my hand,
00:54:02.30\00:54:05.99
I ran back to the truck
real fast and got the milk
00:54:06.02\00:54:08.18
and delivered it at the house,
but then I had to clean up,
00:54:08.21\00:54:10.49
I had a bunch of
rags in the truck,
00:54:10.52\00:54:12.31
but I had to clean up
00:54:12.34\00:54:13.94
because I didn't
want to lose a customer.
00:54:13.97\00:54:15.67
Every penny counted and
so I would drive with one,
00:54:15.70\00:54:18.59
standing up
driving with one hand.
00:54:18.62\00:54:20.41
My hand would fill with blood
and I would just dump it out
00:54:20.44\00:54:25.31
and drive some
more, I had to fill up
00:54:25.34\00:54:27.09
and dump that, drive some more
00:54:27.12\00:54:29.63
and then went to
the emergency room
00:54:29.66\00:54:31.14
after I unloaded the truck
00:54:31.17\00:54:32.64
and they looked at it
said, boy, I'll tell you,
00:54:32.67\00:54:35.30
you are very fortunate
because you just by a fraction,
00:54:35.33\00:54:39.98
you miss cutting the tendon.
00:54:40.01\00:54:42.47
You still have the scar?
00:54:42.50\00:54:45.00
Yeah, you ask me,
now, was it the right hand?
00:54:45.03\00:54:48.17
Yeah, I still
had the scar. See it.
00:54:48.20\00:54:50.66
Yeah, I do. Right there.
00:54:50.69\00:54:52.22
When Jack and
Marion left the seminary,
00:54:52.25\00:54:54.48
they received a call to
the New Jersey Conference.
00:54:54.51\00:54:57.57
The conference
president held the meetings.
00:54:57.60\00:54:59.32
We helped out and did Bible work
00:54:59.35\00:55:01.27
and visitation, Bible studies.
00:55:01.30\00:55:03.58
With the church
planted in Morristown,
00:55:03.61\00:55:05.90
Jack and Marion
branched out to Summerville,
00:55:05.93\00:55:08.32
Flemington and
Woodbury to raise up
00:55:08.35\00:55:10.55
and serve and congregations
in these communities.
00:55:10.58\00:55:13.67
It was during these
early years in ministry
00:55:13.70\00:55:16.14
that Steve John was born.
00:55:16.17\00:55:18.76
Jack's deeper passion
for people also developed
00:55:18.79\00:55:21.75
in his first pastoral districts.
00:55:21.78\00:55:24.02
It began on April 8, 1960,
00:55:24.05\00:55:27.37
I was involved in an automobile
accident which was tragic.
00:55:27.40\00:55:30.89
I had severed injury
to my cervical neck area
00:55:30.92\00:55:35.08
as well as the lower
lumbar area of my back.
00:55:35.11\00:55:38.53
The night before my surgery,
00:55:38.56\00:55:40.54
God sent an unknown messenger
00:55:40.57\00:55:43.39
to my bedside at
9 o'clock at night
00:55:43.42\00:55:46.19
and offered a
short word of prayer,
00:55:46.22\00:55:49.50
asking God's will
to be done in my life,
00:55:49.53\00:55:52.23
and that I may just
surrender my life to Him,
00:55:52.26\00:55:54.27
it was a very short prayer.
00:55:54.30\00:55:55.84
Walt credits that
compassionate prayer
00:55:55.87\00:55:58.51
with his commitment to Jesus.
00:55:58.54\00:56:01.54
He said, "You need to keep
your eyes fixed on Christ."
00:56:01.57\00:56:06.72
One day as Marion
was sorting the mail,
00:56:06.75\00:56:09.00
she opened an
envelope containing information
00:56:09.03\00:56:11.37
that would change the
lives of the Blanco family.
00:56:11.40\00:56:14.23
After reading its content,
00:56:14.26\00:56:15.64
she sent 10 year old Cheri
to ask her daddy a question.
00:56:15.67\00:56:19.14
She says, Cheri,
go ask your daddy
00:56:19.17\00:56:21.90
that if he got a call to
be a missionary in Africa,
00:56:21.93\00:56:24.81
if he would go.
00:56:24.84\00:56:26.96
So the little one comes
into my study and said, daddy.
00:56:26.99\00:56:31.81
Yes? I have a question.
00:56:31.84\00:56:33.35
Okay. What?
00:56:33.38\00:56:34.51
If you had a
chance to go to Africa
00:56:34.54\00:56:36.50
to be a
missionary, would you go?
00:56:36.53\00:56:38.72
And I said absolutely.
00:56:38.75\00:56:40.77
That was a life changing letter.
00:56:40.80\00:56:42.42
Leaders of the
General Conference
00:56:42.45\00:56:43.77
of Seventh-day Adventists
00:56:43.80\00:56:45.11
had observed the
Blanco success in New Jersey.
00:56:45.14\00:56:47.90
They believed
Jack's soul winning skills
00:56:47.93\00:56:50.01
could be used as
a model for others.
00:56:50.04\00:56:52.99
The purpose of going
to Africa was to train
00:56:53.02\00:56:55.92
the local people in evangelism.
00:56:55.95\00:56:58.39
Excited about
their new adventure,
00:56:58.42\00:57:00.21
Cheri, Steve,
Marion and Jack set out
00:57:00.24\00:57:02.74
for what was then
known as Southern Rhodesia.
00:57:02.77\00:57:05.90
We were one of
the last missionaries
00:57:05.93\00:57:07.24
to go on a boat, on a freighter.
00:57:07.27\00:57:10.07
After a trip across the ocean,
00:57:10.10\00:57:11.59
the Blancos arrived in
Cape Town, South Africa.
00:57:11.62\00:57:14.43
From there they traveled over
land by car to Solusi Mission.
00:57:14.46\00:57:18.67
They traveled in
their new Volkswagen,
00:57:18.70\00:57:20.47
with the steering wheel
on the wrong side of the car.
00:57:20.50\00:57:23.15
In 2013, the documentary team
along with Steve's wife Kelly,
00:57:23.18\00:57:28.17
returned with Jack and
Cheri to retrace the journey
00:57:28.20\00:57:31.55
to Solusi University,
formerly Solusi Mission.
00:57:31.58\00:57:35.43
It's almost unbelievable that
I'm back here after 48 years.
00:57:35.46\00:57:40.14
I mean in 2 more years
00:57:40.17\00:57:42.00
it would be 50
years since I arrived.
00:57:42.03\00:57:45.43
You know, when of course,
when I came to Solusi Camp,
00:57:45.46\00:57:48.98
as I thought well,
00:57:49.01\00:57:50.05
we'd be living in
sort of primitive housing,
00:57:50.08\00:57:52.93
you know, in a hut or something
00:57:52.96\00:57:54.50
and then they
showed us this house,
00:57:54.53\00:57:56.54
and I thought wow, I mean,
00:57:56.57\00:57:58.94
looking at the
African situation and so on,
00:57:58.97\00:58:03.20
I mean this is really a treat
to be living in this house.
00:58:03.23\00:58:10.02
So Jack and Cheri, we're
about to go into this house here
00:58:10.05\00:58:13.83
on the campus of
Solusi where you lived,
00:58:13.86\00:58:16.85
lived here 48 years ago.
00:58:16.88\00:58:18.21
That's true.
00:58:18.24\00:58:19.41
And so this is the first
time you've been back inside.
00:58:19.44\00:58:21.92
Oh, yes.
00:58:21.95\00:58:23.02
Let see what kind of
memories we can remember.
00:58:23.05\00:58:25.80
All right, let's
go inside. Oh my.
00:58:25.83\00:58:28.91
Oh my. Oh my. Oh my. Oh my.
00:58:28.94\00:58:32.64
That brings back
a lot of memories.
00:58:32.67\00:58:36.49
Yeah.
00:58:36.52\00:58:37.79
Now, of course
there was one thing here
00:58:37.82\00:58:39.30
that wasn't here before
and that is the television.
00:58:39.33\00:58:42.43
In those days we
didn't have televisions.
00:58:42.46\00:58:44.63
But there is a fire
place. Yeah, I remember.
00:58:44.66\00:58:46.92
Fire place, that was
our only way of keeping warm
00:58:46.95\00:58:50.64
because there was no heat.
00:58:50.67\00:58:52.45
Yeah, there was no heat.
00:58:52.48\00:58:53.67
So that's, you
know, we would hobble here
00:58:53.70\00:58:56.85
and then quick, run to bed.
00:58:56.88\00:58:58.24
Southern Africa's cool evenings
00:58:58.27\00:59:00.15
gave the Blancos the opportunity
00:59:00.18\00:59:01.71
to welcome
students into the warm
00:59:01.74\00:59:03.52
fellowship of their home.
00:59:03.55\00:59:05.00
I can imagine knowing
Marion, the hospitality
00:59:05.03\00:59:07.65
she just had to-- probably
put on and spread for them.
00:59:07.68\00:59:09.89
Sure, you get
very close to students.
00:59:09.92\00:59:12.12
And so we would
invite the students over,
00:59:12.15\00:59:14.46
you know, and part of the family
00:59:14.49\00:59:16.38
and have little
vespers together.
00:59:16.41\00:59:18.25
I remember worship here.
00:59:18.28\00:59:21.04
Dad sitting in the chair,
we'd sing our family worship,
00:59:21.07\00:59:24.56
you know, we'd
sing, I'd play the piano
00:59:24.59\00:59:26.88
and he would sit in the
chair and read to our family.
00:59:26.91\00:59:30.37
To keep up with all of
the daily tasks in the home,
00:59:30.40\00:59:33.18
Marion was blessed to
have a capable assistant.
00:59:33.21\00:59:35.97
Ketty worked with Marion
as the Blanco's house girl.
00:59:36.00\00:59:39.10
Jack welcomed Ketty
back into the Blanco home
00:59:39.13\00:59:41.59
in an emotional
reunion almost 50 years later.
00:59:41.62\00:59:44.83
Whenever Ketty came,
00:59:44.86\00:59:47.09
it was just like
sunshine coming into the house.
00:59:47.12\00:59:50.58
She had such a warm personality
and friendly, energetic,
00:59:50.61\00:59:54.49
I mean, oh yes, just fill
the house with her personality.
00:59:54.52\00:59:59.51
There are some people who
are very loud, they're noisy.
00:59:59.54\01:00:02.79
Mrs. Blanco was
very peaceful and quiet.
01:00:02.82\01:00:08.67
She could talk, but, I
mean she wasn't that loud.
01:00:08.70\01:00:13.38
I enjoyed being with her.
01:00:13.41\01:00:15.57
I remember she
would always ride out
01:00:15.60\01:00:17.89
to the school there on her bike.
01:00:17.92\01:00:20.72
The chores of running
a household are the same,
01:00:20.75\01:00:22.87
no matter the location.
01:00:22.90\01:00:25.15
Well, I used to
come to his house
01:00:25.18\01:00:27.63
to help do the laundry.
01:00:27.66\01:00:29.39
So to clean up,
vacuum the carpets,
01:00:29.42\01:00:32.24
and dust the
floors, dust the furniture.
01:00:32.27\01:00:36.93
I still remember
there was a beautiful light
01:00:36.96\01:00:40.35
blue carpet in this room
01:00:40.38\01:00:42.97
and green sofas,
light green sofas.
01:00:43.00\01:00:48.69
While Marion was teaching,
01:00:48.72\01:00:50.13
Ketty was skilled at
keeping the home in order.
01:00:50.16\01:00:52.53
She showed off her
astonishing ability
01:00:52.56\01:00:54.48
to carry a milk jug on her head
01:00:54.51\01:00:56.50
from the farm cow
to the Blanco home.
01:00:56.53\01:00:59.30
Cheri and Steve
were in awe of the sights
01:00:59.33\01:01:01.41
and sounds of
their new life in Africa,
01:01:01.44\01:01:03.63
including the
animals and the landscape.
01:01:03.66\01:01:06.83
One of my brothers and
my favorite activities here
01:01:06.86\01:01:09.37
was climbing copies.
01:01:09.40\01:01:11.34
They're large piles of rocks.
01:01:11.37\01:01:13.27
I mean, the rocks are huge
01:01:13.30\01:01:15.53
and we would
ride our motorcycles
01:01:15.56\01:01:18.07
or get somebody to drive
us and climb these rocks.
01:01:18.10\01:01:21.48
One of the things that we found
was some cave paintings of,
01:01:21.51\01:01:25.57
it looked like a battle.
01:01:25.60\01:01:27.43
The children
persuaded their parents
01:01:27.46\01:01:29.09
that they needed a pet or two.
01:01:29.12\01:01:31.28
When I thought
of going to Africa,
01:01:31.31\01:01:34.71
a picture that came
to mind was a monkey.
01:01:34.74\01:01:37.37
And I thought some
of them were so cute
01:01:37.40\01:01:40.44
and I really wanted one.
01:01:40.47\01:01:42.21
So we found one at
a pet store in town
01:01:42.24\01:01:47.18
and I brought her home,
01:01:47.21\01:01:50.08
and we chained her to a big tree
01:01:50.11\01:01:53.16
in the back of our house.
01:01:53.19\01:01:55.16
And she would fill
her pouches full of food
01:01:55.19\01:01:59.24
and her cheeks
would get really big.
01:01:59.27\01:02:02.38
And then she would
get-- if we did anything
01:02:02.41\01:02:05.35
that wasn't
quite what she wanted,
01:02:05.38\01:02:07.37
she would get really angry
and she would make these faces
01:02:07.40\01:02:10.44
and she'd jut her
jaw forward like this
01:02:10.47\01:02:13.45
and pulled her
eyebrows back and go...
01:02:13.48\01:02:19.68
As an eager 7 year old,
01:02:19.71\01:02:21.25
Steve had a world to explore
and was always on the go.
01:02:21.28\01:02:24.86
Once he came home from
school it was bike time and
01:02:24.89\01:02:28.15
he was out, come
in and run around
01:02:28.18\01:02:31.14
for a few
minutes and he was out.
01:02:31.17\01:02:33.44
He didn't spend
time in the house.
01:02:33.47\01:02:36.81
He didn't spend
time in the house.
01:02:36.84\01:02:38.32
But he was such a
joyful child. He was happy boy.
01:02:38.35\01:02:44.22
I just have
those memories of him.
01:02:44.25\01:02:46.62
And I always
wondered, "How does he look now?
01:02:46.65\01:02:52.57
How old is he?"
01:02:52.60\01:02:54.10
Steve after practicing medicine
in the States lost his battle
01:02:54.13\01:02:58.26
against Lou Gehrig's
disease in August of 2009.
01:02:58.29\01:03:02.11
We always wanted
to come back here
01:03:02.14\01:03:04.75
so that he could
let the experience,
01:03:04.78\01:03:07.91
what he experienced growing up.
01:03:07.94\01:03:10.97
It's helped me to connect
and realize a little more
01:03:11.00\01:03:17.37
of what made him the
wonderful person that he was
01:03:17.40\01:03:23.14
because he was an amazing man.
01:03:23.17\01:03:26.71
One that I wish more
people could have known
01:03:26.74\01:03:30.48
and more people that
he could have cared for
01:03:30.51\01:03:34.09
because he was also
an amazing physician.
01:03:34.12\01:03:36.98
It wasn't long before
01:03:37.01\01:03:38.20
Marion took on
additional responsibilities.
01:03:38.23\01:03:41.52
Mom stepped in
wherever she was needed.
01:03:41.55\01:03:44.63
So at one point they needed her,
01:03:44.66\01:03:47.46
there was no
grade school teacher
01:03:47.49\01:03:49.04
for the
missionary family children,
01:03:49.07\01:03:53.20
so she taught.
01:03:53.23\01:03:55.03
Jack's initial
responsibility was to be
01:03:55.06\01:03:57.33
the head of the religion
department for the school.
01:03:57.36\01:03:59.94
He eventually
was asked to pastor
01:03:59.97\01:04:02.04
the 1,000 plus member church
01:04:02.07\01:04:04.47
and lead out in the annual
field school of evangelism.
01:04:04.50\01:04:07.87
Ten years to train the theology
students for city evangelism
01:04:07.90\01:04:12.42
and also the pastors are
coming in from the village,
01:04:12.45\01:04:18.35
train them for city evangelism
01:04:18.38\01:04:19.41
because the
cities were expanding
01:04:19.44\01:04:20.97
and we need to reach
the people in the cities.
01:04:21.00\01:04:23.34
Jack was determined
to find a meaty location.
01:04:23.37\01:04:26.24
So we started the
meetings there, start at 7
01:04:26.27\01:04:30.39
and for about an hour and half.
01:04:30.42\01:04:33.05
Well, the church was
packed, they sat in the aisle,
01:04:33.08\01:04:37.91
they sat on the rostrum,
01:04:37.94\01:04:40.15
they were standing by
the open windows to listen
01:04:40.18\01:04:44.77
and so I said to
the team of students,
01:04:44.80\01:04:48.26
no, we got to do something else.
01:04:48.29\01:04:51.20
Why not we cut the
meeting time down to an hour,
01:04:51.23\01:04:55.13
and then have main
meetings at 6 o'clock,
01:04:55.16\01:04:57.63
one at 6 and one at 7.
01:04:57.66\01:04:59.51
So we have one
at 6 and one at 7.
01:04:59.54\01:05:01.41
And the same thing happened,
01:05:01.44\01:05:02.86
I said, well,
let's have one at 5.
01:05:02.89\01:05:05.16
And the same thing happened,
01:05:05.19\01:05:06.22
so we had one at 4, 5, 6, and 7.
01:05:06.25\01:05:09.09
And that is meetings
every night for three weeks.
01:05:09.12\01:05:12.57
The meetings resulted
in hundreds of baptisms
01:05:12.60\01:05:15.16
of both new and former members.
01:05:15.19\01:05:17.36
During a door to
door visit in Harare,
01:05:17.39\01:05:19.72
Jack and one of
the students met a girl
01:05:19.75\01:05:21.73
and her mother, Mrs.
Jeffries who is quite ill.
01:05:21.76\01:05:24.87
This encounter would
allow Jack to demonstrate
01:05:24.90\01:05:27.09
to the students the
power of persistent prayer.
01:05:27.12\01:05:30.08
And as she walked past me,
01:05:30.11\01:05:32.08
she held out her hands like this
01:05:32.11\01:05:33.94
and I noticed they
looked like she had leprosy.
01:05:33.97\01:05:37.71
There were big
holes in her hands.
01:05:37.74\01:05:40.55
The daughter explained
her mother had been afflicted
01:05:40.58\01:05:42.77
for more than 2
years with what began
01:05:42.80\01:05:45.13
as an itch in her hands
and developed into deep sores.
01:05:45.16\01:05:48.68
So I said, we need
to pray about this.
01:05:48.71\01:05:50.63
So, you know, we had
prayer before we left.
01:05:50.66\01:05:56.15
We invited the
girls to the meeting.
01:05:56.18\01:05:57.96
The daughter invited
Jack to return to pray
01:05:57.99\01:06:00.29
for her mother again.
01:06:00.32\01:06:01.64
She couldn't read the Bible,
01:06:01.67\01:06:03.29
so I started telling
her stories about Jesus
01:06:03.32\01:06:05.75
and so on and His healing.
01:06:05.78\01:06:07.25
And then asked her, I said,
01:06:07.28\01:06:09.03
"Ma'am, do you
believe that Jesus loves you?
01:06:09.06\01:06:12.40
She kind of hesitated.
01:06:12.43\01:06:14.59
So I prayed, we
left. Jack returned daily.
01:06:14.62\01:06:17.54
With each visit,
Mrs. Jeffries responded
01:06:17.57\01:06:19.76
a little more to the idea
of a savior who loved her.
01:06:19.79\01:06:23.09
So we'll have the same
thing repeated every day.
01:06:23.12\01:06:26.56
Next time we went back there,
01:06:26.59\01:06:28.45
do you believe
that Jesus loves you?
01:06:28.48\01:06:30.30
Well, the nod was little firmer.
01:06:30.33\01:06:32.45
Next question I asked her,
01:06:32.48\01:06:34.37
do you believe
that Jesus can heal you?
01:06:34.40\01:06:38.16
Slight little nod.
01:06:38.19\01:06:39.55
Jack continued the visits
01:06:39.58\01:06:40.79
and Mrs. Jeffries'
faith began to grow stronger.
01:06:40.82\01:06:43.52
She had a black
band around her wrist.
01:06:43.55\01:06:46.33
That black band
was an indication
01:06:46.36\01:06:48.77
that she had been
to the witch doctor.
01:06:48.80\01:06:50.52
Ma'am, you don't,
really don't need this.
01:06:50.55\01:06:53.50
I didn't ask her to
take that black band off.
01:06:53.53\01:06:57.61
Next day back again,
and the black band was gone.
01:06:57.64\01:07:03.21
And every evening, of
course, the girls came to,
01:07:03.24\01:07:06.62
came to the
meetings and they said,
01:07:06.65\01:07:08.60
"Pastor, oh, the
itching didn't returned
01:07:08.63\01:07:12.13
second day,
third day, fourth day.
01:07:12.16\01:07:15.33
Wow, praise the Lord.
01:07:15.36\01:07:17.41
On the fifth night,
01:07:17.44\01:07:18.49
the girls retuned to
the meetings with bad news.
01:07:18.52\01:07:21.24
I could see there
was something wrong.
01:07:21.27\01:07:24.53
I could tell in their face.
01:07:24.56\01:07:27.43
So I ask them, I
said, "How is ma'am?"
01:07:27.46\01:07:31.82
They closed their eyes
and they shook their head,
01:07:31.85\01:07:34.91
they said, "Pastor,
the itching has come back."
01:07:34.94\01:07:40.26
How do you
explain that to somebody?
01:07:40.29\01:07:42.82
She can't read the
Bible, can't talk English.
01:07:42.85\01:07:45.59
What do you gonna say?
01:07:45.62\01:07:46.66
Well, I guess, the
Lord doesn't love you.
01:07:46.69\01:07:49.33
Oh, He can't heal you.
01:07:49.36\01:07:50.53
Oh, my word,
this was the person,
01:07:50.56\01:07:53.32
the lady's soul
that was at stake, right?
01:07:53.35\01:07:58.20
Oh, so we had-- we
got the team together
01:07:58.23\01:08:00.47
and we prayed all night
till 4 o'clock in the morning.
01:08:00.50\01:08:04.46
We went there early in
the morning to the house,
01:08:04.49\01:08:07.31
knocked on the
door, the door opened
01:08:07.34\01:08:10.40
and there stood ma'am,
little ma'am, the biggest smile
01:08:10.43\01:08:14.80
that I had ever
seen from east to west.
01:08:14.83\01:08:16.88
She pushes me aside, runs out
to where they do the cooking,
01:08:16.91\01:08:22.50
reaches down and
picks up a heavy iron plaque
01:08:22.53\01:08:26.36
and lifts it up in the air.
01:08:26.39\01:08:27.91
And then I said,
"Ma'am, can I see your hands?"
01:08:27.94\01:08:29.86
And she pressed her hands out.
01:08:29.89\01:08:32.36
Those hands were just like
baby's hands, fresh, clean.
01:08:32.39\01:08:39.59
Oh, ma'am, totally
healed. I want to tell you.
01:08:39.62\01:08:43.68
Wounds like that do not
replace themselves overnight.
01:08:43.71\01:08:49.51
That was a
miracle. No doubt about it.
01:08:49.54\01:08:52.32
I want to tell you that set
that evangelistic team on fire.
01:08:52.35\01:08:57.09
They came up with a little song.
01:08:57.12\01:08:59.05
My God can do
anything, anything, anything.
01:08:59.08\01:09:03.28
My God can do anything.
01:09:03.31\01:09:05.30
He healed the
sick, He raised the dead,
01:09:05.33\01:09:08.00
He caused the
blind their eyes to see.
01:09:08.03\01:09:11.12
My God can do anything.
01:09:11.15\01:09:13.38
And they sang that
01:09:13.41\01:09:14.91
as we concluded the
evangelistic series.
01:09:14.94\01:09:20.02
That same song that they wrote,
01:09:20.05\01:09:23.20
they brought back
to Solusi right here,
01:09:23.23\01:09:25.75
and it set the
whole campus on fire.
01:09:25.78\01:09:27.55
In the mean time, Jack trained
young students in evangelism
01:09:27.58\01:09:31.49
and many went on to become
church leaders themselves.
01:09:31.52\01:09:34.82
One student was Forus Muganda,
father of three children.
01:09:34.85\01:09:38.19
And he start taking Greek,
01:09:38.22\01:09:39.54
and he was getting A's in Greek.
01:09:39.57\01:09:43.40
So I called him to
my office one time,
01:09:43.43\01:09:46.14
I said, "Muganda, how?
01:09:46.17\01:09:49.17
I mean, you're
getting better grades
01:09:49.20\01:09:51.30
than some of these young men
01:09:51.33\01:09:52.66
who just came
out of high school.
01:09:52.69\01:09:55.08
How do you do that?"
01:09:55.11\01:09:56.73
He called me
pastor, he says, pastor,
01:09:56.76\01:09:59.47
I pray before I study.
01:09:59.50\01:10:02.82
Oh, well, that's
good, I understand that.
01:10:02.85\01:10:06.07
No pastor, you don't understand.
01:10:06.10\01:10:08.33
What do you mean
I don't understand?
01:10:08.36\01:10:10.82
No, pastor, I take my Greek book
01:10:10.85\01:10:14.35
and my I put it on the
chair, the seat of the chair
01:10:14.38\01:10:17.73
and I get down and I kneel
01:10:17.76\01:10:19.86
or I put my
Greek book on the floor
01:10:19.89\01:10:22.54
and I kneel down and pray
01:10:22.57\01:10:24.10
and I study my
Greek on my knees.
01:10:24.13\01:10:27.48
Muganda was determined
01:10:27.51\01:10:28.77
to share the story of
Jesus with everyone he could.
01:10:28.80\01:10:32.23
For that summer he went
out and did colporteur work
01:10:32.26\01:10:34.12
and out showed all the local,
01:10:34.15\01:10:38.05
all the local colporteurs
in that mission area.
01:10:38.08\01:10:41.86
Jack's influence
in Muganda's life
01:10:41.89\01:10:43.71
extended to that
of Muganda son Baraka.
01:10:43.74\01:10:46.56
During Muganda
senior year in college,
01:10:46.59\01:10:48.83
his son was also
a student at Solusi.
01:10:48.86\01:10:51.97
Jack and my father
were very good friends.
01:10:52.00\01:10:56.46
When I arrived
at Solusi College,
01:10:56.49\01:11:00.45
my father kept talking
of Jack, every time Jack.
01:11:00.48\01:11:04.23
"I said, "Who is this Jack?"
He said, "He is a man of God."
01:11:04.26\01:11:07.64
He was a well-beloved teacher
01:11:07.67\01:11:11.21
who had a very strong
evangelistic outreach.
01:11:11.24\01:11:14.53
Every year he took out students
and faculty from the religion
01:11:14.56\01:11:18.21
or the Bible
department to places
01:11:18.24\01:11:22.38
where they would do evangelism.
01:11:22.41\01:11:23.96
He would go out with students
01:11:23.99\01:11:26.31
on various
evangelistic campaigns
01:11:26.34\01:11:30.92
or efforts or meetings.
01:11:30.95\01:11:34.22
He would come
back enthused, vibrant.
01:11:34.25\01:11:41.64
And he would
continue preaching to us
01:11:41.67\01:11:44.17
with power and conviction.
01:11:44.20\01:11:47.03
What I remember
most was the song
01:11:47.06\01:11:51.15
that he would lead out.
01:11:51.18\01:11:54.35
Then sings my soul
01:11:54.38\01:11:57.60
My Savior God, to Thee
01:11:57.63\01:12:03.04
How great Thou art
01:12:03.07\01:12:07.37
How great Thou art
01:12:07.40\01:12:10.04
That made a
tremendous impact on us.
01:12:10.07\01:12:13.51
There were sobering
reminders about others
01:12:13.54\01:12:15.79
who had labored in
this part of the world.
01:12:15.82\01:12:18.18
You know, when I'm
losing my bearings,
01:12:18.21\01:12:21.04
I go there to the cemetery
01:12:21.07\01:12:22.95
and be reminded of
the spirit of commitment.
01:12:22.98\01:12:29.02
I am aware that some of the men
01:12:29.05\01:12:30.67
who are resting there,
came after they had learned
01:12:30.70\01:12:34.85
that their
predecessors had died.
01:12:34.88\01:12:39.93
But still that did not
deter them from coming here.
01:12:39.96\01:12:45.80
They were willing to
come and replace those
01:12:45.83\01:12:47.59
who had rested here.
01:12:47.62\01:12:48.88
And they're resting there
01:12:48.91\01:12:50.50
while waiting for the
Second Coming of Jesus.
01:12:50.53\01:12:54.31
To me, that is invaluable.
01:12:54.34\01:12:56.74
You need to
walk in the footsteps
01:12:56.77\01:12:58.88
of those spiritual giants.
01:12:58.91\01:13:01.75
When I said there
is a spiritual giant
01:13:01.78\01:13:04.74
who is bigger and
taller than anyone,
01:13:04.77\01:13:09.18
that big giant, Jesus Christ,
01:13:09.21\01:13:12.51
it's His footsteps
that you need to walk in.
01:13:12.54\01:13:15.56
Throughout their ministry,
Jack and Marion maintained
01:13:15.59\01:13:18.32
that kind of commitment
to tell others about Jesus.
01:13:18.35\01:13:21.92
Yeah, there were times
we had our health struggles,
01:13:21.95\01:13:24.39
particularly Marion.
01:13:24.42\01:13:25.91
Her sacrifice wasn't even
in her mind, in her thinking.
01:13:25.94\01:13:28.97
She just was driven
to support the mission.
01:13:29.00\01:13:31.02
No, the sacrifice
wasn't in her mind.
01:13:31.05\01:13:32.65
No, she was
just driven you know.
01:13:32.68\01:13:34.50
And when she was sick, yeah,
01:13:34.53\01:13:35.88
I need to get well, to put
her heart and soul into the work
01:13:35.91\01:13:41.14
and that was her passion.
01:13:41.17\01:13:43.47
Jack and Marion's time
in Africa came to an end
01:13:43.50\01:13:46.09
when they were asked to
relocate to the Philippines.
01:13:46.12\01:13:49.03
There Jack would
take up his duties
01:13:49.06\01:13:50.71
as head of the
graduate study program
01:13:50.74\01:13:52.40
at Philippine Union College.
01:13:52.43\01:13:54.39
I was involved in
administration here as well,
01:13:54.42\01:13:57.04
that's at Solusi.
01:13:57.07\01:13:59.09
But, yeah, it broadened there
01:13:59.12\01:14:01.37
because they had started
01:14:01.40\01:14:03.51
a master's
program in Philippines,
01:14:03.54\01:14:06.06
and the master's program
was approved by the states.
01:14:06.09\01:14:12.66
Jack's responsibilities
became increasingly heavy.
01:14:12.69\01:14:15.56
He was asked to fill in
as president of the college.
01:14:15.59\01:14:18.37
During this time Marion needed
surgery for cancer in her neck
01:14:18.40\01:14:21.88
and this added to Jack's burden.
01:14:21.91\01:14:24.05
These professional
obligations and health concerns
01:14:24.08\01:14:27.10
began to take a toll on the man
01:14:27.13\01:14:28.84
who had dedicated every
thing to his heavenly Father,
01:14:28.87\01:14:31.99
leading to one
of the most poignant
01:14:32.02\01:14:33.80
and testing
moments of his ministry.
01:14:33.83\01:14:35.78
I was about 40, mid 40s.
01:14:35.81\01:14:38.64
One morning I had
my personal devotions
01:14:38.67\01:14:41.85
and I was praying about
01:14:41.88\01:14:43.04
all the
responsibilities that I had,
01:14:43.07\01:14:45.81
and the whole
situation of the family
01:14:45.84\01:14:48.79
and the presidency and all that.
01:14:48.82\01:14:52.00
And I knelt down and
prayed, I thought to myself,
01:14:52.03\01:14:55.58
you know, I'm
going through all this,
01:14:55.61\01:14:58.92
I'm not sure how much
longer I can take all this.
01:14:58.95\01:15:03.41
And straight from
Africa, no furlough,
01:15:03.44\01:15:06.91
fives years in Africa,
straight to the Philippines.
01:15:06.94\01:15:10.24
I thought, you
know, I'm dong all this
01:15:10.27\01:15:13.62
and I don't even get a thank you
01:15:13.65\01:15:16.51
from the General Conference.
01:15:16.54\01:15:18.32
Forget it, I'm going home.
01:15:18.35\01:15:21.70
These are the thoughts
that went through my mind
01:15:21.73\01:15:23.20
just like that.
01:15:23.23\01:15:24.96
And then I thought,
yeah, okay, I'm going home.
01:15:24.99\01:15:28.32
And I thought,
well, forget the ministry,
01:15:28.35\01:15:32.49
and then the next
thought came into my mind,
01:15:32.52\01:15:34.88
what in the
world did I just think.
01:15:34.91\01:15:37.96
Did Satan come along
01:15:37.99\01:15:39.19
and implant these
thoughts in my mind.
01:15:39.22\01:15:43.19
What does Christianity
really have to offer anyway?
01:15:43.22\01:15:46.96
Oh, no, I always
thought of myself
01:15:46.99\01:15:50.42
as a strong, spiritual,
01:15:50.45\01:15:53.23
pastor, leader,
whatever, administrator.
01:15:53.26\01:15:57.52
You know, the
thought that came to my mind
01:15:57.55\01:16:00.28
and I started to cry.
01:16:00.31\01:16:01.86
And I thought, I
can't trust myself.
01:16:01.89\01:16:07.59
My trust has to be
totally in Jesus Christ.
01:16:07.62\01:16:12.54
I have to kept my
eyes totally fixed on Him,
01:16:12.57\01:16:16.46
not even partial
of my own abilities
01:16:16.49\01:16:20.32
in what I can do for the
Lord and I want to tell you,
01:16:20.35\01:16:25.41
I cried all the way
up, walking to class.
01:16:25.44\01:16:30.60
When I got to class,
I wiped my tears away.
01:16:30.63\01:16:34.54
And I said, Lord,
I am here to teach
01:16:34.57\01:16:38.45
and I'm here
keeping my eyes on You.
01:16:38.48\01:16:41.93
Today when I look back,
01:16:41.96\01:16:44.82
I thank the Lord
for that experience.
01:16:44.85\01:16:47.81
I wouldn't trade that
experience for anything.
01:16:47.84\01:16:51.35
Turn your eyes upon Jesus.
01:16:51.38\01:16:53.71
Look full in His wonderful face,
01:16:53.74\01:16:56.75
and the things of earth
will grow strangely dim,
01:16:56.78\01:17:00.28
in the light of
His glory and grace.
01:17:00.31\01:17:05.12
Returning from mission service,
01:17:05.15\01:17:07.00
Jack and Marion
enjoyed ministry in Maryland,
01:17:07.03\01:17:09.82
teaching at
Columbia Union College
01:17:09.85\01:17:11.74
and serving as an
editor at the Review.
01:17:11.77\01:17:14.18
He also pastored
on the west coast.
01:17:14.21\01:17:16.48
I was a pastor in California
01:17:16.51\01:17:18.26
and we had a call to
teach at Pacific Union College
01:17:18.29\01:17:23.46
and also a few different
01:17:23.49\01:17:24.53
Southwestern
Adventist University,
01:17:24.56\01:17:27.12
and then we had a call to come
to Southern Missionary College
01:17:27.15\01:17:31.68
which is now
Southern Adventist University.
01:17:31.71\01:17:33.70
Jack and Marion's
choice to once again accept
01:17:33.73\01:17:36.19
God's leading would
impact untold numbers of lives,
01:17:36.22\01:17:39.62
as Dr. Blanco led the work
in Southern school of religion,
01:17:39.65\01:17:42.79
his influence
impacted faculty and co-workers
01:17:42.82\01:17:45.63
as well as
thousands of students.
01:17:45.66\01:17:47.90
One time I recall,
01:17:47.93\01:17:49.09
I was wrestling
with the decision
01:17:49.12\01:17:50.81
as to whether to move from here
01:17:50.84\01:17:52.17
and go to Union
College in Lincoln, Nebraska.
01:17:52.20\01:17:55.11
So I came and I
got together with Jack,
01:17:55.14\01:17:58.19
and we prayed about it,
and he encouraged me greatly,
01:17:58.22\01:18:02.34
and I ended up making a decision
01:18:02.37\01:18:03.78
that I have perfect peace about.
01:18:03.81\01:18:05.93
Dr. Blanco's commitment
to his heavenly Father
01:18:05.96\01:18:08.55
was evidenced in how he guided
01:18:08.58\01:18:10.55
young men and
women in their ministry.
01:18:10.58\01:18:12.55
I really felt that Jack became
something of a father to me.
01:18:12.58\01:18:17.83
I remember one
time, I got into trouble
01:18:17.86\01:18:19.66
because I kind of
walked into a meeting
01:18:19.69\01:18:21.85
and I was so focused
on what I needed to do
01:18:21.88\01:18:26.54
that I was a bit oblivious
to the people around me.
01:18:26.57\01:18:29.41
And little later, Jack
called me into his office
01:18:29.44\01:18:32.20
and he spoke the
truth and love to me.
01:18:32.23\01:18:34.89
He really epitomizes
01:18:34.92\01:18:37.29
what the Bible talks
about in Philippians 2,
01:18:37.32\01:18:40.76
"Let this mind be in you,
which also is in Christ Jesus."
01:18:40.79\01:18:44.16
He's always looking out
for the interest of others
01:18:44.19\01:18:46.55
and not just his own interest.
01:18:46.58\01:18:48.89
But he is not ashamed to
speak the truth and love.
01:18:48.92\01:18:51.82
Dr. Blanco's affable
manner as a mentor, teacher
01:18:51.85\01:18:54.66
and fellow
professor allowed to him
01:18:54.69\01:18:56.64
reach across a broad
spectrum of individuals,
01:18:56.67\01:18:59.41
to touch countless lives.
01:18:59.44\01:19:01.78
Some people are
technical teachers,
01:19:01.81\01:19:03.97
and one of the
things I love about Jack
01:19:04.00\01:19:07.12
is that at his
heart he's a pastor,
01:19:07.15\01:19:11.38
and so if you're
student in his class,
01:19:11.41\01:19:13.97
you're being pastored,
01:19:14.00\01:19:16.35
you're not just being given
01:19:16.38\01:19:17.79
an outline here to be tested on.
01:19:17.82\01:19:20.27
Jack was a rare individual.
01:19:20.30\01:19:22.41
He was well informed in theology
01:19:22.44\01:19:25.66
and unusually, he
was well connected
01:19:25.69\01:19:31.17
and he understood the
issues of practical ministry.
01:19:31.20\01:19:34.77
Jack came to Southern
01:19:34.80\01:19:36.59
when we were having
some theological challenges
01:19:36.62\01:19:40.92
that were developing
a rather poor reputation
01:19:40.95\01:19:44.09
of the
university in the community.
01:19:44.12\01:19:47.00
And he was able
to pull the religion
01:19:47.03\01:19:49.65
department
together in such a way
01:19:49.68\01:19:51.98
as to mitigate those problems.
01:19:52.01\01:19:54.02
The reputation of the school of
a religion across the division
01:19:54.05\01:19:57.83
was enhanced significantly
under Jack's leadership.
01:19:57.86\01:20:00.83
During Dr.
Blanco's tenure at Southern,
01:20:00.86\01:20:02.95
he served as the dean
of the school of religion.
01:20:02.98\01:20:05.36
He founded and
served as the president
01:20:05.39\01:20:07.90
of the Adventist
Theological Society
01:20:07.93\01:20:10.37
and was president of
the Southeastern Chapter
01:20:10.40\01:20:12.92
of the Evangelical
Theological Society.
01:20:12.95\01:20:15.53
Jack and his
colleagues established
01:20:15.56\01:20:17.23
a R.H. Pierson
Institute of Evangelism
01:20:17.26\01:20:19.63
and World Mission.
01:20:19.66\01:20:20.75
He was advisor for
the Chinese radio program
01:20:20.78\01:20:23.23
College of the Air,
01:20:23.26\01:20:24.64
and for the refinement
of the theology curriculum
01:20:24.67\01:20:27.22
at Russia's Zaoksky
Adventist University.
01:20:27.25\01:20:30.62
The Blancos contributions
at Southern were recognized
01:20:30.65\01:20:33.49
with the
presentation of the university's
01:20:33.52\01:20:35.48
distinguished service medallion.
01:20:35.51\01:20:37.51
An award voted by
Southern's faculty
01:20:37.54\01:20:40.01
and they were named honorary
alumni of the university.
01:20:40.04\01:20:42.98
Dr. Blanco infected us
with the love of Jesus.
01:20:43.01\01:20:46.19
He taught with such
excitement and energy,
01:20:46.22\01:20:48.16
you just had to get
to know Christ better.
01:20:48.19\01:20:50.49
An African Proverb teaches,
01:20:50.52\01:20:52.61
"A family tie is
like a tree, it can bend,
01:20:52.64\01:20:56.09
but it cannot break."
01:20:56.12\01:20:57.64
Jack and
Marion's life experiences
01:20:57.67\01:20:59.79
led to an
unwavering trust in God.
01:20:59.82\01:21:02.08
One of their greatest
desires was to instill
01:21:02.11\01:21:04.10
that same trust
in their children.
01:21:04.13\01:21:06.26
Dad was my rock.
01:21:06.29\01:21:08.24
He was my everything's
going to be all right person.
01:21:08.27\01:21:12.44
My mother and
father-in-law are amazing
01:21:12.47\01:21:16.66
individuals that
just looking at them,
01:21:16.69\01:21:23.43
for me, you can tell
that they love the Lord.
01:21:23.46\01:21:28.50
And the story
01:21:28.53\01:21:33.60
that they want to tell others
01:21:33.63\01:21:37.16
not of themselves but of God.
01:21:37.19\01:21:42.09
The Blancos love
for the Lord carried
01:21:42.12\01:21:43.92
over into their love
for their grandchildren.
01:21:43.95\01:21:46.19
I remember every time he
would come over to our house,
01:21:46.22\01:21:48.76
he would pick me up
with his strong arms
01:21:48.79\01:21:51.52
and throw me as hard
as he could on the couch
01:21:51.55\01:21:54.06
and that was--
it's just a tradition
01:21:54.09\01:21:55.94
that's really enjoyable.
01:21:55.97\01:21:58.18
And he still can.
01:21:58.21\01:21:59.66
There were difficult
times for the Blanco family,
01:21:59.69\01:22:02.37
times that tested them
but made them stronger.
01:22:02.40\01:22:05.22
As a teen, Steve had a
job cleaning doctor's offices,
01:22:05.25\01:22:08.74
easy access to temptation
was too strong for Steve
01:22:08.77\01:22:12.01
and he stole some
prescription medications.
01:22:12.04\01:22:14.50
Of course the
doctor had reported
01:22:14.53\01:22:16.63
that there was, these muscle
relaxing pills were missing.
01:22:16.66\01:22:22.10
And so the police
came and checked it out
01:22:22.13\01:22:24.14
and, you know, who was
in the office and all that,
01:22:24.17\01:22:26.62
there was Steve,
and so he was arrested.
01:22:26.65\01:22:29.62
And he was put in jail.
01:22:29.65\01:22:31.31
Steve received probation
with mandatory drug testing
01:22:31.34\01:22:34.74
and tested clean every time.
01:22:34.77\01:22:36.83
But Steve became
a very well known,
01:22:36.86\01:22:40.61
well liked physician.
01:22:40.64\01:22:42.68
Patients just loved
Steve with his personality.
01:22:42.71\01:22:45.97
One of the hardest test
for the Blanco family came
01:22:46.00\01:22:48.68
when Steve was
diagnosed with ALS,
01:22:48.71\01:22:51.19
better known as
Lou Gehrig's disease.
01:22:51.22\01:22:53.80
From the time it was confirmed
01:22:53.83\01:22:56.20
that it was Lou
Gehrig's disease,
01:22:56.23\01:23:00.19
to the time that he
died, it was only one year.
01:23:00.22\01:23:04.24
One morning early,
about 4 o'clock in the morning
01:23:04.27\01:23:06.70
I got a call from
Kelly and said that
01:23:06.73\01:23:09.46
Steve has gone into a coma,
01:23:09.49\01:23:11.87
now you ought to
come up to see him.
01:23:11.90\01:23:14.67
As Jack and Marion
01:23:14.70\01:23:15.75
and the rest of the
family gathered by Steve's side,
01:23:15.78\01:23:18.37
they began their sad goodbyes.
01:23:18.40\01:23:20.94
You know, I put
my arms around Steve,
01:23:20.97\01:23:22.73
put my cheek next
to his and then prayed,
01:23:22.76\01:23:26.16
and then I prayed and
hugged him and kissed him
01:23:26.19\01:23:28.75
and opened my eyes,
he had stopped breathing.
01:23:28.78\01:23:36.23
To watch somebody from
a distance is one thing,
01:23:36.26\01:23:38.39
but to be right there
01:23:38.42\01:23:41.08
and he dies right
there. That moment.
01:23:41.11\01:23:46.80
when I looked in his face,
I thought to myself, you know,
01:23:46.83\01:23:54.30
this gives me a little
idea on how God must have felt
01:23:54.33\01:23:59.62
when He looked into the dying
face of His Son on Calvary.
01:23:59.65\01:24:05.62
But He had the
power to do something
01:24:05.65\01:24:09.89
but didn't step in,
and let His Son die.
01:24:09.92\01:24:15.42
Can you imagine the
emotional pain of stepping back
01:24:15.45\01:24:21.20
when you have the
power to do something
01:24:21.23\01:24:23.82
and not do anything, and
He did that for you and me.
01:24:23.85\01:24:27.88
There come times in life as
you're having your devotions
01:24:31.78\01:24:36.32
and you read the
Bible and read the Bible,
01:24:36.35\01:24:37.85
you become so
familiar with it, you know,
01:24:37.88\01:24:40.59
it's not really registering
in your heart like it should.
01:24:40.62\01:24:46.38
So, you know, you have to change
01:24:46.41\01:24:48.38
your devotional approach.
01:24:48.41\01:24:50.53
Both my mother and
my father instilled
01:24:50.56\01:24:53.18
very strong values in
my brother and myself.
01:24:53.21\01:24:57.48
The most
important value I would say
01:24:57.51\01:24:59.98
that they left me
with is that nothing
01:25:00.01\01:25:02.35
is more important in life
than my relationship with God.
01:25:02.38\01:25:07.47
And what that means to me
is, nothing's more important
01:25:07.50\01:25:13.68
than I begin everyday
that, there, with God.
01:25:13.71\01:25:16.92
You already know what he said.
01:25:16.95\01:25:19.27
No, all you have to
do is read what he said.
01:25:19.30\01:25:22.42
It's just the question
is, how would he say it today.
01:25:22.45\01:25:24.70
Maybe I ought
to write this down.
01:25:24.73\01:25:26.50
So I started with Mark
and I started writing it out,
01:25:26.53\01:25:30.09
as if Jesus were
there, saying what He said.
01:25:30.12\01:25:35.01
Every morning Jack would
get up between 3:30 and 4 a.m.
01:25:35.04\01:25:38.43
and write, in spite
of being a college dean,
01:25:38.46\01:25:41.46
teaching a full load of classes
01:25:41.49\01:25:42.91
and fulfilling his
administrative duties,
01:25:42.94\01:25:45.29
Jack faithfully spend
time reading and writing out
01:25:45.32\01:25:47.93
the New Testament
in his words, by hand.
01:25:47.96\01:25:50.51
And that the
waking up at 3 o'clock
01:25:50.54\01:25:51.97
was not in order to
write the "Clear Word",
01:25:52.00\01:25:54.67
it was in order
to meet with God.
01:25:54.70\01:25:57.11
During a holiday with relatives,
01:25:57.14\01:25:58.78
Jack shared his
project with his family.
01:25:58.81\01:26:01.09
They were eager to
have him share with others.
01:26:01.12\01:26:03.48
Word began to circulate
01:26:03.51\01:26:04.69
and others wanted to
read Jack's writings.
01:26:04.72\01:26:07.02
The first edition
of the New Testament
01:26:07.05\01:26:08.76
was published at College Press,
01:26:08.79\01:26:10.80
then Review and
Herald Publishing
01:26:10.83\01:26:12.44
began producing Jack's books.
01:26:12.47\01:26:14.49
His personal devotional
became the "Clear Word".
01:26:14.52\01:26:17.73
Years ago Jack was a
part of our team here
01:26:17.76\01:26:19.64
at Review and Herald
01:26:19.67\01:26:20.78
and it was really
good to have him back
01:26:20.81\01:26:22.15
as an author and writer at
the Review and Herald again.
01:26:22.18\01:26:25.81
As we started this project,
01:26:25.84\01:26:27.29
we realized there
could be some confusion
01:26:27.32\01:26:28.96
about calling this a Bible,
01:26:28.99\01:26:31.72
and we moved into
calling it a paraphrase
01:26:31.75\01:26:33.32
for devotional reading.
01:26:33.35\01:26:34.77
When the decision was made
to publish the 'Clear Word",
01:26:34.80\01:26:37.76
Jack and Marion didn't
want to profit from the sales.
01:26:37.79\01:26:40.92
Instead they
chose to give royalties
01:26:40.95\01:26:42.93
to student scholarships at
Southern Adventist University
01:26:42.96\01:26:46.31
amounting to
hundreds of thousands
01:26:46.34\01:26:48.16
of dollars and growing.
01:26:48.19\01:26:49.99
He's made a major impact
01:26:50.02\01:26:51.23
not only on
students at Southern,
01:26:51.26\01:26:52.66
but also
students around the world
01:26:52.69\01:26:54.73
as they use "Clear Word"
paraphrase to lengthen their
01:26:54.76\01:26:58.28
and expand their
understanding of the Bible.
01:26:58.31\01:27:00.74
I can tell you,
I know many people
01:27:00.77\01:27:03.29
who have been
blessed in multiple ways
01:27:03.32\01:27:07.18
by the "Clear Word" paraphrase.
01:27:07.21\01:27:08.83
They found that the "Clear Word"
01:27:08.86\01:27:14.04
brought things alive for me
01:27:14.07\01:27:17.05
and it felt like I was
right there with Christ.
01:27:17.08\01:27:20.89
From the written
word, the "Clear Word"
01:27:20.92\01:27:22.80
was transformed
into the spoken word.
01:27:22.83\01:27:25.41
I really felt it
was a unique honor
01:27:25.44\01:27:27.58
to be invited to be
the audio "Clear Word"
01:27:27.61\01:27:30.68
for Jack Blanco's
own Lord, our Lord.
01:27:30.71\01:27:34.14
You excellence can
be seen everywhere.
01:27:34.17\01:27:36.98
This was a high for my own
personal spiritual journey.
01:27:37.01\01:27:39.91
When I got to the chapters
on the Passion of Christ
01:27:39.94\01:27:41.95
in the New Testament,
01:27:41.98\01:27:43.01
at the end of
each of the gospels,
01:27:43.04\01:27:45.20
the Crucifixion, the
Denial of Peter, Gethsemane.
01:27:45.23\01:27:48.51
As I got to those passages
01:27:48.54\01:27:50.48
and I would start
reading through them
01:27:50.51\01:27:52.39
and it would talk
about Peter's denial.
01:27:52.42\01:27:54.59
I got so choked up, I
literally would break down.
01:27:54.62\01:27:57.71
And I would turn the tape
off, go back, gather myself,
01:27:57.74\01:28:02.05
put myself back into that scene.
01:28:02.08\01:28:04.79
A missionary
teaching in a war torn nation,
01:28:04.82\01:28:07.17
placed a copy
of the "Clear Word"
01:28:07.20\01:28:08.58
in the bookcase.
01:28:08.61\01:28:10.03
A Muslim teacher
began teaching his students
01:28:10.06\01:28:12.45
to read English
by using that copy.
01:28:12.48\01:28:15.50
The students wrote
out entire passages
01:28:15.53\01:28:17.47
to practice their skills.
01:28:17.50\01:28:19.52
Only heaven knows the
impact this will make.
01:28:19.55\01:28:25.04
Jack and Marion led
busy and productive lives
01:28:25.07\01:28:27.63
during their working years
01:28:27.66\01:28:29.34
in addition to raising a family,
01:28:29.37\01:28:31.02
they taught and
preached, gave Bible studies
01:28:31.05\01:28:33.60
and branched out to
work with groups of people
01:28:33.63\01:28:36.06
who were very
different from them.
01:28:36.09\01:28:38.27
When the time came
for them to retire,
01:28:38.30\01:28:40.54
Jack continued to write.
01:28:40.57\01:28:42.31
Today, Jack
volunteers for the local VFW.
01:28:42.34\01:28:45.19
He serves on many educational
and theological committees
01:28:45.22\01:28:48.42
and also mentors
current and future leaders.
01:28:48.45\01:28:51.33
One of Jack's great
passions is prison ministries.
01:28:51.36\01:28:54.65
He also enjoys stamp collecting,
01:28:54.68\01:28:56.58
weight training and
many outdoor activities
01:28:56.61\01:28:58.99
near his home in
Collegedale, Tennessee.
01:28:59.02\01:29:01.79
A lifetime of joy
mixed with tragedy
01:29:01.82\01:29:04.15
and near death experiences,
balanced by hope and salvation,
01:29:04.18\01:29:08.37
have shaped the
man, Jack Blanco.
01:29:08.40\01:29:10.81
His love for God and
his desire for others
01:29:10.84\01:29:13.35
to know Jesus
compels him to continue
01:29:13.38\01:29:16.10
to share the gospel
with others every single day.
01:29:16.13\01:29:19.61
On several occasions
Jack and I have talked
01:29:19.64\01:29:21.94
and he has both shared
his conversion experience
01:29:21.97\01:29:25.19
that led him into the
Seventh-day Adventist church,
01:29:25.22\01:29:27.88
as well as the
strength of the convictions
01:29:27.91\01:29:30.35
he had that he was doing
01:29:30.38\01:29:31.76
what the Bible called him to do.
01:29:31.79\01:29:33.57
Jack has said on
occasions that if somehow,
01:29:33.60\01:29:36.02
and it's the stretch for him
01:29:36.05\01:29:37.13
to even think
of the possibility,
01:29:37.16\01:29:39.24
the church were to take a stance
01:29:39.27\01:29:40.69
that was not biblical, he
would stick with the Bible.
01:29:40.72\01:29:44.39
For 85 years Jack
Blanco has faced dangers
01:29:44.42\01:29:47.47
and overcome challenges.
01:29:47.50\01:29:49.28
His earthly father abandoned
him before he was born.
01:29:49.31\01:29:52.64
As a toddler,
Jack suffered a fall
01:29:52.67\01:29:54.75
from the third
story of a building
01:29:54.78\01:29:56.37
that should have
claimed his life.
01:29:56.40\01:29:58.55
He was separated from his mother
01:29:58.58\01:30:00.03
and grandparents
01:30:00.06\01:30:01.32
and survived experiences
in German labor camps
01:30:01.35\01:30:03.93
during World War II.
01:30:03.96\01:30:05.14
One particular night,
01:30:05.17\01:30:07.88
I remember, heard the
siren go off and headed,
01:30:07.91\01:30:12.28
you know, for
these earth built bunkers
01:30:12.31\01:30:15.60
and then we heard the
droning of the bombers
01:30:15.63\01:30:19.46
and then the bombs falling.
01:30:19.49\01:30:21.70
And they got closer
and closer and closer.
01:30:21.73\01:30:25.81
One got so closed, I
mean, our whole bunker shook
01:30:25.84\01:30:30.51
and we just held our breath.
01:30:30.54\01:30:32.68
The main squadron of the bombers
01:30:32.71\01:30:36.19
had dropped their
bombs and then flew on.
01:30:36.22\01:30:38.97
We thought it was over.
01:30:39.00\01:30:40.06
And then we hear a
lone bomber droning along
01:30:40.09\01:30:43.74
and he is the one
that's dropping the bombs
01:30:43.77\01:30:45.84
that came closer
and closer and closer.
01:30:45.87\01:30:49.05
We just sat there
holding our breath.
01:30:49.08\01:30:52.13
We got out of the--
01:30:52.16\01:30:53.52
Out of our bunkers, back to bed.
01:30:53.55\01:30:56.59
Next morning, of course,
we were ordered to clean up
01:30:56.62\01:30:59.31
and we paced off as
best we could, the bombs
01:30:59.34\01:31:04.04
that were dropped the
space between the bombs.
01:31:04.07\01:31:07.87
One more bomb would have
been a direct hit on our bunker
01:31:07.90\01:31:11.38
and I wouldn't be here today.
01:31:11.41\01:31:13.41
Jack and Marion
dedicated their lives
01:31:13.44\01:31:15.24
to following
their heavenly Father.
01:31:15.27\01:31:17.46
Our grandparents
have had a huge impact
01:31:17.49\01:31:19.88
on God's work on earth.
01:31:19.91\01:31:20.94
A lot of people give offerings
in church and what not.
01:31:20.97\01:31:25.86
Both of them took
a huge step further
01:31:25.89\01:31:28.31
and firsthand
went to other countries
01:31:28.34\01:31:31.79
and brought Christ to people.
01:31:31.82\01:31:34.53
I think his story should be told
01:31:34.56\01:31:36.29
just because of how
much he's had to overcome
01:31:36.32\01:31:39.79
and I feel like that would
have made so many people bitter.
01:31:39.82\01:31:43.25
He's really just risen above it.
01:31:43.28\01:31:45.83
On February 4, 2012
after sometime as caregiver
01:31:45.86\01:31:50.55
Jack said goodbye to the
one dearest on earth to him.
01:31:50.58\01:31:54.82
Marion fell asleep in
Jesus, her work here complete.
01:31:54.85\01:31:58.37
Today as Jack continues to tell
the story of Jesus to others,
01:31:58.40\01:32:02.02
he carries on the ministry
01:32:02.05\01:32:03.32
that Marion began
with a young soldier
01:32:03.35\01:32:05.98
who came home on leave and sat
in a pew one Sabbath morning.
01:32:06.01\01:32:10.15
Jack's focus is to leave
a legacy that ripples on,
01:32:10.18\01:32:13.22
bringing people a knowledge
of the master of the ocean,
01:32:13.25\01:32:16.68
in all Jack has done
and all he continues to do.
01:32:16.71\01:32:20.08
This same message has
remained the theme of his life.
01:32:20.11\01:32:23.26
It's all about Him. Yeah.
01:32:23.29\01:32:28.26
I didn't grow
up with the father,
01:32:28.29\01:32:29.43
but I've got a heavenly Father.
01:32:29.46\01:32:30.61
And by His grace I
will not disappoint Him,
01:32:30.64\01:32:32.59
I'll uphold Him and
I'll uphold His reputation.
01:32:32.62\01:32:36.86
That's what it's all about,
upholding God's reputation.
01:32:36.89\01:32:42.35
We don't just sit,
say well, I'm saved.
01:32:42.38\01:32:45.85
No, we go about
upholding God's reputation.
01:32:45.88\01:32:49.34
What else are we
here for? Amazing grace.
01:32:49.37\01:32:54.70
How sweet the sound.
01:32:54.73\01:32:57.24
That saved a
wretch like me. Yes.
01:32:57.27\01:33:00.52
I once was lost, now I am found,
01:33:00.55\01:33:04.94
was blind, but now I see.
01:33:04.97\01:33:07.88
Wow!
01:33:07.91\01:33:09.46