FRANKLIN GRAHAM
William Franklin
Graham, III, born July 14, 1952, is the
fourth of five children born to evangelist
Billy Graham and his wife, Ruth Bell Graham.
Raised in a log home in the Appalachian
Mountains outside Asheville, North Carolina,
Franklin now lives in Boone, North Carolina.
At age 22, after a
period of rebellion and traveling the world,
Franklin committed his life to Jesus Christ
while alone in a hotel room in Jerusalem.
Soon after that, Dr. Bob Pierce, founder of
Samaritan’s Purse (and World Vision, the
world's largest Christian relief and
development organization), invited Franklin
to join him on a six-week mission to Asia. It
was during that time that Franklin felt a
calling to work with hurting people in areas
of the world affected by war, famine,
disease, and natural disasters.
Franklin was elected to
the Board of Samaritan’s Purse in 1978,
and one year later, following the death of
Bob Pierce, he was elected president of the
organization, a position he has held ever
since. Today, with an annual budget of more
than $85 million, Samaritan’s Purse
supports evangelical efforts and relief
assistance throughout Africa, Asia, Eastern
Europe, the Middle East, and North and South
America. The organization is headquartered in
Boone, North Carolina, with offices in
Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and
the Netherlands.
In 1989, Franklin
conducted his first evangelistic crusade and
committed to spend 10 percent of his time
each year preaching. Each year he conducts up
to 10 festivals
around the world as an evangelist for the
Billy Graham Evangelistic Association
(BGEA). Since 1989, he has preached to
more than 1.6 million people in cities from
Johannesburg, South Africa, to Tupelo,
Mississippi.
In 1995, Franklin was
elected to serve as the first vice-chairman
of the BGEA—a position with direct
succession to become chairman and CEO of the
organization. Franklin has served on the BGEA
Board since 1979.
Franklin is the author
of four books: Living Beyond the Limits:
A Life in Sync with God (Thomas Nelson,
1998); Kids Praying for Kids (Thomas
Nelson, 1998); his autobiography, Rebel
With A Cause: Finally Comfortable Being
Graham (Thomas Nelson, 1995); Miracle
in a Shoe Box (Thomas Nelson, 1995), a
children’s book about Operation Christmas Child,
a project of Samaritan’s Purse; and Bob
Pierce: This One Thing I Do (Word Books,
1983).
A graduate of Montreat
College and Appalachian State University,
Franklin has been honored with doctorate
degrees from Toccoa Falls College, Lees McRae
College, National University, and Liberty
University. He and his wife, Jane, have four
children, William Franklin IV (Will), Roy,
Edward, and Jane Austin (Cissie).