Steps Toward ASI Panel Review Negotiations: #3
Gailon Joy and 3ABN
Investigating, troubleshooting, seeking justice, that's what Gailon Joy enjoys doing. With
a wealth of experience in real estate, finance, and legal matters, he is well equipped to do battle
if duty demands.
Gailon had been a long time supporter of 3ABN, and had not appreciated a news story
the previous spring that called 3ABN a growing offshoot of the Adventist Church.
He'd been asked two years before to investigate 3ABN, but just thought it was all sour grapes.
And as far as Linda Shelton went, the dissolution of her marriage probably was her fault.
For the Ten Commandments Weekend project, Gailon helped distribute 5,800 copies of Danny Shelton's Ten
Commandments Twice Removed book. But Danny's quick remarriage around the same time made Gailon begin to
question what was going on. As friends kept sending him material about 3ABN, more questions were arising in his mind
about the integrity of Danny Lee Shelton. Still, Gailon contented himself with asking a few questions
from the sidelines.
The Dryden Letter Arrives
On August 14 and 15, 2006, Pickle sent out the 2003 Glenn Dryden letter to four Seventh-day Adventist pastors
and administrators. One of those four passed it on to a fifth, and that fifth made sure Pastor Dryden's letter
got faxed to Gailon Joy. It arrived on the afternoon of Tuesday, August 15.
When Gailon took a look at the faxed letter, he thought, "This is a hoax!" But all it took was a few phone calls
to realize that it was anything but a hoax. Before the day was out, he wrote an old friend.
|
-------- Original Message --------
| From: |
G. Arthur Joy |
| Subject: |
Re: spelling |
| Date: |
Tue, 15 Aug 2006 23:55:02 +0000 |
|
...
Received another absolute bombshell and today and
have authenticated it's origins as well. Not sure why
but I have ignored several pleas to publish raised issues
in the past two years and have declined ... really felt much
was contrived.
The remarriage bothered me a great deal .... Add a host of
other allegations that come too fast and furiously to keep
up with and I see a dramatic change or the wholesale collapse
of 3ABN.
...
Gailon Joy
|
On the afternoon of the 16th he wrote to the pastor/administrator who had gotten
the 2003 Dryden letter into his hands:
|
-------- Original Message --------
| From: |
G. Arthur Joy |
| Subject: |
Re: Still More 3ABN Info |
| Date: |
Wed, 16 Aug 2006 16:32:39 +0000 |
|
I tracked down the pastor in the Tommy Shelton allegations
and it is in fact a valid and authentic document. Also spoke
with the Clerk of the Ezra Church who confirmed the story. That
has resulted in a number of calls from "victims" calling to confrim
the story and on and on. The pastor is now in ... Virginia.
I wonder if the meeting minutes address this issue in the board
and do we know if anyone on the [3ABN] board even knew about this mess???
This is a virtual disaster and looks as though we are plunging
into the abyss. ...
why would they have complained to church authorities when
it is clearly known that 3ABN is an "INDEPENDENT" ministry and
has rebuffed the GC attempts at affiliations several times?
Do we have any idea the context of these purported documents
and why they believe the world press would really show any serious
interest?
...
I am becoming quite befuddled, although a host of other pieces
are certainly fitting together this year that had come my way
via various sources over the last two years to which I deliberately
gave little heed. I always regret not being much more open minded
on these issues, in this case because I have once again supported
3ABN with a lot of friends over the past several years. I was
executor for my uncle's estate that gifted/bequeathed nearly
a million dollars to 3ABN just a year ago.
Now the most vital question of all, who is spear-heading the
effort to get control of this mess and under what terms and conditions???
Gailon
|
Endless Interviews
Then commenced the seemingless endless interviews of present and former 3ABN board members, employees, and volunteers,
and even interviews of Shelton family members. One allegation after another surfaced until it was hard to keep them
all straight. There were moral issues, financial issues, and ethical issues. It got to the point that Gailon felt
this was beyond his capabilities to deal with.
|
-------- Original Message --------
| From: |
G. Arthur Joy |
| Subject: |
Re: 3ABN- MY Reply! |
| Date: |
Wed, 23 Aug 2006 00:57:18 +0000 |
|
... I am turning up more trash with virtually every call or e-mail. I am at the point where I am
beginning to think that Jim Bakker was but a piker to Danny ... Time the Lord stepped in and cleaned this bloody mess
up, before the entire church is embarrassed by the exposure. The hypocrisy is devastating!!!
They definitely need our prayers as there are a lot of innocent pawns simply trying to do what
they see as the Lord's great work. If this continues to break open, I am concerned that there
may not be a good way to save the entity and the enumerable communication licenses and
broadcast rights that are controlled by 3ABN.
This is so extensive that we now have three investigators chasing leads and just can't keep up.
I do not know how the Lord has allowed this to go on for so long!!! And then I must ask the
inevitable, "why me". This was not my crusade, but I felt absolutely compelled to pursue the
truth when it was thrown at me. Almost wish I had not taken this call!!!
May the Lord's will be done in everything we do.
Gailon
|
By the time that was written, Gailon had already been in contact with Danny and the 3ABN board.
But as the days went by and the scandal grew bigger and bigger, no progress was made in that direction.
Thus, the best course appeared to be to just take it all to law enforcement and the media, an idea he was floating by
August 28:
|
-------- Original Message --------
| From: |
G. Arthur Joy |
| Subject: |
Re: A specific question |
| Date: |
Mon, 28 Aug 2006 16:38:25 +0000 |
|
...
The scope of this investigation goes well beyond what we had
originally thought we were taking on and might ultimately prove
to be well over our heads. If that is the case, we will have
no alternative but to share what we have with Law Enforcement
and much larger reporting entities that have resources to really
dig away at what looks like Jim Bakker 2.
...
Gailon Arthur Joy
AUReporter
|
So perhaps the world could deal with it. But then Gailon received a phone call.
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