A Word From Our Publisher
The year was 1969. I was a Social Studies teacher in Scotch Plains, New Jersey, and I began attending a church in nearby Plainfield. It was First Christian Assembly. Soon thereafter I met an elder of the church, Mr. Dan Malachuk, who was a local jeweler.
I was fascinated by the fact that Dan had started a small publishing company in the back room of his shop. He called it Logos International Fellowship. I believe the first book published by Logos was The Challenging Counterfeit by Raphael Gasson.
The third book or so that was published by the fledgling company was Run Baby Run by Nicky Cruz with Jamie Buckingham. This autobiography of a former gang member became a true blockbuster that has sold more than two million copies and still sells strongly for us today.
I started my career in publishing then by packing books in the back room of the jewelry store and I worked with the Malachuks in the jewelry store, the church, and the publishing company for several years. It was a very exciting time to be so involved, for the Jesus Movement and the Charismatic Renewal were going strong and I felt so privileged to be a part of it all.
I remember meeting many of our authors, including Nicky Cruz, Dennis Bennett, Judson Cornwall, Harold Hill, Father Joseph Orsini, Jamie Buckingham, and Willard Cantelon. I loved each one and learned so much from them, their books, and from the Malachuks, as well.
Logos International Fellowship did extremely well for a long time. They took over the facilities of the Plainfield newspaper and began publishing a daily Christian newspaper—The National Courier. More than 100 employees worked for the company during that very prosperous era. Unfortunately, however, the newspaper was never able to get the subscriptions and advertising it needed, even though the book division and a monthly magazine, Logos Journal, were doing well.
Eventually the company was bought by a man from Great Britain, Raymond Stanbury, who owned Valley Books Trust in Chepstow, Wales, UK. For a few years I served as his general manager. He named the company Bridge Publishing, Inc. Under Raymond's direction, we began a series of classics that are now known as our Pure Gold Classics.
As time went on, the company was sold to another Englishman—Mr. Guy Morrell. For a couple of years I served as a consultant and editor for Guy. He changed the name of the company to Bridge-Logos Publishers, because he wanted to bring back the Logos style books that had been fairly well dropped by the UK owners. Guy's work with several of our authors, including Ray Comfort and Liberty Savard, enabled the company to grow and prosper once more.
Guy died in 2007, and his widow, Kitty, asked me to become Publisher and CEO of Bridge-Logos Publishing, which is now Bridge-Logos. I'm so glad I agreed to do so, because in my heart I have always been a part of this great company. I thank God that He called me to continue to serve here, and I ask for your prayers for all who work with us, including our staff, editors, graphic designers, and authors. God has been faithful to us for more than forty years, and I know He will continue to bless this company that was founded by Dan Malachuk in 1969.
Lloyd B. Hildebrand
