sionary Fellowship, Inc. were not willing to pay any amount to obtain the contract, so negotiations dragged. During late 1959 and 1960 and part of 1961, Bob Clark spent much time in government offices, talking to the heads of Congress, to various high officials and govern ment ministers. He worked with a committee of profes sional and commercial radio men formulating regulations for TV in Ecuador, based primarily on the American FCC standards. He conferred with representatives of the Public Works and Telecommunications Departments. Still, hope for a permanent license seemed dismal. Later Bob was to realize that God had a purpose for the delay — that the timing was perfect according to His schedule. Despite the fact that the desire of the mission aries was to have a contract immediately, God knew they were not yet ready for the responsibilities it involved. Although well-trained in radio, the HCJB personnel was inexperienced in television and needed this waiting period as a “ dress rehearsal” before assuming a full-time schedule. Furthermore, there were no Ecuadorians who had experience in television, so cameramen, floormen, shaders, audio control men, announcers, and even actors had to be trained. There were little or no funds with which to back a full-time TV project, and the equip ment still needed perfecting. Only actual use and testing gave the engineers valuable experience as they worked long hours tuning, repairing, and adjusting. HCJB-TV televised during that two-year period on a limited basis, first one night a week, then three, always
in transmissions? However, Bob was accustomed to prob lems, for HCJB-TV had a history of dilemmas, although each time God had met every crisis. Surely He would do so now. Television for the mission field had been the concept of HCJB missionaries since 1952. However, it was not until 1955, when an engineer in New York, Gift Hart well, started the mammoth task of building a station in his spare time in his own garage, that missionary tele vision actually got a foothold. Even after that, it was several years before Hartwell and HCJB missionaries learned of their mutual vision. Hartwell, realizing the impact which television had made in the United States, felt challenged to build a station for the mission field. He had no funds but he did possess faith and persistence. In 1955 he heard that two General Electric TV stations had gone bankrupt and that their equipment had been returned to G.E. to be scrapped. Hartwell made negotiations to purchase this valuable equipment at rock-bottom prices. Two years later, after more than two thousand hours of spare-time labor with a little more than one thousand dollars in vested, the first complete TV station was finished and tested in Hartwell’s garage. Enough equipment remained on hand to start the construction of a second TV station. The agreement with G.E. was that the equipment should go abroad, but Hartwell still wasn’t certain where that would be until the summer of 1957 when he met three HCJB representatives, one of whom was Bob Clark. They told him they had been praying for years that God would grant them the privilege of pioneering in mission ary television, of presenting the Gospel of Christ through this new medium. They rejoiced with Hartwell, knowing that God had brought them together and had set His final seal of approval upon this new venture into mis sionary television. Construction on the second station began and on June 17, 1958, two complete television stations were dedicated to the Lord. Meanwhile the World Radio Missionary Fellowship, Inc., the official organization which sponsors HCJB in Ecuador, accepted the offer of the free television stations. Hartwell and his wife, Virginia, then felt con strained of the Lord to offer more than just equipment— to offer themselves personally to go to Ecuador as full time missionaries. On January, 22, 1959 five-and-a-half tons of equip ment arrived at its destination in Quito, to become the first television station in the country of Ecuador, as well as the pioneering step in missionary television. Setting it up, as well as constructing and erecting its antenna, took several months. By August the job was terminated and HCJB-TV accepted the invitation of the Union of News papermen in Ecuador to present a television exhibition at the National Fair. In the minds of the newspaper men, the future of television in Ecuador would depend greatly upon how well the public responded to this television tryout. Therefore they gave excellent publicity to the new venture. As a result, crowds thronged the Fair to view television for the first time. The mayor of the city inaugurated HCJB-TV Le Ventana de Los Andes ( “ The Window of the Andes” ) and Ecuadorians pledged to stand behind television because they felt it would bring advancement to their country. Meanwhile problems developed with the Ecuadorian government concerning television norms. The HCJB-TV equipment had been given free import into the country and granted a temporary permit to telecast but it did not have a permanent television contract. Certain men in the government felt that HCJB-TV should pay a large sum (terming it import duty) if the station were to be granted a contract. The trustees of the World Radio Mis
The famed Palermo Brothers participate in TV program. .looking to the Lord for the miracle of a permanent con tract. But the contract did not come. So the WRMF, Inc. decided to put out a fleece before the Lord even as Gideon had done in the Valley of Jezreel. If this were of God, and from the beginning it had seemed to be, then God could do the impossible. He could move in the hearts of government officials to grant a long-term contract, giv ing liberation of duties. It was decided that if the contract were not granted by the middle of April, 1961, HCJB-TV would discontinue its transmission. April 15 came and still the contract had not been granted. So HCJB-TV stopped televising. Had God led this mission astray in shipping its fine equipment to Ecua dor? Had He given them the gift of this station, as well as its builder-engineer, only to take them away? Mis sionaries and Ecuadorians continued to pray. Bob Clark continued to visit government offices. Reaction came quickly; God performed a miracle! Those who had watched the broadcasts for three nights a week were impressed by HCJB-TV and began asking responsible officials what could be done to finalize its contract. Television had made an impact! The people of Ecuador wanted it back on a permanent, full-time basis.
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A P R IL, 1964
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