(BEACON) The body of filmmaker David Hames has been positively identified after recovery under rubble from the earthquake in Haiti.  Hames was President of Red Balloon Entertainment and Producer of “Cranium’s Ark”. 

David Hames was working on assignment with Compassion International when the earthquake hit Port-au-Prince, Haiti on January 12, 2010. David had just returned to the Hotel Montana from a video shoot when the 7.0 magnitude quake hit the entire region causing the six-story structure to collapse underneath him. David Hames was one of about 100 people, including 15 Americans that are believed to have been buried by the collapse of the hotel. He was on assignment with Dan Woolley filming sequences for Compassion International’s Child Sponsorship program.

Wess Stafford, President of Compassion Intl., said, “After holding out hope for a miracle, our hearts are broken by the news that David’s remains have been identified. David was a gifted videographer who traveled to multiple countries over the past 8 years with Compassion, capturing both the heartache of poverty and the hope of Christ in children’s lives. I had the privilege of accompanying David to Peru and know beyond a doubt that his work has had an eternal impact. David’s most recent assignment was to capture the stories of Haitian families whose infants have been enrolled in Compassion’s Child Survival Program. This tragedy has taken a wonderful man from us. Our love and prayers continue for those now left behind, especially his wife and children.”

Family spokesperson, Melanie Dobson, said, “David’s wife, Renee, and her boys are grieving the loss of their husband and father. Our faith in God is not shaken by this terrible tragedy, but we still mourn the loss of this adoring husband, amazing daddy, and faithful friend. We all know David loved Jesus, and we know that he is safe today, at home with our Heavenly Father. Now we will band together to care for his sweet wife and their two adopted children.”

David Hames was traveling with Dan Woolley who was rescued on Friday, January 15th. Dan said, “I was grateful for the opportunity to meet and spend a couple of days with David. His professionalism, love of family and love of God showed in his work. So many people throughout Compassion, the Colorado Springs area and even in the slums of some of the world’s most impoverished countries were blessed to know him better than I, and are celebrating his selfless life and legacy.”

David Hame’s company, Red Balloon Entertainment, the production company behind the award- winning “Cranium’s Ark” children’s TV program, had recently released the first in a series of high-quality educational shows featuring intellectually-stimulating, faith-based concepts. David’s mission was to produce an outrageously creative and fun children’s video series that’s “Monkey Bars for the Brain, Juice Box for the Soul.” “Cranium’s Ark” is designed to help parents prepare their toddlers, preschoolers and kindergartners with the skills needed to succeed and to instill in preschoolers the Christian principles that parents strive to teach their children every day.

Integrity Media VP of Church Resources, Craig Dunnagan, said, “Everyone at Integrity Media was saddened to hear of David’s passing. Our intercessory prayer group was praying for a miracle. We know the greatest miracle is a life transformed and lived in the presence of Jesus; David is now experiencing that life first hand. We believed so much in David’s heart and creativity and were in discussions with him and his representatives regarding his wonderful product line, Cranium’s Ark. David’s reputation as a committed family man, man of God, man of mission and ministry was known by many.”

“Cranium’s Ark” was recently awarded the “Best Children’s Film” award at the 2009 Christian Film Festival in Irvine, California. David was the creator, writer, director, producer and host and was quoted as saying, “Too many shows for kids are just ‘empty calories’ -- they teach very little, or if they do cover academics, they ignore a child’s soul. I wanted an academic show for my kids with the same kind of fabric as our lives, where faith is simply a part of it. If you were to take what Christian parents hope to accomplish with their young children on any given day and turn that into a video series, the result would be Cranium’s Ark.”