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Christian models attempt to redeem fashion industry

"Action." Loud, fast-paced music with a techno beat fills the room. Two slender, 12-year-old girls emerge from a door at the end of a T-shaped, raised platform. The girls take long graceful strides, their heads held high. They walk to the front of the platform where they strike a pose before whirling around the opposite direction and exiting stage left.

"Good, good," the woman controlling the stereo says. "Next." She motions to a boy and girl standing in the doorway. They step onto the stage and perfectly execute the routine before exiting the platform.

These children are models, practicing for a Fred Meyer fashion show that will take place at Portland's Rose Garden the following morning. The children, trained by abc kids-n-teens, come from all over the Northwest to participate in the show.

Bright posters announce the categories of clothing the children will be modeling: Northwest, funky, classic, licensed, and sportswear. Today they practice in their street clothes.

Abc kids-n-teens is a Christian-based modeling agency Carol Lukens founded in 1986. The agency is located in the Hollywood district of Portland, Ore., but also has branches in Seattle, Wash., and Eugene, Ore. Abc is the largest youth modeling agency in the Northwest.

Lukens began the agency as a way to use her performing arts experience to benefit children and glorify God. "I named this agency abc, which stands for always believe Christ," Lukens said. "This is God's business; my husband and I are stewards."

Abc is a licensed vocational school and trains young people ages 4-25 to model and act. The agency provides modeling and acting classes and finds its models jobs. Abc models work for Nike, Adidas, Bon Marche, Burlington Coat Factory, Columbia Sportswear, Emporium, Fred Meyer, L.L. Bean, Meier and Frank, and Talbots.

Bert Lukens, co-owner of abc kids-n-teens, said, "Our kids do a lot of print work. We not only train the kids, but we also get them work statewide and nationwide."

Carol Lukens explained that her models are sought after in the Northwest. "We've become well-known for training and providing strong, well-educated models," she said.

Lindsay Wilson, a pixie-faced 12-year-old, has been modeling with abc for three years. She has appeared in ads for Meier and Frank, Nike, Fred Meyer, Emporium and Burlington Coat Factory. Lindsay plans to continue modeling as a teen-ager. "I want to keep modeling as long as I can," she said. "It's fun." She said she also enjoys the publicity and financial benefits. She receives a modeling job approximately every other week. She earns $60 an hour, and each photo shoot averages two hours. Lindsay explained she keeps 20 percent for spending and puts the rest in a savings account.

Lindsay's mother, Lisa, who describes her daughter as "shy," believes modeling has boosted Lindsay's confidence. She said modeling hasn't conflicted with their Christian values. Mrs. Wilson said she has no concerns about her daughter's future in modeling or the possibility of compromising jobs. "Those are the decisions you make when you get there," she said.

The employees at abc believe modeling produces positive results in children such as confidence, a heightened sense of self-worth, and money for college.

"The classes build their confidence and help them learn to overcome rejection," Keri Winfree, an abc employee, said. "We teach them that success has to do with what's inside; that's what is going to get them work. We send out people that are beautiful from the inside out."

Lukens said abc encourages its models to have a balanced view of beauty. "What we do here has nothing to do with vanity," she said. "If they're not happy with what they have now, they will never be happy in the future."

Lukens said modeling also provides her clients with opportunities to witness, but only if they can withstand the negative pressures of the industry. "My strongest performers have a spiritual side," Lukens said. "There's something about a Christian kid that draws people to him like a magnet. I only promote kids with a strong faith. Otherwise, they're meat for the bears."

Dr. Larry Day, Christian counselor and author of "By Design" and "In God's Image," believes the fashion industry negatively affects society, including Christians.

"The influence of the fashion industry is one piece of the pie among many things that influence people's sense of self-worth," he said. "The fashion world is very temporal, it's very transient, and if people's sense of well-being is attached to it, obviously they will be deeply influenced by it." Day said the fashion industry puts the most pressure on teen-age girls. Girls who see pictures of tall, thin models may develop eating disorders as a result, he said.

"The emphasis that comes out of the modeling world is 'beautiful is thin,'" he said. "Girls are more susceptible to that pressure than guys.

"Christians need to bring back balance in the churches concerning beauty," Day said. "Churches should focus on the healthy view of beauty and help people understand that their worth doesn't come from their externals at any time. Their worth comes in who God has created them to be."

On the other hand, Lukens believes Christians place too much blame for eating disorders and low self-esteem on the fashion industry. She said she feels pictures of super-thin models have little to do with the problem.

"I think they learn unhealthy habits from their families and friends," she said. "Everybody wants to blame somebody else."

Day also warned of the negative pressure Christians within the industry face. He counseled two professional Christian models several years ago.

"Both girls told me there is incredible pressure on a Christian in the fashion world. Pressure to be worldly--the drugs, the partying, the free sex," he said. "In one case, the girl went that direction, and in the other case, the girl is still trying to hold on to her Christian values. But she wouldn't completely fit in at Multnomah."

Day said he would caution those considering modeling as a profession to firmly establish their values and convictions before they enter the industry.

"Christians need to be the light in those very dark places," he said. "But they need to have some things settled in their heart to protect their moral convictions."

Joan Eberly, a Northwest Christian model, agreed. Eberly has been modeling full-time for more than 20 years for major department stores, including Nordstrom, The Bon Marche, and Meier and Frank. The first job offer Eberly received was modeling underwear for Meier and Frank. She turned down the offer, expecting she'd never receive another job offer. Three days later, she received a second call from Meier and Frank, offering her a modeling job. She said they've been her strongest client for the past 20 years.

"Whenever I'm asked to do lingerie, I say 'no,'" she said. "If you have your values, you won't have a problem with [modeling]. You set your boundaries and know where you're going, and you don't have to make the bad choices."

Lukens said helping abc models stay strong in their faith and make good choices in the industry is her goal. "We won't let our kids get into compromising situations," she said. "We screen out all questionable jobs; we're protecting them."

Lukens teaches acting and modeling, not religion, but she tries to instill Christian values in her models. She also teaches them street knowledge--how to protect themselves from dangerous situations. "The kids with a strong faith who have left this agency and entered the industry haven't changed," she said.

Although Lukens agreed evil exists in the fashion industry, she believes there's more perversion and darkness in other fields such as medicine and law. "[The fashion] industry is full of godly people," she said.

Jonathan Jackson, an abc graduate, plays "Lucky" on the daytime soap opera, General Hospital. "Jonathan won two Emmys this year, and he thanked God after receiving each one," Lukens said. "Now that's pretty neat."

According to abc models, the biggest concerns they have about modeling are long car trips from their homes to the agency and the discomfort of modeling winter coats on hot summer days. Katie said she likes getting dressed up. Tony said he has fun meeting other children. Noelle said she enjoys "getting the job."

Children in the modeling industry face few pressures when they're appearing in a Fred Meyer ad or a commercial for jello jigglers. But Eberly said older models face more pressure. Pressure to look young. Pressure to stay thin. And pressure to compromise.

Eberly, the mother of two grown children, said keeping up her appearance is an ongoing pressure she faces as a model. "Our agent will tell us if we're overweight," she said. "And it's embarrassing when you're at a fitting and you're given an outfit to wear and you can't get it zipped up."

Eberly, who works in Portland, Ore., and Seattle, Wash., said the pressure to compromise isn't as prevalent in Northwest modeling as in the New York or the European markets. "I work side by side with a lot of younger models, and I discourage them from going to Europe," she said. "That's a scary market."

Eberly believes God has placed her in the industry. "To me, it's an art and a business," she said. "It's just like any other field."

Winfree agreed Christians have a place within the fashion industry. "I think there's good and bad in everything," she said. "And unfortunately there are those people out there who make the fashion industry a tainted industry. But there are so many great people who enlighten these kids in ways they would never have received anywhere else.

"God places people in all industries because we need witnesses and fellowship everywhere. This is an industry that needs more Christian people. And if they're positive and they're doing it for the right reasons, I think it's a great place for them to be."