Our Team

God has given us these gifts, and we use them to give back and create positive change.

Terry L. Benedict / Founder & CEO

Terry grew up expecting to be an archaeologist discovering the Holy Grail. Instead he found himself in Hollywood supervising chase scenes in the “Terminator” and “Marked For Death.” After 15 years in the business, his life took an unexpected turn causing him to evaluate the art that he was producing. Impressed to create films that inspire and promote positive messages to the global community, he produced and directed the critically acclaimed and award winning documentary film, “The Conscientious Objector.” He is currently shooting two documentaries about poverty and social justice issues.

An honors graduate of Pepperdine University, Terry is often found on the speaking circuit. His passion to inspire students to be accountable for the art and media they produce led him to form the Shae organization. He continues working as a filmmaker, mentor, and loves exploring the world with his family.

Gary Burns, M.A. / Co-Founder

Since 1970 Gary has been involved in film and video as a producer, director, writer, reporter, curriculum designer, and CEO of a production company and advertising agency.

He has 25 years experience in serving teenagers as mentor, teacher, pastor, chaplain, and camp director providing community service opportunities and international relief experiences for them in nine countries and five continents.

Gary met Terry at a pre-release screening of “The Conscientious Objector.” The message and heart of this filmmaker resonated with Gary’s own passion to make a creative difference for good. Together, they forged a synergistic relationship that has produced the Shae organization.

Dr. George Babcock, Ed.D / President

An educational administrator for forty-nine years, George has served as an academic dean, college president, and administrator of large school systems. He consults for various foreign government ministries of education, and has traveled extensively in over 120 countries. He led educators by integrating schools in the South during the Civil Rights movement. Served as one of the few who could bring understanding and cooperation between Muslims and Christians in Pakistan, as a college president.

His years of experience representing private education on the Governor’s Education Advisory Council for the State of Tennessee and dealing with both private and regional accrediting associations made him much in demand in the academic world. As an accomplished pianist, he has taken delight in helping to establish two schools of visual art and design as well as encouraging accountability in the all of the arts. George met Terry and quickly discovered that they shared similar interests in fostering the creative spirit. When the Shae organization was started Terry asked George to be the president during its formative years. George is married to Fern, his wife of 51 years. They enjoy their three grandchildren.

Rajmund Dabrowski / Corporate communication

Born in Poland, Ray’s early interests in photography turned into an apprenticeship with one of the country’s celebrated photographers, Marek Karewicz, and his journalism started in high school for a student paper. Both interests were augmented with studies in journalism and religion in England and in the United States. If you ask him what stands out in his professional life – which includes a number of activities in corporate communication – he will say: “I am a very lucky person who encountered and engaged with diverse cultures and people.”

Involvement with the Shae Foundation extends Ray’s years of leadership and involvement in corporate communication, including publishing, media productions, operation of a news agency, crisis communication, branding and public affairs. Ray has served, among others, on the Washington, D.C.-based boards of such organizations as the International Religious Liberty Association (IRLA), and Center of Interfaith Action on Global Poverty (CIFA).

Social justice, engagement with like-minded activists to combat poverty, violence and inequality will continue to see him practice imagination, creativity, boldness and taking risks.

Josef Kissinger / Photographer

Josef Kissinger started taking pictures after receiving his first camera on his 11th birthday. Since then, his passion for photography has taken him to over 30 countries. In 1999, while on a mission trip to Romania, Josef realized that he wanted to use his camera to make a difference. “It was truly a life changing experience.” Josef says, “I have never been naive to poverty and suffering in the world, but it is not enough just to know about it–you have to experience it in person before you can really grasp what it is about. That first mission trip opened my heart to the less fortunate and cemented a resolve to use my camera to help in any way I can, however small or large an impact that might be.”

Josef’s work has been published on six continents around the world through ANN (Adventist News Network). His recent documentary project for the NGO SOHO (Saving Orphans through Healthcare and Outreach) was developed into a book published under the name “The Hope Seekers: Survival if Southern African Child-led Households in the Shadows of HIV/AIDS.”