The Positional Arms Race In Higher Education Gordon C: Fill & Download for Free

Attending the Missanabie Woods Academy in Ontario was one of the turning points in my life.They use a “Christian” form of Milieu Therapy as a brainwashing technique. After studying psychology at univeristy, I realized the extent of the Mind Control being used.You can look up the names of those responsible and find various reports: Gordon C. Blossom, Timothy G. BlossomBrian Fey's answer to What was the turning point in the lives of various Quora users, and how has it turned them into the person they are today?The organization held students in these locations:Escuela Caribe (located in the Dominican Republic)Mountain View Academy (Dominican Republic)New Horizons Academy (Marion, Indiana)Missanabie Woods Academy (rural Canada) Located somewhere around here: Dog LakeIt was a Fundamentalist Christian brainwashing for troubled kids,… or in many cases kids who were pretty regular by secular standards but were not meeting the moral codes of strict religious parents.Watch this trailer for the film “Kidnapped for Christ” and then read the kids experiences below.I was at the Ontario, Canada at the Missanabie Woods Academy for one long summer when I was 14 years old. In my case, the program masqueraded as a survival training camp, and since I had been involved with wilderness survival training, I was one of the very few students who was there voluntarily. I had been deceived.There was one student younger than me, and they ranged up to 18 or 19 I think. That was back around 1980.See: To Hell and Back: A NUVO SeriesSee: Missanabie Woods Academy Archives - Deirdre SugiuchiWhat I wrote about my experience is here: The Truth about New Horizons Youth MinistriesYour name, first and last.Brian FeyTo which institutions were you sent?Missanabie Woods AcademyHow old were you?14Date you entered The Program/ Date you left.1980; I was only there in the summer.What was the highest level you attained?I don't recall such levels. We had ranks. Perhaps they had not started using these levels, or I was there too short a time for it to matter. I did advance in rank and usually had second rank in my squad. Everything was handled by rank; things such as what food you got to eat... when there was a bread roll there you had to ask: “Would anyone before me (higher rank) like this roll?” And starting with the squad leader going on down the line people would have the option to eat it. If they didn't want it you could have it.Please describe the circumstances that got you sent to The Program, i.e. trouble with law, issues with parents, problems at school, etc.No problems at all. I was a pretty innocent little guy. Grew up in a loving environment.The trip was to be to a survival camp in Ontario and was a reward from my parents to me for good schoolwork. I had a lot of wilderness experience. The brochure was total misrepresentation of that the place was about. After I arrived it was obviously not what was advertised and my parents called to get me out. Most of the students there seemed to have been sent by the courts.Oddly, I chose to stay. And I did try to use the place for my benefit regardless of its messed up nature. I had been kinda of wuss and the experience did make me tougher, though I think it damaged me emotionally as well. I didn't mind the hard work as I was used to that. If I recall right, I got runner up for student of the year. My name should be on a plaque somewhere. The other students thought I was wacked for choosing to stay.Which house were you in?Squad 3. We had a bunkhouse over near to the canoe docks. The other two squads shared a bunkhouse I believe. My impression was that Squad three was for sort of smart guys. Squads 1 and 2 were divided by wusses, and tough guys. I was happy I was not placed in the wuss squad. There were girls in a camp across the inlet, but I had no contact with them though we went over once to put out a fire in their camp.Please describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any.Program director Bud Teare is the only person in my life to assault me. (Except a drugged out dude on the street once and a girlfriend who hit me once.) Our bunkhouse was not clean so they lined us up and each of us was hit on the face. I think it was the side of the face. I fell down and didn't want to get up because I didn't want to get up again. They told me to get up so I did because I was afraid they would kick me. They had kicked another student (Kent) in the stomach when he was already lying on the ground earlier. I wrote how I thought that was wrong in my journal. They read the journal and then Bud and a tall guy with a beard whose name I forgot came to correct my thinking and show my why they need to use these techniques.I never agreed with them inside but I didn't argue anymore and certainly wasn't going to be honest in “my” journal.I got punished for some little things like I asked if the water for post-meal cleanup had arrived... I had just walked past it without noticing it so I had to go walk off the dock. Certainly walking off the dock is no big deal; just kinda cold. I was kinda a spaced out person and still am. It is just how I am by nature.I do not appreciate being assaulted.There are many other examples of their violence and ineptitude. It is all pretty classic brainwashing techniques being used by less than skilled people.James Leach(?) was a sadistic man there. I recall that right after my 48 hour survival solo he demanded that I take my axe test. My whole body was weak and I said I didn't wish to be he was in charge and made me. I did poorly of course not having eaten, except for a few plants, for a couple days. He really enjoyed watching me fail. I had no lack of skill with an axe as I grew up cutting wood and trees.There was also a sadistic assistant squad leader from another squad but luckily I only had contact with him when were were out on some multi-squad hike. It is the same kind of sadism encouraged in fraternities when they haze pledges. One generation of abuse breeds another.Other students had a far worse time that me because I was cooperative and did not fight the program. “Fronting” is the term used, I believe. Some students apparently had experience with “Mr. Black” a rubber strap they were hit with. I have no personal knowledge of that though. I just cooperated and worked hard while knowing these people were seriously damaged. It took one guy three days to convince them that he has broken his leg on the ropes course. They should have better medical training. Eventually they took him out and got his leg set and put in a cast. He was kinda a whiner so maybe that makes it understandable.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any.They had kicked another student (Kent) in the stomach when he was already lying on the ground. I got the impression that my squad was generally less trouble than the others. I did not see many cases of actual physical abuse and it is harder to tell what mental abuse is. Certainly some kids do need some tough experiences to get them in tune with civilized behavior. The program directors could use some help in that area as well.Do you have any good memories of The Program? What are they?We jumped off some cliffs into the lake. That was fun and scary.I liked the competitions and did very well in them. Memory is fuzzy on this... but I recall first place in Orienteering and Survival Solo. Second in a canoe race. I don't remember the rest.There were some nice people there as well. An older guy who taught me how to build things a little. I think his name was Garret. I wish I could have spent more time with him. I assume he has since died. He was a real Christian.My squad leader was named Brad I think. He was ok.I kinda wonder what happened to the other guys in squad 3. They were odd people. I never got to know them too well though. we were not supposed to talk about personal things. I was only 14 and not very socially skilled either.The work was hard. We carried heavy logs that cut the skin off our shoulders. And I was on the saw squad working long hours trying to break out records for making boards out of logs. That was pretty fun in a painful kind of way.What is your overall impression of The Program - did it “help you”?It helped me be less weak and be able to handle pain well. It helped me to crush my emotions.Certainly the experience taught me how twisted “Authority” can be.These people have serious problems. These kinds of people should not be in the business of “helping” youth, especially not youth who are having some problems. Maybe it is different now. I doubt it. It does seem like they couldn't get away with such stuff as they did when I was there in a world of internet etc... but maybe they can. When I was there, there was supposedly a Canadian mail strike so there was no contact via letters. The only time I had outside contact was the phone call from my parents.I do not see the program as christian in any way. They just use the words of christianity to support they messed up program. Christ would hate to have his name associated with this stuff. It isn't a good survival training program either. Maybe it can teach city kids something but it certainly isn't very advanced.I was never really the same after that. I was no longer was open with people and I never told anyone about the things that happened there. This letter is the most I have ever said. There are many other small stories, but I don't care much about this stuff. They are just a tiny part of the messed up world of violence and hate.Though the program was good for me in some ways, I think I would have been a much healthier person and been better off not having gone.What do you think of the quality of education you received?Unimpressive. I was expecting a wilderness survival school. Not a brainwashing survival school. They lied about what the program was. Most of the activities and training listed in the brochure never happened.We did build a pretty big dining hall. They didn't really try to teach of how to do it though. We were just the labor.How old are you today?38Did you go to college afterward? If so, what degrees do you have?I went to the University of Washington and have a degree in Editorial Journalism from the School of Communications.What is your profession?I am an artist. Painter.Do you consider yourself a Christian today?No. The actual words of Christ I am fine with, but the rest of it and a lot of the church don't seem to be Christian. I like Zen a lot. Perhaps I am an Animist or Pantheist. I am mostly a philosophical materialist.What effect did “The Program” have on your faith?I no longer believed in a judeo-christian deity after I was 12 years old.The faith of a child did not become the faith of a man, though the culture and ethics of much of loving christianity I retain to this day.The program did not affect my faith in any way though I did see a pretty ugly side of christianity in some things there. Bud Teare told us he was in favor of the deuteronomy solution to homosexuality which he said is to put a millstone around their neck and throw them in a lake.But... I tried to see the loving christianity I was exposed to growing up as pretty different than the twisted version that these folks seemed to be following.You can read about student experiences here: The Truth about New Horizons Youth MinistriesWe are a group of former students who have reconnected through the Internet and wish to share our collective experience at New Horizons. We range in age from our teens to our late 30s, and attended "The Program" between the mid-1980s and 2002.New Horizons Youth Ministries Inc. purports to help adolescents through "Christian milieu therapy" but in fact does more harm than good. Most of our complaints center on Escuela Caribe, the boot camp located in the Dominican Republic, where we witnessed and experienced physical and emotional abuse, were subjected to young, untrained staff, and had our communication home monitored to keep us from divulging the truth to our families.I include some quotes from the experiences of others below:Lisa BrownPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:This is an awkward question because I believe every day was a violation of my person. I was required to ask to pass through doorways, supervised in the bathroom, forced into manual labor, as were all students. That is humiliating and abusive. In addition to these things were the special little tortures like being "swatted" or beaten with a leather strap on my bottom while bent over a chair, holding the low rungs with my hands. There was an occasion where I was hit so hard that instead of the usual blood-blisters, my skin actually broke. I was kept on a diet where I was allowed only one serving of food. I wasted to 121 lbs on my big boned 5'5" frame. My bones stuck out. I slept on a 1" foam pad with 3 slats because I was ranked lowest in the house. I got bruises from the slats on my hipbones. I was forced to do exercises until I vomited and my body gave out, then punished for not doing more. I was isolated in the "quiet room" twice. This is an isolation room open to the outside. For 3 months I was on "silence" and not allowed to speak except to ask permission or directions from the staff. There was one couple who did relief staffing for the houseparents who put me on silence for all meals because they said I talked about stupid things. This is by no means a finished list, just a taste.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:I remember a girl being dragged by her hair into a cold shower because she was frightened and new, then she was chased up the hill road by the director on a motorcycle carrying a leather strap to hit her with. I also remember hearing "sessions" where the director would swat other girls while insulting or coddling them, without rhyme or reason.What is your overall impression of The Program? Did it “help you”?I am diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder as a direct result of my experience in the program. I don't feel it helped me at all.Lorraine BurrPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:Received swats once for lying. Budd Teare administered the swats. He was a big guy and I remember he hit hard. Then afterwards he told me that it was a girlís spanking. I remember three adults were present, sitting in chairs, watching (two guys, and one woman, Brenda Wheeler). It was extremely humiliating to be watched while I got swats.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:One girl was humiliated really badly. She was 15 and wet her bed. I think she had been physically and sexually abused by foster parents. Nobody knew she was wetting the bed until the day we had a cabin inspection. The assistant camp director (I think his name was Jewel) did the inspection. The girls had to wait outside the cabin. He smelled the urine in her sleeping bag and mattress pad. He brought the sleeping bag and mattress outside and threw them on the rocks yelling and screaming about the bad smell in front of all the girls. He yelled at the girl and told her to wash everything.Also, the camp director, Budd Teare, dunked kids in the lake. This happened to two girls in my squad. The first girl was 17 and she refused one day to go to work. She was brought down to ìthe point. Budd Teare and the assistant director yelled at her for a long time. Budd would get right into someoneís face and yell. He would do this to boys as well as girls. Then the girl was told to go out into the lake until she was waist deep. Budd went out into the water as well. She was yelled at again for a long time and then told to go under water. Budd pulled her up and down in the water by her shirt and also grabbed her hair. When this girl came back to the cabin later that day, her shirt was torn. This same punishment was administered to another girl in my squad.There is also another disturbing incident, which is not really an example of physical abuse, but psychological abuse. One of the girls in my cabin (I think she was 15) slept in a small room on the ground floor of the cabin by herself. The other 6 girls slept in the loft. One night after we had fallen asleep, we woke up to the sounds of a girl screaming and a window being broken. I remember thinking it was someone breaking into the cabin or perhaps an animal. It turned out to be the girl who slept downstairs. The noise woke the two women counselors who went in to see what was wrong. All of us girls huddled together in the loft crying because we were frightened and did not know what was going on. I heard the girl screaming and eventually a few men from the main camp came to our cabin. They took the girl outside and after a long while we were told that everything was o.k. We were told to go back to sleep. The next day, we were admonished not to talk about the incident to one another and not to ask the girl who slept downstairs any questions. We were threatened with discipline if we said anything. That day, I managed to spend a few private moments with the girl. She told me that prior to being sent to the camp, she had been heavily involved in witch craft, satan worship, and weje boards. She said that the night of the incident she woke up and saw demons flying around her room and that they were trying to torment her. She obviously freaked out and broke the window. I was only 13 and the whole situation terrified me. I tried to write a letter to my parents to tell them what happened, but the Dean of Women, Brenda Wheeler, would not send my letter. I was told not to let my parents know about the incident. The whole affair was hushed up. We were not allowed to communicate to anyone what had happened. The girl could not even write home about it. Even to this day, that incident troubles me deeply. She needed professional help and did not receive it.Do you have any good memories of The Program? If so, what are they?The scenery was awesome and sometimes the food was good.What is your overall impression of The Program? Did it “help you”?The program convinced me I was a bad kid. They told me that the first day I arrived. The whole time I was there they told me I needed to change. I have a stack of letters that I wrote to my parents that summer. In each letter, I told my parents over and over again how sorry I was for all the bad things I had done and begged their forgiveness. Saying you are sorry and asking forgiveness is a good thing; however, the staff instilled in me a belief that I was beyond hope or redemption. I felt like they made me do penance. The counselors had a way of making you feel guilty for all the wrongs you had done. To this day, I believe I am a bad person. Only bad kids are sent to boot camp. As an adult, I have received Christian counseling from a pastor and I finally was able to overcome my negative impression of myself and deal with my low self esteem. Also, because I had been molested as a child, being sent to a discipline camp made me feel as if the abuse was my fault and that is why I was sent away.Patrick CantrellPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:I donít know if abuse is the best term, but I experience a lot of things I didnít like. For example, I felt like some of the staff members went on major power trips. They would put themselves so highly above the other students, maybe to establish some kind of authority, that it made me feel worthless and small. These staff members would sometimes generalize the students, thinking that we all lied, could all handle the physical exercise and work at its fullest extent, or that we really understood why we were placed in the program, and that we were simply ignoring or hiding the fact. I am, and was, in pretty good shape, but there were things I sometimes couldnít do, and I felt like some staff members would push me way past the point of exhaustion. I smoked a lot before coming to escuela caribe, and to have me run three casitas in a day, up hill in 90 degree weather, when my lungs were hardly used to walking a mile was pretty harsh. Towards the end though I felt I could do most of what they asked. There were times when I was telling the truth or trying to explain myself but I was given no opportunity to explain and I was simply assumed as lying. A few staff members, my counselor included, often made me feel like if I didnít admit to things (which may or may not have been true) about my past, then I was hiding something. I felt like I had to force relationships, admit mistakes, know and love God... basically say and do all the right and required things in order to go home. For a school which stresses honesty, humbleness, servitude and understanding so much, I felt that some staff members did a HORRIBLE job at living out these characteristics. Also, I am a Christian now, but the school forced the idea upon me a lot, almost in an abusive way, making Christianity seem unattractive. The reason I am a Christian is because I had love and support from my house parents and a few staff members, who did not force Christianity upon me, and because I realized that I couldnít survive in the program or out of it without the help of God. I believe that people make mistakes, God doesnít. My argument and anger is not towards the program or what it stands for, it is only towards a few individuals who worked at the program, some of who have already quit or been fired.Chana Cortez GuhlPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:When I started there wasn't much staff supervision, the girls checked my things in and told me how they raped the last new girl with a coke bottle and a broom stick. I was intimidated and afraid, told them they could have whatever they wanted.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:Mostly heard about abuses in the boys' houses, saw runaways get long hair cut short or shaved.Do you have any good memories of The Program? If so, what are they?The country was beautiful and there were some good staff, I was lucky to be in the house I was.What is your overall impression of The Program? Did it “help you”?Not in the way they intended. I learned to be a survivor and take care of myself, not be too trusting and do what I needed to to play the game and get out of there.Please feel free to add comments here:I think the program was very corrupt from the top (the Blossoms), and has gotten worse over time. There were a few good staff, but they don't last, it's a disillusioning and unnatural environment. It is not Christian as it claimed to be.Elizabeth DanielPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:I was grabbed by the throat and thrown against the wall by a relief housefather, who was also the program director. I was forced by another house father to do push ups until I could no longer hold myself in push up position. At that point, I still had to try, but my arms gave out every time I pushed up, so I fell continuously until I got a hematoma on my left hip. I was continuously slapped on my 2nd degree sunburned back while doing pushups and was told I had gotten the sunburn because I had an authority problem. (It was considered an athority problem by some to get a sunburn because we were told to protect ourselves properly.) He also kicked my legs out from under me while I was in push up position one time. That house father would give me excercises and would threaten to take me down to the boys houses to let them see me do my pushups or squat thrusts. He also would toy with me about taking my parent visits away from me while I was doing push ups. All this for being late washing dishes. Or not hearing him when I asked him if I could step out back. One morning I woke up to find a different housefather staring at me. He wasn't supposed to be there, back in our dormitory.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:I heard so much abuse that I did not see. Screams of agony coming from the director's office were something that we had to learn to block out. I also saw the walls and shutters shake, so I knew a student was getting thrown around. One time I saw one of my housefathers force a girl to urinate on herself by refusing to let her go to the bathroom for hours, and then called everybody together and told her to “stop grimmacing”. So finally she just couldn't take it anymore and was forced to humilated herself in front of every one. I also saw this housefather sleep in between two of the girls in our house when we had a “slumber party” one night.What is your overall impression of The Program? Did it “help you”?The program is a cult. It would be considered a cult by both secular and Christian means. It distorts the Bible greatly, and uses mind control and deception form its own society. They manipulate the parents and they manipulate the minds and hearts of their students. No, “THE PROGRAM” did not help me one bit.Jennifer FrantzPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:Mental, emotionalDescribe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:Isolation units, mental manipulation, drugged children, emotional abuse.I have heard students like myself scream themselves to sleep in the isolation units. There were people close to me, and not, who tried to end their life with drinking bleach, or swallowing glass, as a way to end the mental torture put upon us by the staff at EC.Do you have any good memories of The Program? If so, what are they?None.What is your overall impression of The Program? Did it “help you”?I left with severe PTS and lost experience and life opportunities.Kerri (Griffin) SantarlasciPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:I received swats on many occasions. I was manhandled by the director and other staff members. I tried to kill myself by drinking bleach, but I wasn't allowed to talk about it or tell my parents by letter or phone. I was punished for my suicide attempt by being put back on 0 level and given swats for having an authority problem and being insubordinate. I tried to run away and was brought back 3 days later. My hair was cut off and I was given 12 swats which left blood bruises not only on my backside but on my legs as well. I was forced to do hundreds of push-ups, squat thrusts, sit ups and casistas while being screamed at for hours in Jeff Valerio's office. I was then put in the Q.R. for a couple weeks and did countless hours of restitution. I specifically recall scrubbing the concrete patios during school so that all of the other kids could see me. Because of my run away attempt I lost my parent visit. My parents were only allowed to see me on campus in a supervised setting for a limited amount of time. I went to Canada a year later as a high ranker and was sent to Marion on 0 level because I'd had a physical relationship with another high ranker. When I arrived in Marion and was summoned to the office I believed I was to be confronted for this. When I got there I was called a whore, told I was disgusting and that I'd burn in hell. I was then asked how long I'd been "fucking my brother". I started to sob and I was very distraught and confused. When I told them I didn't know what they were talking about they called me a liar. Apparently the letters I'd sent to my brother who was in the D.R. while I was in Canada were considered sexual because I put kisses and I love you's on the envelope. Several male staff members surrounded my brother in a circle and pushed, kicked, slapped and punched him until he would admit that he'd had an incestuous relationship with me. Not only was this untrue, it was demented and sick, and I believe had a lasting impact on my brother's emotional health. He died of a heroin overdose at the age of 25. He was my best friend and he NEVER hurt me or touched me in any inappropriate way. I will never forgive them for that. It was less than a week following that confrontation that I had a chance to run away from a church function off campus. I hitch-hiked from Marion back to my home in the suburbs of Philadelphia. When I told my parents what had happened they didn't send me back.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:I witnessed students being body slammed and forced to do exercises to the point of exhaustion and illness. I heard the screams and cries of students in the director's office receiving swats and saw them come out with tear-stained faces unable to console them or support them at all. I saw a pregnant girl forced to stand in front of Starr house with text books on her hands while her arms were raised for hours. They did this to her many times. I saw students forced to do heavy manual labor that was to much for a child their size and then punished or berated when they couldn't complete the task that was meant for a grown man. I can't even recollect all of the things that I saw. Until now I blocked out that part of my life but basically I feel the environment in general was very abusive and demeaning and there wasn't a child there that wasn't abused in one way or another. I saw a girl that wasn't allowed to speak to anyone without counting to 30 first because they said she had a lying problem. I saw too many things to list here.What is your overall impression of The Program? Did it “help you”?I think the program kept me safe physically because I was unable to run away for any length of time. It was nice that my parents didn't have to worry or wonder where I was. I think the program hurt me more than it helped me and I wouldn't recommend sending any child there for any reason. I don't think they know the first thing about how to deal with a troubled child and they do far more harm than good. That time in my life is a very dark and sad one and not a time I remember with any fondness or gratitude.Anna HinterkopfPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:I witnessed students who tried to run away be put in the “QR” (Quiet Room) — a cell with a cement floor and bars on one small window. Students who were sent here had to earn back all privileges. Their hair was cut or shaved, they had to sleep on the floor and gradually earn back human rights, like having a bed frame and mattress to sleep on (their shoes and socks were taken so they could not attempt to run away). Some students were in the QR for up to a month or more. During that time they could not speak to or look at other students. When I became a high-ranker I was assigned to bring one of the students who was in the QR a tray of dinner and I would whisper encouragement to them — a crime I would have been severely punished for had I been caught.I myself experienced the dreaded “swats” once. My crime was that my housefather told me to clean the stove a certain way. In my mind all I heard was “mission: clean stove”, which I did. A day later I was dragged into one of the offices with Phil Redwine, Jeff Valerio, and one of my housefathers, where I was yelled at and pushed around for over an hour, by all three men. My housefather told me that I had cleaned the stove well, but since I did not do it the way he wanted — he admitted my way was more efficient, but it wasn’t his way — and so I was given swats for “not paying attention” and committing a crime I had no idea I had committed. Swats are administered with a leather strap. I had welts and bruises on the back of my butt and legs. After the swats I was then made to run casitas (my shorts rubbing against the back of my legs – I will never forget how painful that was) and then returned home to the end of dinner where one tiny crusty dry piece of pizza was left for me to eat, and no one was allowed to speak to me.Another time one of my housefathers grabbed my ear and arm and dragged me to the back patio for punishment. Once again I had no idea what crime I had committed. My TG (target goal) that week was “first and fastest” so I had to be first at everything. Hence I ran to the house to be the first one there. My housefather yelled at me, got in my face, poked me in my chest numerous times, then slammed me up against the mops and brooms which were hanging on the wall because I stepped into the house before the housemother did (note: the house mom was still at least 10 minutes away from the house; I had absolutely no idea I was supposed to wait for her, because my group leader gave me permission to enter). I was then ordered to do pushups and squat thrusts (100 each) until I could no longer do them (and was then mocked). My housefather would put his boot on my back while I was doing push-ups to make it harder, while all the time making fun of me.We were routinely dragged out of bed in the middle of the night to do calisthenics and get yelled at as punishment, usually for being a few minutes late on dishes or other chores.One time I was encouraged to beat up a boy who had verbally harassed one of the girls in my house. The director of the program stood there while I pushed him to the ground and punched him over and over.The most bizarre incident that occurred was when I was accused of smuggling drugs into the country. I had brought a bottle of vitamin E oil for my skin, and there were some granular-looking things at the bottom of the bottle. My boyfriend back in PA was trying to find a way to help me escape (unbeknownst to me at the time), and he wrote me a letter in code, which took the staff over a month to decipher (they read all my incoming mail first and decided what I could and could not read). Once they did, they concocted a crazy accusation that the escape and the “drugs” were all part of the same conspiracy. They told me they had sent this bottle of vitamin E oil to a lab to be tested and if it came back positive for drugs I would be in a world of trouble and sent to the QR. I was so freaked out I didn’t know what to think…maybe there were drugs in this bottle that I didn’t put there but would be punished for. Maybe I was being set up. I worried endlessly about the test results, which they said would be ready in a couple weeks. A month later I finally asked about it and their nonchalant response was that the results came back almost a month before; the test was negative and everything was ok. That incident only served to solidify my paranoia about everything. I turned into a walking time sheet, a robot, just to get through each day.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:When “bucket support” came into place, I was a high ranker and was required to supervise my “little sister” who had “the blues” (“the blues” is when you get diarrhea while your body adjusts to the Third World climate). She was punished by being forced to defecate into a bucket, and show it to her housefather. Other students were also forced to do this.I remember sitting in the schoolyard, witnessing multiple cases of abuse daily. I often sat there in my sunglasses, tripping out on how surreal this scenario was, all the time weeping and hiding my tears behind my shades.There was one guy named John, who had a learning disability and who was constantly being tortured. I remember once when he was in the QR (he was there multiple times) and had to spend hours each day scrubbing bricks we walked on with a toothbrush. He was always in the hot seat and I felt badly for him.I remember one of the girls in my house — her first night being forced to drink a glass of milk (food portions were mandatory, decided by the housefather), even though she kept telling my housefather that she was allergic to milk. She finally drank the milk in tears, only to get sick and threw up a few minutes later. She was punished for that as well. She then had to do push-ups and be supervised in the bathroom.I am won’t name any names (to protect the innocent), but one of my good friends was sexually abused by his group leader (in the Marion and Canada programs), and he wasn’t the only one. I can’t begin to express the outrage this brings up in me. The staff member was fired, but I don’t believe the program did anything to help the victims recover from what happened to them.Do you have any good memories of The Program? If so, what are they?The sunsets and countryside were breathtaking. The beauty of the land offered me solace. Going to the beach on days off was one of my favorite memories. I also appreciated certain staff members who made things bearable, like Patrick D. and Gwen, when they were our house-parents (those were my best memories of my time there; I will never forget them) and Mallory who was my group leader (I would like to reconnect with her). House-parents and group-leaders made all the difference because they set the tone.What is your overall impression of The Program? Did it “help you”?I didn’t really “need help” when I got there. I was a straight A student who excelled in sports and music. I was highly motivated. I had never had sex or done drugs before I was sent to the program. I did get caught drinking wine coolers once and being arrested after curfew, along with several other kids. Sure, I snuck out of the house occasionally, like many normal teenagers. My missionary parents were so strict and repressive I was not allowed to listen to rock music, wear makeup or go out on normal dates. Before being sent to “the program” I was sent to a Christian mental institution for two months because my parents found Vivarin (the caffeine pill) in my purse and thought I had a drug problem. They also did not like the fact that I was always arguing and questioning their rules. Instead of helping me, the program traumatized me to the point that it’s taken years to deal with all of the feelings and memories of abuse, and I am still coming to terms with it and also with the fact that my parents sent me there in the first place.Please feel free to add comments here:I have a lot of mixed feelings about the school. The DR was better than being at home for me, and I bonded deeply with my girls and looked after them when I became a high ranker. Once I fell into the black and white reality the program created for us I embraced it (but not the abuse) and turned into a human machine — able to do anything: cleaning, hard labor, anything physical, I excelled in. It was empowering in a sick, twisted kind of way. My biggest regret leaving the DR was saying goodbye to all the people I had become close to. I made a real effort to look after my girls, since my high-rankers did not treat me well when I first arrived. They would outrank me on food and water and get me in trouble by telling on me and did not protect me.Since the program I have gone through some tough times and would love to reconnect with students I was there with. To this day, I deal with anxiety and PTSD, and I often find myself consumed with thoughts and memories of my days at Escuela Caribe.I am fascinated with Stockholm syndrome and brainwashing, which was a regular part of EC. I would like to study more about this and eventually go back to school to become certified in Logotherapy — which was started by Victor Frankl, a psychiatrist who survived the Nazi concentration camps.David HuppPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:- I was belittled for not being emotionally mature (I was only 12 years old when I entered The Program) and was subjected to excessive swats, physical restraint, and periods in the Quiet Room.- I became very ill and was not taken seriously when I complained of severe abdominal pain. One Tuesday morning I vomited on the floor next to my bed; I'd also vomited in the toilet the night before. My housefather accused me of gagging myself to get out of work and claimed that a high-ranker heard me make gagging noises. Despite having puked twice and feeling feverish (although my temperature was never taken) I was forced to go to work.After about 15 minutes, it was obvious that something was wrong with me, and I was allowed to return to the house to rest. I fell asleep fully clothed and slept like a rock until the late evening.Over the next couple of weeks I had recurring diarrhea and abdominal cramps. Although I showed clear symptoms of giardiasis - probably contracted from the school's unsanitary water supply - my housefather continued to accuse me of malingering.Eventually the school nurse took me to a local doctor who took urine and bile samples from me; I tested positive for giardia. Nevertheless, my housefather still berated me for feeling sick and expected me to do the same workload as before.- I was on &ldquot;bucket support.&rdquot; While I was at EC, it took me a &ldquot;long&rdquot; time to relieve my bowels and the staff accused me of dawdling in the bathroom. At first the staff timed me whenever I used the restroom, but when my timing didn't improve, they put me on &ldquot;bucket support.&rdquot; This meant I had to urinate and defecate in a bucket and show the contents to a high-ranker who verified that I had indeed needed to relieve myself.At first bucket support was only at the house. To avoid the humiliation of excreting in a bucket, I held my BMs until I was at school. But the Home Life Director caught on to my ruse and gave me bucket support at school as well. The next morning, I couldn't bear the shame of using bucket, so I used the toilet as I'd been doing. Afterward, I was promptly ushered to the Home Life Director's office for swats.The next day I held it for 24 hours and became extremely constipated. My house mother gave me a laxative and my housefather allowed me to use the toilet. Not surprisingly (maybe making up for lost time?), I took too long - or he didn't give me enough time - so he put me back on bucket support.…The day I got sick from the giardia infestation, I was supposed to being doing &ldquot;Restitution.&rdquot; Here's what that means: If you broke something at the school, you had to pay to replace it. If you didn't have the money, you had to work on your free day to earn it.Students on zero level didn't earn money for their daily work. On subsequent levels, you earned less than US minimum wage.Everyone had to work a certain number of hours a week, regardless of whether they were paid or not. There was little/no distinction for age, physical ability, or skill. If you didn't accrue enough hours, or forgot to mark down your hours, then you were CHARGED for the amount of work you failed to do. If you didn't have the money, then you had to work restitution. I think the money went into the house slush fund (for free days, etc.).Working restitution had relatively good pay: ten pesos an hour (~60 cents) instead of one peso an hour (~6 cents) for a first level student. Having been on zero level for almost the entire 16 months I was with NHYM, I rarely had the luxury of being paid.The day my dad picked me up to leave the Program, my housefather at Huyck House reminded me that I owed over 1700 pesos (over $100, at the time) of outstanding restitution to Thomas House and suggested my father write a check for the amount. I smiled/nodded, while thinking YEAH RIGHT! There was no way he could force me or my father to do anything, anyway.…In my description of Restitution, I made various RD peso to US dollar conversions. While in the program, students are never told the exchange rate and students who inadvertently find out what it is are STRICTLY FORBIDDEN from discussing it or informing other students of it.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:Another male student was sexually molested by his housefather. The housefather was not fired, but was instead moved to a new position, as a landscaper, in which he would not interact with students on a regular basis. The housefather quit soon afterwards.Chris KamPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any.Physical punishment, mental torture, Being thrown from room to room, hit in the chest, forced to do obscure punishments.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any.I don't remember.. it's all been blocked out.Tara KetolaPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any.I believe that the systematic depersonalization of children is inherently abusive, and psychologically scarring.I was led to believe that my mother had permanently disowned me, while my mother was led to believe that I needed to be institutionalized for life.I was forced to machete cane while visibly & severely ill (with typhus) until I finally lost consciousness.I was under the authority & care of a house father who was later convicted of sex crimes, and whose behavior was far from appropriate. Every night before bed, for example, we were expected to line up to hug him. He had frequent and unsolicited physical contact with the girls in my house.It was commonplace to be ordered to exercise past the point of pain, usually while being belittled, threatened & intimidated.I was subjected to corporal punishment for rule violations I had not committed. (Whether or not swats are considered abusive, note that they were given while the child was kneeling with his or her head & entire upper body positioned under the seat of a chair.)Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any.I saw a student publicly berated & mocked by a house father because he could not complete his punitive push-ups. He was unable to perform them because the house father was standing on his back.I saw countless examples of public degradation and humiliation associated with body functions, body types, and other private matters. For example, one student failed to finish his punitive exercises in time, as he was very tall and heavy set. As a result, his entire house was ordered to haul him (holding him off the ground by limbs and clothes) up the entire steep hill in even less time.Bathroom requests were frequently denied although it was a standard rule to drink 2-3 full glasses of water every day, along with 1-2 full glasses of milk with every meal. Repeated requests and accidents were viewed as insubordination.Low rankers were required to ask a high ranker or staff member to visually verify incidences of fecal abnormality.Female students were reprimanded for the errant pubic hair that commonly grows slightly past the area covered by a bathing suit, although we were only given shaving opportunities once a week, if that.All students were forced to deny the existence of any child sentenced to isolation in the Quiet Room. This room was a small concrete cell without lighting or furniture. Students sent there first had their hair chopped off and were stripped to their underwear. They had to sleep on the concrete floor and scrub the cement for hours on end until they earned back the privilege of wearing clothes and sleeping on a cot.What is your overall impression of The Program - did it “help you”?The program completely undermined my ability to trust my own judgment, trust others, distinguish right from wrong, identify my feelings, relate to normal people, and form healthy bonds.Kathy LambertPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:I was belittled by staff members in the DR. I was also not treated when I was sick. I was told that I was faking it and was forced to go about my daily activities (school, work time, etc.) When I was finally taken to the Doctor I was diagnosed with giardia which I had contracted from the water in the DR. I was subsequently accused of drinking the water in order to make myself sick. I was forced to do excessive exercises for minor infractions of the rules (ie. Left in push up position for extended periods of time for forgetting to ask to step in and out of a room)Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:I heard many students being belittled and getting swats in Phil Redwine's office while I was at school. The student would be in the office with Mr. Redwine and all the housefathers and everyone at school could hear the housefather's and Mr. Redwine yelling insults at the students. I also saw a student come to school with the entire side of his face bruised, his housefather had stepped down on his back when he was doing push-ups on the concrete. I witnessed many students on different kinds of supports that I consider abusive, such as silence (they were not allowed to speak for weeks), push up support (they had to do push ups every time that they stepped in or out of a room). There was also a girl in my house who had bladder problems and wet her bed often. She was belittled and punished (exercises, etc.) for doing this and her mattress was taken away and she had to sleep on the wooden slats. I witnessed many more instances similar to these.Do you have any good memories of The Program? If so, what are they?The Dominican Republic is a beautiful country. I made some good friends when I was there and they are people that I will never forget. There were some staff members who I thought really cared about me and I will remember their kindness as well.What is your overall impression of The Program? Did it “help you”?No, I don't think that it did. I left the program disillusioned and confused. I used recreational drugs to deal with the pain that I felt during the program. I don't feel that I ever received any real counseling while I was in the program, I am unsure if my counselors were even licensed.Danielle LanePlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:The biggest situations that stick out in my head were when I was put on a support called "seperation". I was sentenced to when I was at the house to stand outside on the porch facing a wall pretending to scrub it, I was not permitted to look away from the wall at anytime, when I went to meals I could not acknowledge anyone or say anything. When I was to use the bathroom everyone had to leave the room. When I was at school they put me in the QR (quiet room) I was given a bucket to use as the facilities and it wasn't changed the whole week. I eventually got dehydrated because no one brought me water and I was standing at all times besides meals. I was taken to see the nurse and the nurse was furious. I was given pedialyte and told to keep doing what I was doing.I did not get along with my housefather in starr house and he was constantly rude to me and talked down to me. Even when I tried to be social and nice he was an ass. I was made to run until I puked and even when other staff talked to him, he made excuses. I remember doing pushups and having my arms kicked out from under me and hitting my chin on the floor. I couldn't tell anyone anything.I was sent out to discipline (hard manual labor) shortly after being diagnosed with a good sized ovarian cyst, I was not supposed to do too strenuous work. I was made to pick and shovel a latrine for a septic tank. After complaining that I couldn't do the work anymore I was told to do 100 push-ups, I was physically unable to do the task so I was sent to the homelife director's office. I was told I would either have to do 600 exercises or take 6 swats. Because I was unable to do the physical excersise I was forced to take the swats. In order to take swats they have you kneel on the floor and put your head on the seat of a chair while grabbing the rungs. The swats I took were so hard that the backs of my legs were bleeding. I didn't say anything. Later that evening during showers I showed some girls in my house. One of them started crying and saying how wrong it was. The next day we got a new girl and we showed her in the bedroom my legs (which were completely black and blue) to scare her into submission.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:Most of the abuse I witnessed with other students was just constant berating and public humiliation. I was "dating" a guy behind the staff's back and when it was found out we were forced to do pushups and other strenuous stuff side by side. It was humiliating for both of us.At one time a new girl came in the middle of the night. She was left locked in the bedroom with us and in the bedroom we're not allowed to talk at all otherwise there are huge consequences. She was screaming and crying and kicking things calling us all heartless bitches. She actually escaped out the door by breaking the chain lock. The pitiful alarm went off but no one woke up. The girl who was supposed to be her big sister the next day chased her to make sure she didn't go out the house and run away. Finally the staff woke up and all the administration were called. All we heard were blood curling screams and scuffling. We were not told what actually happened to cause that.Darryl LarePlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:I believe deception is a precursor, if not a form of abuse itself. I was deceived by the Founder, Pastor Gordon Blossom, by pictures of unity, etc. I had no idea what questions to ask and was given the impression that this was going to be fun; I was also the oldest student they accepted. I was first of all embarrassed finding myself having to ask to go from room to room and ignorant of their point system.One day, a guy needed 100% of the house's vote to achieve 4th. I didn't vote because I could see he was fronting and even mentioned it after being confronted. They still gave it to him, so I thought this ain't for me, and refused to conform to their curriculum.It was “hell” pretty much all through my 2 1/2 years in the DR. I was “targeted” for my “attitude“ and found myself being humiliated almost daily. On top, I was rejected by the other students.You couldn't slip up at all, or you'd find your points being thrashed and have to resort back to 0 level for the week. And, if you didn't obtain the needed points for your particular level, you lost it.I was doing calisthenics constantly, humiliated when a staff came over for dinner, and everyone watched as I ran around the house carrying rocks, or having to look at mule dung, in reference to my attitude.One time a cocky new student came into our house and didn't like me. A couple of days later had to resort to the boxing gloves. With two punches he declined, and I had so much hate and frustration flowing in my blood. He then left the DR a few days after.One time I had “The Blues” so bad... We were on a house trip and were in Santo Domingo touring the fort. Round 2 hit and I ran back to the washroom. The staff thought I took off, only to find me in the washroom, and for the rest of the day I pretended I was blind because I had to hold the House Father's belt loop.Bud Teare was known as the biggest threat of staff. He was even flown down to have us hear him do what other staff would do. In Canada I did something menial and was slammed against the tool shed, putting a huge dent a door.In Canada, one day I was told to pick up a log that was damn near 300 lbs and carry for quite a ways. The House Father and students were carrying a “Squad Log” and trying to pass, accidentally hit his shoulder. Throwing my log down, I asked if he was alright, only to get severely reprimanded. Because I was wearing a red shirt, I had to wear it for weeks while you could hear people scream, “Red Shirt, Red Shirt's Coming!”The swats, QR, hair cuts, yelling, casita runs, etc.. all exist.This is just a pinch of what happened.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:Part of getting good points was finding a weakness in anothers and demoralize them.One time our house failed inspection and as a “free” day we had to climb Mount Megote “twice”. As means of sarcasm you could hear us chant “;Megote 2, Megote 2!” being taxied out of the campus.David was a student that I believe was mentally challenged and he too was a target of humiliation, Because of it and not quite conforming to their ways, he was also subjected to the cruelty.I saw a girl with her hair cut and scrubbing a stone with a tooth brush She was the girl I came down to the DR with; her laugh after a while sounded like a lunatic.One day, as a birthday present, I massaged Jeff's back. Because of he was small in stature, all his muscles were cramped from the numerous casita runs.One time Greg, a 4th leveller, just up and starting singing “Free Ride” by Foghat because of the strain that was there, and his levels plummeted.The list can go on.Jenny Renee LittlejohnPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:the answer is yes and I would rather leave bygones as bygonesDescribe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:A female student in Herrick house was sexually abusedDo you have any good memories of The Program? If so, what are they?Brad and Anna, Rob and Mary, ChadWhat is your overall impression of The Program? Did it “help you”?No, I ran to what was deprived from me. Guy friends... and this led to another road. Sex. : longed to feel accepted. The program made me feel as if I was unworthy, undeserving. so the first guy that found me attractive I ran to. I was angry at my parents for believing the program and all the lies they were fed. I did not know how to function in the real world because, let's face it, the program is nothing like the real world. I was in it my entire teenage years. When I got out I didn't know the music, movies or any thing else that would help me fit into my first and graduating year of high school. So I kept to my self. I was behind academically. I had to double my course load in my senior year to make up for the program being grossly behind. I have read all the letters that the program sent home, the progress reports and are you kidding? I didn't know whether to laugh or cry, I was so angry! Such blatant lies.Gil MayersdorfPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:One house father really liked to body slam students. He would take you out to the back patio where we hung the mops and proceed to throw you against them. Hitting a mop stick full force is not fun. The same house father liked to chase you uphill on his moped when you had to run “casitas,” which were assigned if you earned less than a 1 or 0 on your point sheet. It was a psychological thing; you knew the front tire was right behind you and might hit you.When I was there about a year, two students ran away. They were caught by the local authorities and brought back to E.C. One evening the whole house was ordered to “deal” with these two students. The runaways were taken out of the Quiet Room and put in an empty room at the school. The dean of students told us he was closing the door and suggested we rough up the boys. We proceeded to beat them. The dean came in to stop us when they started to scream.Another instance occurred when I was 19 and had already finished my studies, yet was kept in the Dominican Republic. The school administrator asked me to “deal” with a student that was in the Quiet Room. The student was having flashbacks from PCP and the staff wanted to give him a shower. We took him to the shower room and the staff gave him a floor brush to scrub himself. When he started to cry and refuse to do as he was told, the staff ordered me to beat him, which I did.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:I witnessed many instances of child abuse at Escuela Caribe, including public swats when students did not cooperate. This might seem trivial but it does affect children's emotional health.Margaret-Ann McKee (McNab)Please describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:- I think the most blatant form of abuse was emotional abuse in the form of belittlement and disregard for my own personhood.- Several times I found myself in uncomfortable situations in which I was put in a small room with two or more adult men who interrogated me about my morality. Once I was forced to stand at attention in the director's office with three other men, door closed, while the director took out my file and berated me about my past life and basically called me a whore.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:- One that stands out in my head the most was this boy who was constantly humiliated because of his slight stature. The housefather made him carry a water heater up the casita (a long, steep hill on campus) on his shoulder. He dropped it because it was so heavy, so the housefather made him crawl up the casita on all fours while four other boys held the water heater on his back.- This same boy was stuck into the quiet room for long periods of time and was constantly on rock support (where you carry rocks in your pockets and take them out and count them before speaking) or pushup support (where you drop and do push-ups before entering a room) or on silence support (where you're not allowed to speak and must write your requests on a piece of paper that you hold over your head.)- A girl got in trouble for talking back to staff and was forced to eat off the floor in a corner of the room while the rest of us sat at the dining room.- The thing about this type of public abuse is that it terrorizes the people who see it as well as the actual person being abused, so that the witnesses become victims as well.Dean L. MossburgPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:I remember being thrown against a wall on several occasions. I also remember the attitude sessions were you were forced to perform repeated push-ups and squat-thrusts.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:Where do I start? The instances of abuse I witnessed occurred mostly in Marion and Canada. If a student was misbehaving for an extended period they were forced into a boxing match. This is where a student would have to ‘box’ each member of his peer group, one at a time. The match usually ended when the student was beaten into a bloody pulp and the staff members deemed they have had enough.I remember that we had students that were wards of the state. Sometimes when these students needed medical care they had to wait for the money to come from their various state agencies. It did not matter if the student was suffering; they had to wait for the money to come before any type of treatment would be administered. These were not instances of abuse, rather instances of neglect.I also remember when we had endurance swims in Canada. A student might be struggling in the water and they would attempt to catch their breath by holding onto the sides of a canoe. A staff member would slam a canoe paddle on to their hands to get them to let go of the canoe.Do you consider yourself a Christian today?Yes, but I have a deep distrust of any type of organized religion. I have seen too many instances of people abusing power once they have been put into positions of power.What effect did “The Program” have on your faith?It made me distrust those in positions of power. I feel that someone can have close relationship with their God, without having to go to a church.Please feel free to add comments here:I feel that Pastor Blossom's original intentions were good. He himself was abused while he was a student at Starr Commonwealth and I think he wanted to give teenagers a path to a better life, but the money that comes in and the issues of power have replaced any good intentions.I feel that he, and those around him, allowed the power that they had over teenagers to go to their heads. The staff members had little or no training and they became abusive because of it. Abuse breeds abuse.Allison PochePlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:Don't really remember anything but humiliationDescribe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:An overweight Latino girl and a short little Latino girl in my house were constantly belittled by our house father. He didn't seem satisfied until they were in tears. There are other things I saw that just didn't seem right. Too much exercise, not enough food, not enough love, etc.Do you have any good memories of The Program? If so, what are they?The settings are certainly beautiful and I have maintained a couple of friends.What is your overall impression of The Program? Did it “help you”?Sometimes I have thought it helped, but mostly, I think it exacerbated fragilities that were already there: Need to please people, obsessive cleaning, fear of showing true feelings, etc. I don't know. I think the punishment should fit the crime and when there is no crime, you handle the child accordingly. I think a blanket treatment policy caused more damage than good. I just learned to front my way through, not work through.Selena RossPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:I once was forced to stay in pushup position for almost 2 hours while being belittled and having verbal attacks threatened on me to put me in the quite room for hiding $60 american cash in my coat. The staff tried to convince me that I was attempting to run away.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:Escuela Caribe :I once witnessed a young gentleman who was put into the quite room for 2 weeks straight. He continually cried for help, asked for forgiveness, asked to be released and begged and pleaded to go home. He eventually broke down and they let him out.I also witnessed a young girl who was very ill with I believe typhoid. They accused her of faking her sickness and made her go out and machete a field for hours and hours while she had a super high fever. She ended up in the hospital.On another occasion I witnessed a student who was very over weight and was forced to diet to prepare for a 3 day hike. When she reached the top of the peak (during the 3 day hike) they attached water jugs to her neck line that was equivalent to the weight she had lost so that she could then know what it felt like to carry her weigh loss up the mountain. She cried in humiliation and begged them not to do this but they did anyway.Marion:A girls house was playing a game called Ghost in the Graveyard. It is a game where you turn off all the lights and you hide. A student who was female was sexually molested in a closet during this game. When the incident was brought to my attention as I was the “highest ranking student” who had to report this to the school. At first NHYM tried to deny what allegations were being said and finally the molester admitted it and charges were filed.Please feel free to add comments here:After leaving the NHYM and returning to everyday life I suffered many many years of trauma. It was everything from nightmares to insecurity of going on vacation. I did seek out many years of therapy trying to heal past wounds and having dealt with feelings of Stockholm Syndrome. When you are young and your parents have stranded you in what is thought of the caribbean vacation of a life time due to a misleading of information given by the school you will do anything to simply survive mine was unfortunate and I did anything to survive.Tim S.Please describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:I experienced literally hundreds of instances of abuse. Extreme abuse occurred in all three programs (D.R., Canada, Indiana). Here are a few of the things I experienced:On my first day, I was strip searched by two staff in the school bathroom. I was ordered to remove all my clothes, display my genitals for inspection, bend over, grab my ankles and jump up and down repeatedly. This was after my body and belongings had already been thoroughly searched by these staff for about 1 hour. I was forced to shower using only freezing water almost every day for nearly a year. For my first few weeks in the program, I had to submit to a "soapiness" check during every shower where I had to display my genitals and spread my butt cheeks for inspection in order to get permission to rinse. I had to ask to use the restroom, and this request was sometimes denied. I had to defecate or urinate while a staff member or high ranking student "supervised" by staring at me from a few feet away. I was forced to sleep in a bed with an adult student. My house father threatened to handcuff me to my bed. I had my clothing confiscated and was forced to sleep nude in a tent with several other nude boys. I was forced to disclose personal sexual information to staff and students in a group setting. I was forced to hug 7 different staff members every day for 7 days. I had to have them sign a paper that I carried around confirming that we had hugged. This treatment technique was called a "hug support". During a chapel service, we were all told by the founder and leader of The Program to masturbate and pray while we masturbated…I was threatened several times with beatings by different staff members. Several times I was jumped from behind and pinned to the ground or pinned to the wall by staff for no reason other than shock and intimidation. I was struck from behind with a canoe paddle by staff as a "joke". I was punched several times in the shoulder by a staff member who was telling me to box him. I was given back rubs and neck rubs by a staff member (inappropriate in that setting). Twice, I was taken into the bathroom and screamed at by a staff member while he forced me up against the wall. He also made me do numerous push-ups on the bathroom floor while he yelled at me. He also poked me in the chest repeatedly. He also forced me to climb into a pit of rotting trash and compost and dig through it for perhaps 20 to 30 minutes. I was often woken up at night by the sounds of other students being abused. Several times, I was forced out of bed at night to do exercises in the living room or on the outdoor patio. Once, we were forced out of bed at night and made to do push-ups and remain in push-up position on the patio while staff dumped buckets of cold water on us. I was routinely threatened and intimidated by many different staff members…The punitive exercises were sadistic and criminal in my opinion. I have been involved in athletics, fitness training and distance running for years, and I have never seen anything even close to the extreme level of exercise we experienced in The Program. During my stay, I was often forced to run and do other forms of excessive exercise, sometimes during the night, sometimes past the point of vomiting and collapse. These punitive exercise sessions would sometimes last over an hour. I don't remember ever being allowed to drink water during these sessions. I often felt dizzy and felt like I was going to pass out. It was literally torture, and the staff members involved should have been sent to prison for this. These exercises were sometimes done behind closed doors, but were sometimes done outdoors in full view of the entire campus, so all staff knew about these punishments, and are guilty in my opinion. Several times, I was forced to remain in push-up position for long periods of time, despite repeatedly collapsing onto my chest. I was also forced to hold my arms straight out to the sides until I could no longer keep them up and I would be bent over in severe pain. We often had to repeatedly run up a long and very steep hill (1/4 mile to 1/2 mile distance?). Each trip up the hill was called a "running a casita". I sometimes ran up the hill over and over for close to an hour straight. I saw other students run a lot more than that. Students would fall down and staff would scream at them to keep going. Sometimes, staff would chase kids up the hill on their motorcycles - that happened to me once. I also once had to run the bases of the baseball field one hundred times without stopping. It took over an hour, with no water break. Off campus, we were also forced to run a few times. We also had to routinely run sprints and do hundreds of squat thrusts, burpees, bear crawls and other forms of exercise. Also, I was frequently forced to do hundreds of push-ups per day. I once had to do 350-380 push-ups at one time because I accidentally left some of my clothes in the living room. One staff member bragged to me about a time he had forced a particularly troubled boy to do 1000 push-ups at one time. The punitive exercises and other forms of abuse in The Program were so common that I became immune to the sight and sounds of children in pain - I began to think of it as normal.Also…I was told I could not leave until I was 21…I was told cops and embassy officials were friends of The Program and would simply return me if I escaped, and I would be severely punished…I witnessed cops returning kids who had run away…I heard of specific Indiana cops who were used by The Program as transporters…I was locked every night in a room with bars on the windows (fire hazard)…We were surrounded by barbed wire on a campus patrolled by at least one guard with a machete, dog, and gun (I was told it was a pellet gun…I don't know for sure)…I had my shoes confiscated at night so that I could not run away…I was forced to ignore the existence of outsiders, low-ranking students, students who were being punished, and female students…I was forced to regulate all emotions, speech, facial expressions, bodily functions, and movements (We needed permission to sit, stand, go up or down stairs, enter or leave any room, begin eating, etc)…I was not allowed to disagree with staff or report abuse…All communication with the outside world was censored, restricted, and monitored…I was forced to sing solos to large groups of staff and students in order to receive my mail…Our personal items were sometimes stolen by staff and sometimes given to other students…I was forced to repeat many classes I had already finished because of “missing transcripts”. I found my “missing transcripts” crumpled and partially buried in mud near the front gate of the campus, but it didn't matter - I had been told to drop the issue and accept that I had to repeat the courses…my bed and personal items were routinely torn apart and tossed on the floor…I was subjected to random and unnecessary searches of my clothing, body, and personal items…I was forced to jump off cliffs up to 40+ feet into rivers and a lake…I was physically punished for being unable to swim to my house father while I was trapped in a river…less than a year later, one of my fellow students drowned in that river…I was forced to listen to recorded sermons and recorded Christian music, read the Bible and pray and attend chapel and church services and memorize and recite Bible passages……Sleep deprivation…food deprivation (I was always hungry for my first 8.5 months in The Program). I also dealt with hard and unfair labor conditions, and very harsh and unsanitary living conditions…Also, I had many untreated or poorly treated medical and emotional problems during those 21 months such as: no routine medical check-ups by an outside doctor, no dental care, several cases of severe flu, fever, cramps and diarrhea (all ignored), two severe facial cuts (pressured not to seek treatment, so I didn't), severe constipation (went at least 7 days without a bowel movement, went untreated), rectal cyst that later required 3 or 4 days in the hospital (inadequately treated until it got worse) blisters (punished for it and told to ignore it), severe skin infection, severe foot pain for weeks (punished for it and told to ignore it), severe depression (punished for it), severe anxiety (punished for it), suicidal thoughts expressed to staff (ignored), severe knee injury (ignored), and severe eye infection (inadequately treated until it got worse)…we were taught to ignore the pain…some of these problems still bother me today more than 20 years later…and there were many other instances of abuse and neglect I experienced that I won't list here…Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:I witnessed abuse of other students on a daily basis in all three locations. Again, I clearly saw and/or heard hundreds of cases of abuse. I also have some vague memories of horrible abuse that I will not even mention here, because the memories are not as clear. Here are a few of the things I witnessed:One day, I heard the camp director yelling and threatening to beat up a boy. I was in a nearby classroom, but the windows were open. I then heard as the boy was beaten by several other students while the director “supervised” (he may have helped to beat the kid, as well, I don't know). Later, I saw the badly bruised and swollen face of the boy (who was a ward of the State of Indiana) as he held an ice pack to his head. One of his eyes was blackened and swollen completely shut. I saw several student-leaders (called Staff In Training or S.I.T.'s) at the camp discussing how they had beaten up the boy. One of these student-leaders had injured his hand while beating the boy…the boy who was beaten told me he was not supposed to talk about the beating…On a different day, I watched the camp director smack a student in the head for having a “disrespectful” attitude. He did this in front of all the male staff members and male students at the camp. This camp director often threatened to hurt students and bragged that he had beaten up many students in the past…Probably an average of two or three times a week, I heard the sound of students being whipped with a leather strap called “Mr. Brown”. There were often dozens of staff and students around, and all of us could hear the sound of these whippings. Several staff whipped students, but the whippings (aka “swats”) I heard were usually given by the director of The Program. Sometimes I would see two or three students waiting outside his office to be whipped. I would also hear the director yelling and sometimes the sounds of a struggle or of a body being slammed. Three different staff threatened me with these whippings in the D.R. and in Indiana. I was supposed to receive between 7 and 12 blows each time, but I was always given a different punishment instead. During shower time, I would see the damage done by the strap. The boys would have severe welts and bruises and would be in pain, but would do their best to hide it. Girls were also frequently whipped, almost always by male staff members…Intimidation was very common in Indiana, the D.R. and Canada…I heard many staff members threaten to hurt students…I heard and saw dozens of “slam sessions”. During these sessions, students were slammed to the ground or were slammed into walls, doors, or furniture. I saw the director slam one boy into a wall and pin him by the throat, choking him before slamming him back to the ground. I was in push-up position a few feet away. Sometimes, these sessions would be at night, and it would be hard to sleep with all the violence going on nearby…I saw approximately six students in solitary confinement (aka the “QR”) at different times. They were locked in the cell for anywhere from a few days to more than a week at a time. We were supposed to completely ignore their existence. I think they were in there 24/7 and had to toilet in a bucket. They had their clothes taken away and slept on the floor. There was no furniture or anything in there, it was just a bare concrete room. I was in there once, but only for one hour during a pat-down search of my body and belongings. Sometimes a kid would just disappear for a few days or a week or more, and I think that is usually where they went. We were not supposed to talk about it…Everyday, I witnessed children (individually and in groups) doing punitive exercises, sometimes to the point of torture. Although usually milder in Canada and Indiana, this was a constant part of life in all three facilities…My first night in The Program, the boy in the bed next to me spent the night handcuffed to his bed. This may have gone on for more than one night…Also, students as young as 11 were housed in the same rooms as adult students who were 18 or 19. In each house, we were all locked in the same room at night with no staff supervision, so the younger boys and girls were easy targets for the older and adult students…Also, students who had reached the age of 18 were routinely held against their will in Canada and the Dominican Republic…We were told we could not leave the facilities until we were 21, except in Indiana, where we could leave at age 18. Our passports and tickets and cash and all documents were confiscated upon arrival…Several students told me that they had been awakened, restrained, and taken by force out of their homes by “transporters” (who were sometimes police officers). They were taken directly to one of the New Horizons Youth Ministries facilities, sometimes straight to the Dominican Republic…Most of the students I knew at New Horizons Youth Ministries had never been arrested or convicted of any crimes…I saw a student who couldn't swim get forced off of a 40 foot cliff into the lake…I saw and experienced numerous incidents of public humiliation used as punishment and behavior modification…When out in the community, low ranking students were not allowed to communicate with any outsiders. We were not allowed to respond to questions or even make eye contact…There was no religious freedom. All students were forced to follow The Program's version of Christianity, and it was a very conservative Protestant perspective…Students of other faiths, or students who did not conform to the same beliefs were harassed and had a much more difficult time progressing through the levels…Many students were forced to fake religious experiences and conversions…There was constant brainwashing and indoctrination backed up by the use of force…There was a lot of discrimination and psychological abuse…I heard threats and derogatory comments made to students who may have been gay or lesbian…I heard derogatory comments made to a black student, who was also forced by staff to alter his speech pattern and the way he pronounced certain words…I witnessed a student who was forced to keep from stuttering under threat of punishment…I witnessed several students who were banned from speaking or making any sound 24 hours a day for weeks. This was called “silence support”…There was also “rock support”…“bed support”…“hug support”…“square meal support”…“pushup support”…“bucket support”…and many other “supports” that were cruel and abusive behavior modification techniques…There was extreme sexism and males and females were forced to comply with rigid rules and patterns of behavior based on their gender…All forms of media and communication with the outside world (including family) were completely restricted, monitored and censored, so parents almost always had no idea of the abuse…Abuse was carefully hidden when visitors were on any of the campuses, and we were warned not to be “negative” about The Program…in other words, we were not to disclose any abuse…I also learned of six different staff members from my time who had sexually molested students while in The Program. To my knowledge, only three of these staff were ever fired. The other three were simply moved from house to house. This doesn't even include the staff members who subjected us to all the forced nudity and body inspections I mentioned earlier. I suspect there were other cases of sexual abuse that went unreported, because we were told not to question the "authority" of staff members.Do you have any good memories of The Program? If so, what are they?Despite the abuse, I have a lot of good memories of all three locations. I saw a lot of natural beauty and had fun experiences in Indiana, Canada, and the Dominican Republic. My best memories are of the friendships and laughs I had with many other students while I was there. I will always feel a strong bond with the other students…even the current students and the hundreds of former students that I have never met.What is your overall impression of The Program? Did it “help you”?It was a horrible experience. New Horizons Youth Ministries should have been shut down by the government and had all of their property and assets taken away many years ago. Many of the staff members should have spent years in prison. The Program helped me a little, but it hurt me a lot, and it still hurts.What do you think of the quality of education you received?It was not that good, but at the time I didn't really care, because we were generally not abused while we were in class. The classroom was a bit of a sanctuary, where we could almost relax for a few hours without being abused. For that reason, I hated to leave class each day, but I didn't care about learning, I cared only about surviving and getting out of The Program. There was a lot of Christian propaganda in the curriculum that I did not care for. A lot of the education was stuff I wish I never learned. I learned a lot of bad things in The Program that I have tried to unlearn over the years.How old are you today?40 years old.Did you go to college after attending The Program? If so, what degrees do you have?Yes, I have a Bachelors degree (B.A.) and a Masters degree (M.S.W.) in Social Work.What is your profession?I have done many different types of work over the years. I am currently working mostly as a father and child advocate.Do you consider yourself a Christian today?Yes, I am a follower of Jesus Christ, but my beliefs are very different than the “Christianity” I experienced in The Program.What effect did “The Program” have on your faith?I was raised in a very strict, conservative Christian home. It was a difficult environment for a child. In addition to my other problems, I was suffering from compulsive religious behaviors (i.e. praying hundreds of times a day) when I entered The Program. The Program made this and many other issues worse, and I struggled with these challenges for years after leaving New Horizons Youth Ministries. I still struggle a lot, and it is partly because of the trauma of The Program. It was very damaging to my faith, but fortunately I think I have been able to overcome most of the negative effects The Program had on my faith and religion.Please feel free to add comments here:I have been disgusted and angered by the hypocrisy and denial that has been demonstrated over the years by many New Horizons Youth Ministries staff and administrators. There seems to have been a pervasive “code of silence” on the part of staff for many years. I have never seen a serious apology or any serious effort at reconciliation. Instead, I have seen defensiveness, denial, outright lies, and attacks on those who have had the courage to disclose that they were abused and neglected.These facilities are still being used as residential treatment centers for “troubled” children. Abuse continued for decades after I left. Abuse has been documented as recently as 2009, but it is hard to know if it is still continuing, because there is currently a very poor system of accountability and oversight. In 2011, all the assets of New Horizons Youth Ministries were donated to another Indiana “faith-based” nonprofit called Lifeline Youth and Family Services. Lifeline has changed the name of the New Horizons programs to “Crosswinds”, but they have retained many former New Horizons staff members, some of whom witnessed and may have participated in child abuse (and failed to properly report it). Lifeline Youth and Family Services programs appear eerily similar to New Horizons programs. Lifeline appears to publicly claim that they are completely different. Lifeline appears to publicly deny and attempt to hide nearly every connection they have with New Horizons. Privately, it appears that Lifeline is maintaining many of these connections. Despite several alumni requests, Lifeline has failed to show how their programs are different than the abusive programs of New Horizons Youth Ministries. The fact that they employ the same staff (while hiding the fact that these people used to work for New Horizons) is very troubling. I fear that the code of silence and ignorance and denial is continuing with Lifeline Youth and Family Services, and I am very concerned about the welfare of the current students.New Horizons Youth Ministries abused children for approximately 40 years. They were extremely good at hiding the thousands of incidents of child abuse that they perpetrated. I have seen estimates that as many as 4,000 children may have been housed over the years in their various facilities. The U.S. government, the State Department, the Dominican government, the Canadian government, and the State of Indiana failed to adequately protect these children. These entities need to closely watch Lifeline Youth and Family Services and their Crosswinds programs to assure that these campuses are no longer abusive facilities. Nobody did a good job of checking on our well-being, and these government entities should be ashamed of that. There needs to be a system where U.S. companies who own abusive facilities on foreign soil can still be held responsible in the United States. It seems that Indiana does not properly monitor children in residential care who have been privately placed by parents or guardians. Indiana seems to be especially negligent when it comes to monitoring private “faith-based” homes for children. This is a huge hole in the child protection system, and allows private nonprofits with privately placed children to easily get away with child abuse and neglect. This needs to stop.I am aware of approximately 10 students that I knew in The Program who are now dead…One student drowned while he was in The Program…The students I knew who have passed were all in their early 40s or younger when they died…murders, suicides, drugs, diseases, car wrecks…I hold The Program partially responsible for their deaths, because I think the trauma we experienced shortened their lives…Many students who I didn't know have also died…all of them far too young.I have had a hard life since leaving The Program. I have had a lot of struggles. The trauma of The Program has damaged me in many ways. Yet, I have also had a wonderful life filled with a lot of joy. Every day is a new day and I try to make the best of it.I was brainwashed, and I denied this abuse and stuffed these feelings inside for many years, even though I was a social worker and worked in residential facilities with abused children. It has only been in recent years that I have openly dealt with all of this. I have forgiven the abusers, but I am still angry and I am still healing. As someone pointed out to me recently, there is a difference between forgiveness and healing. I don't want revenge, but I do want justice. I want redemption and reconciliation. I realize it may never come, but the hope is always there…I encourage all former staff members to be honest with themselves and others about what really happened at New Horizons Youth Ministries…It is never to late to change your ways and seek redemption…but the first step is to acknowledge the abuse and end the shameful legacy of denial…Also, where did all the money go? The parents and the States that sent children to the facilities were deceived by The Program and paid up to $6,000+ per month for our care. Multiply that by 12 months for 40 years for hundreds if not thousands of students and add the many donations this “ministry” received over the years. That is a lot of money, millions and millions of dollars. Where is it? Many of the buildings owned by New Horizons were constructed using mostly the slave labor of students. Staff were paid very little, and both staff and student living conditions were modest to put it nicely. They were a tax-exempt non-profit. Where did all the money go? I suspect fraud and greed and corruption may have a lot to do with it.Several of the men who severely abused me and others are now working as therapists and at Christian universities. I am still deciding how to deal with that knowledge, but it bothers me a great deal. I hold most, if not all, of the staff members I knew (except Jim and Theresa) at least partially responsible for the abuse at New Horizons, because they all saw at least some form of abuse, yet they continued to work there and did not properly report it. The staff members who worked there for many years are especially guilty. The following men deserve special recognition for the things they did to me and/or for things I witnessed them do to other students:Charles Philip Redwine aka Phil Redwine aka Chuck Redwine severely abused me and other students.Budd Teare severely abused me and other students.Mike Harmon severely abused me and other students.Gary Martens severely abused me and other students.Mark McReynolds severely abused me other students.I would appreciate a sincere apology from these men and from any other staff member who wishes to apologize. A public apology to all former students and their parents or guardians would also be appropriate.PeaceDavid C. SaundersPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:Emotional degradation on a daily basis, physical abuse regularly, the day before new years of 98 was my worst experience spent 9 hours holding push up position, with Nate Olson, and Drew Deboer. The staff found out that while we were being forced to dig a garbage pit we had been talking about standing up for ourselves. Well they put that to an end. Subsequently I spend 12 hours scrubbing the same one foot by one foot asbestos floor tile. There was literally dozens of incidents equal if not worse than this. At one point, another student accidentally poured 5 gallons of boiling water on me. I was severely burned head to toe and had to be carried to school, and church. However I was not taken to a hospital, or properly cared for. They did not tell my parents the truth or magnitude of my injury. Other occasions were: being forced to crawl "bear crawls" for at least 1 mile in laps on the houses gravel driveway. It so happened that Tim blossom was walking up the hill with a family on a Parent Visit, the family stopped to stare at me in horror, when Tim Blossom saw this he quickly got me out of there and severely reprimanded my house father. My Hands were profusely bleeding; I had been crawling for 2 hours or more. I could continue for pages, the abuse that I endured was inhumane and intolerable.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:I witnessed sadistic abuse on a daily basis there were two students in particular that I feel were tortured. Josh Hamilton and Sean Mowharr. Sean was a mentally damaged person. I witnessed him defecate in his hand because he was not allowed to use the bathroom. The house father made the entire house aware of this by making jokes constantly. Sean's clothes were in tatters and was forced to use a rope tied around his shoulders that pulled his pants up in a painful and humiliating way, because a higher ranking student reported that he was “sagging” his pants.Do you consider yourself a Christian today?I do not feel comfortable talking about that subjectWhat effect did “The Program” have on your faith?Extremely negativePlease feel free to add comments here:New Horizons is an extremely dangerous institution. Parents should refrain from enrolling children in the Dominican program. There is no regulation, no outside supervision and is deceitful with children and familys. There is much more that I could say, about the things that took place in Escuela Caribe. To this day, this is all that I feel comfortable disclosing.Julia Scheeres - Jesus Land: A Memoir: Julia Scheeres: 9781619020658: Amazon.com: BooksPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:- The founder of NHYM, Gordon Blossom, aka “The Pastor,” threatened to “strip me naked and beat me black and blue,” which he claimed he'd already done to another girl who refused to obey her parents- We were routinely woken in the middle of the night by a referee whistle blast and made to do calisthenics in the living room while the housefather lectured us. This sleep deprivation affected both my emotional wellbeing and my academic progress.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:- I witnessed my little brother punched in the stomach by a teacher. David had refused to answer the teacher's question quickly enough, and the teacher hit him and continued to berate him. David and I were prohibited from communicating at the time, so I could do nothing to protect or console him. David was in the program from August 18, 1983 to February 6, 1985.- I witnessed a “boxing match” staged between a scrawny 13-year-old student and the burly Dean of Students. The entire school was summoned to watch it. The Dean of Students hit the boy repeatedly until he was bleeding and fell on the ground. Message: conform or be conformed.- I saw students forced to do exercises until they collapsed, and then get shrieked at for stopping.What is your overall impression of The Program? Did it “help you”?No. It taught me how to manipulate and front (pretend) to get what I wanted (release). It taught me to squelch my true emotions and tell people what they wanted to hear. It taught me to be untrusting. It was a traumatic event that I still revisit in nightmares, 20 years later.Do you consider yourself a Christian today?NoWhat effect did “The Program” have on your faith?It made me lose my faith. The abuse I witnessed in the name of God made me resent organized religion and especially Christian fundamentalists. Of course I pretended to believe in God to get out of there quicker - you must conform to their religious ideology to graduate.Please feel free to add comments here:I hope that by revealing the truth about NHYM, Inc. we can dissuade parents from sending their children there and scarring them for life. Some people say that the Marion campus and the Canadian work camp aren't as extreme as Escuela Caribe; I don't know - I was only in EC. And there's a good reason EC is in the Dominican Republic: it's a foreign country where the school isn't governed by U.S. laws preventing child abuse and insuring academic quality. Because all mail and phone communications are censored, students cannot tell their parents what's really happening down there. It is our hope that by banding together now - in some cases decades after graduating from the school - we can ease our pain by making our experience public and commiserating with one another.Escuela Caribe is a miserable place. It's founded on the concept that all students who are sent down there are "bad kids" who need to be punished. It doesn't take into consideration that many children come from homes where they were physically, sexually or emotionally abused, or that some students have documented mental health problems. NHYM's one-size-fits-all program is a simplistic approach to complicated issues. But itís also convenient dumping ground for wealthy evangelicals who don't want to deal with their troublesome teens.The image of the teacher punching my little brother in the stomach, and my helplessness at not being able to defend or comfort him, will haunt me forever. It reminds me why it's important to expose the truth about NHYM, and possibly spare other children from similar abuse.Craig ShellPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:I was on silence and notebook support and I was thrown around on a regular basis. Pushup support was kind of funny to me at first and then it got real old real fast when it got up to 20. My most favorite were sessions. (note the sarcasm.) Another was one night the guy that I shared a bunk with and I closed the slats because the security light shined right in our eyes and made it hard to go to sleep. One of us closed the slats and another student kept opening them. He and I got up at the same time to close them and another student got the house fathers attention and told him we were going to jump the first student. We were both in push up position for an hour then got thrown around and put back into push up position and then given swats that night. If I remember correctly we had a session with Mr. Redwine about it as well and got more swats. My bunkmate was handcuffed to the sink and made to sleep on the floor that night and they threatened to do the same to me but I was so tired I didn't even put up a fight when they put us back into the room.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:I remember there was a guy that came into Thomas and in his first night he was restrained for at least a half hour; I don't remember completely.What effect did “The Program” have on your faith?I was not to thrilled having religion pushed down my throat.Please feel free to add comments here:Sadly enough after almost 9 years I still have program dreams at least twice a month. It may be more than that but I couldn't tell you for sure because I don't remember my dreams very often. I also have a hard time showing emotion towards people because of the program.Joshua SierkPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:Spiritual Abuse?Daily. I was forced to believe in the Judeo-Christian God, under penalty of discipline, physical repercussions, and humiliation. I was forced to memorize portions of the Christian bible. I was made to sing songs I didn't believe in, and was refused the privilege of listening to most of the music I enjoyed. I was abused under the illusion of 'God's love,' and refused the human dignity to disagree.Emotional/Mental Abuse?I was put under extreme pressure daily to conform. My emotions were ignored regularly, and I was given no outlet. I am a musician and was promised piano lessons, but there was no qualified instructor.I was refused contact regularly with other students. I was systematically humiliated in front of 50-60 people at a time. I was yelled at and belittled by staff on a daily basis. I was also refused contact, generally, with the opposite gender.Physical?In the Dominican Republic, I was spanked. I was spanked up to 10 swats at a time with a leather strip. I was forced to bend over a chair and look at the floor, holding the le gs of a chair while I was being struck. Sometimes the swats were given in front of other students for added humiliation.In Canada, I was taken out to the woods for a slam session, yelled at, pushed around & forced to hold a sledgehammer above my head for about an hour.There was also the daily hauling of at least 200 lbs., repetitively, when I was 14 & still developing muscular strength. I have a tight neck muscle problem from this, as well as being forced to remain in push up position for up to 30-60 minutes at a time in the Dominican Republic.Considering my muscular problems which developed 2 yrs post-program (when I was 18, I got tendonitis and possibly other problems), I'd say I was abused every day, being given push ups & hard physical labor regardless of my pain. Today I am unable to perform even the smallest or least intense physical job, such as bagging groceries, without discomfort.I developed chronic diarrhea & hemorrhoids in the DR and was given a colonoscopy without my parents' consent and without anesthesia. I wasn't properly treated, and still am having related problems.I have flat feet, and from running up a 50 degree hill as punishment for more than a year, also developed knee problems. I have electrical impulses every time I put pressure on them, and I can no longer run further than 100 feet or be employed in a place that requires continuously standing up.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:The staff encouraged us to belittle other students. For instance, there was a boy in my house in the Dominican Republic who had 'special problems,' and several of the staff would make fun of him with mocking songs, encouraging us to join in.Two of my friends were put in solitary confinement for weeks, forced to perform hard labor. They had run away and were beaten, yelled at, given copious amounts of physical exercises, and forced to remain in the 'quiet room' for almost a month. Every day we would see them outside the school, digging a pit, and then running up the hill several times. We were forbidden to communicate with them. I watched my fellow students get humiliated, and was refused the chance to console them.Most of the time I just heard loud noises, crying and yelling. We weren't allowed to witness it. We just saw the student come out of the woods or the other room with red marks, dirt & tear stains covering their shirts and shorts. I heard stories, but was fortunate enough to not be seriously injured myself.Do you have any good memories of The Program? If so, what are they?There were times when I was provided a counselor, and I had a bit of contact with the opposite sex. Unfortunately, most of my friends at home weren't allowed to be in contact with me. Also, the Dominican countryside is beautiful to contemplate.It's difficult for me to remember a lot of things. I was so traumatized and in my own dreamland during my stay in the program that I am still repressing memories.I painted a lovely picture in my head of the entire experience for years. Only in my dreams did I remember the truth (to be forgotten upon awakening). In the past couple years have I begun to recall the heinous acts that I witnessed during my stay in New Horizons.I am just now beginning to recover and remember. I will continue to remember and share my memories with others, particularly those who are recovering and those who are considering sending their children away to a horrible place like NHYM.What is your overall impression of The Program? Did it “help you”?No. I became bitter, and it turned me off to my parents. I became more rebellious. I became more repressive with my memories, and developed serious emotional & physical problems, including PTSD, more severe depression, mood swings and anti-social behavior.Do you consider yourself a Christian today?No. I refuse to be classified by that term. I believe in the Judeo-Christian God, Y'shua Ha'Mashiach, but I'm not a member of an official church system, and I try to follow to the original intent of the Holy Scriptures.What effect did “The Program” have on your faith?I rebelled against it for years. I continue to be unsatisfied by the mediocrity in the church in this country. I continue to seek & follow the true God, and I was bitter for years. I wouldn't talk to God, I blamed Him for my hurt, I blamed my parents for forcing Him on me and giving me a horrible picture of Him, and I continue to blame the program and my previous college for enforcing an ungodly portrait of fundamental legalism.New Horizons most certainly did not love me, or give me what I needed to succeed in the real world. They sheltered me from it and gave me none of the tools I needed. They took my physical strength. They took my resolve, for years. They took my faith and stomped on it with their fundamentalist shoes. they hurt me in the most tender of places: my soul. They gave me an abusive picture of the God that I so cherish today.I will continue to believe in The Way, for the remainder of my life, but I will also continue to preach AGAINST the program and other perverted, distorted programs like it.Please feel free to add comments here:DO NOT SEND ANYONE YOU KNOW OR CARE ABOUT TO NHYM, EVER!They will end up worse off. No matter what you hear, they will be hurt. The staff will try to reassure you that there is nothing to fear, but don't believe them! There are a few students who stand by the program or return to it to work, but they are still brainwashed, as I was for years. These tales we tell are terrible & horrifying, but they are true.Deirdre SugiuchiDeirdre Sugiuchi is writing her teenage boot camp captivity narrative, Unreformed, which takes place at Escuela Caribe, a fundamentalist Christian reform school in the Dominican Republic.Please describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:I entered the program compliantly because I thought it was a Christian boarding school. That impression was reversed my second night when my housefather (HF) made me perform exercises for hours. According to him, I had "an authority problem" at home. He made me do bear crawls, pushups and duck walks. He had me hold my arms out balancing books until I cried from pain. Such interrogations are typically used to brainwash individuals.- When I entered the program I was very sick with an ear infection and strep throat. The staff ignored my illness. Later they said it was because they did not know if I was faking. I had to do the daily drills, and make it up the casita with my 6'4 (?) HF outrunning all of us girls. As a “low-ranker” I had to stay within an arms-length of him. On my first free day, I couldn't keep up with him (I am 5'4") when we hiked up a mountain, so he gave me push-up support- ten pushups for every five steps that we walked. Everyone else watched me. This continued until the house mother asked for a break. For the record, the supervising group leader did nothing to stop this mistreatment by the housefather.When I was depressed it was viewed as something I could control, and my points were routinely slashed because of it. I got low points for “moodiness” when I became withdrawn.- I was part of a group punishment session in which my entire house was forced to maintain a push-up position for hours. The house mom couldn't find a spatula. We were blamed for its disappearance. The session ended only when the house mom came in with the spatula, which she had misplaced. It hurt to laugh for days.Once I moved up the levels and became a high-ranker, I had more responsibility. Part of this responsibility entailed narc-ing on my peers. Another responsibility was that I had to inspect the low-rankers to make sure their privates were soaped during showers. One girl did not wash herself properly; the housefather said he could smell her. He required all low-rankers to have their soaped privates inspected during showers. This was an edict of a HF who later became assistant director. For the record, all students had a maximum of fifteen minutes to wash, dress, and leave their personal areas in perfect order. Low-rankers usually had much less than 15 minutes. Her hygiene problems most likely resulted from not having enough time to wash.The house fathers regulated how much food we ate at meals. My first HF enjoyed assigning a large amount of food to students. Many girls had a problem eating the large portions, not just me. His own wife, who was closer to our size, would eat about half of what he required us girls to eat. Eventually my stomach became accustomed to the portions, but I gained several pounds during my time in the program, despite spending the majority of my time working or completing forced exercises.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:During one of my first weeks in Escuela Caribe, my HF made a housemate do exercises for "becoming angry" during a counseling session. She “performed” exercises long past midnight; I could hear her outside the dormitory window. I learned from this incident never to express my true feelings about anything - not a healthy reaction in a supposedly “therapeutic” boarding school.- Two girls were molested by a housefather, K. When the school administration learned of K's inappropriate conduct he was fired, but he was never prosecuted. At the same time, a male teacher, R, confessed to looking at pornography with K. Not only did the administration not discipline R, they later promoted him to housefather in a GIRLS' house (see Tara's questionnaire for details about living with him). A few years later, he was convicted by an Indiana court of molesting one or more girls in his charge.These incidents should have never happened-the administration knew the staff member had predilections, but they ignored the danger signs, keeping R on staff. Furthermore, the administrator who failed to discipline R kept his position even after R. was convicted of sex crimes.- One fellow student asked K, the HF, for permission to use the bathroom for 8 hours straight, but he wouldn't let her because he claimed she was being “manipulative in the way she asked permission.” After dinner that night, she could no longer hold it and urinated on herself in front of the whole house.Another HF, JB, singled out a friend of mine. He played mind games with her, ignoring her requests to move from room to room. He abused her often in different sections of the house. We knew she was doing exercises; we could hear him yell. Once he ordered her to do pushups in front of the rest of the house, and when she was physically incapable of completing them (from exhaustion), he insisted that she continue. She kept falling and hitting the patio. The next day she had large purple bruises on her hipbones.- There were several students in the program who had obvious mental health issues. Instead of getting the psychiatric help they needed, they were treated as if they had authority problems and kept on low levels. Being on a low level for a long period of time was the kiss of death in the program because the staff would single out low-level students for punishment and humiliation.There are many more instances. I am in the process of writing a book detailing the abuse.What effect did “The Program” have on your faith?Before I entered the program I was a Christian. I was raised in a strong Christian family. Being in the program and being tortured in the name of God changed the way I felt about Christianity. I equate my experience there with religious abuse. I no longer participate in organized religion.Please feel free to add comments here:Despite their “certification,” staff members are not certified to treat students with special needs. Any program as isolated as the Escuela Caribe is almost guaranteed to be abusive, by virtue of its isolation.According to the National Institutes of Health, boot camp programs like EC do not work, and may exacerbate a student's problems. What does work is utilizing family counseling to address dysfunctional relationships, as opposed to placing the burden of responsibility on the child, who is simply acting out in response to the family's problems.Any program that restricts communication is suspect, especially at the level used by Escuela Caribe.Escuela Caribe uses excessive physical punishment, emotional and verbal abuse to keep children under control. It has a history of neglecting the health of students.Most of my classmates were sent to Escuela Caribe for minor offenses. However, isolating your child with other troubled children, makes deviance become that child's norm, practically guaranteeing they find it difficult to adjust to “normal” life after they are released or find “normal teens” as friends.Julie WheelerPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:I recall vivid memories of emotional and verbal abuse.Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:I was there during a sexual abuse scandal (He was forced to leave) I also witness countless times of verbal and emotional abuse to others. I witnessed students being “slammed”Isaac WorleyPlease describe instances of abuse you experienced while in the program, if any:Canada- As a 75 lb 12-year-old in Canada, I was body slammed into the cabin wall then thrown to the ground by a screaming full-grown man <cabin leader> for not singing loudly enough in chapel.Escuela Caribe- I was held to a wall via a choke hold < hands around neck > for not asking permission to enter/ exit a room.I was on absolute silence for 2 weeks, forbidden from speaking to anyone, which I would characterize as psychological abuse.The list goes on..Describe abuse of other students you witnessed, if any:I witnessed students being slammed into various objects (kitchen tables, chairs, dressers, metal window slats) for minor infractions. I also witnessed what I consider psychological abuse on a daily basis, such as the staffs' use of degradation and intimidation at Escuela Caribe.. Finally I believe putting a >>>child<<< into a small concrete cell (Quiet Room) with a coffee can to use as a toilet is also in the realm of abusive behavior..What effect did “The Program” have on your faith?It left me with a suspicion of those who claim to be doing God's work,.. some were truly trying to help, but others used God as an excuse to justify any action they took against a student/ child.Please feel free to add comments here:I have spent the past 10 years trying to forget the nightmare I experienced in the Dominican Republic. But I feel that the need to inform prospective parents, and possibly save a child from the traumatic experiences I endured, is well worth re-hashing these memories.The listing from this site tell what the program purported to be: New Horizons Youth Ministries, Marion, IndianaIt was a 501(c)(3) nonprofit certified by the IRS.Mission StatementIt is the mission of New Horizons Youth Ministry to foster spiritual growth and character building in high potential, at risk youth through therapeutic Christian education in a boarding school environment.DescriptionNew Horizons Youth Ministries operates year-round Christian boarding schools in two locations: Marion, Indiana and the Dominican Republic. We also operate a wilderness-based summer camp in Ontario, Canada and a service-oriented summer camp in the Dominican Republic. Our focus at all of our locations is on working with at-risk American teens, most of which come from Christian homes and have, for one reason or another, chosen to reject their family's faith and value system. New Horizons Youth Ministries does unique work with bright, under-achieving adolescents. Our combination of program locations and emphasis on a therapeutic Christian education places this ministry in a classification of its very own. At each of our locations our mission is to provide an environment where students are kept from the negative pressures of the world and given a chance to get on their feet physically, emotionally, and spiritually. We do this by providing a structured environment where warm, redemptive relationships can be built with our staff. We have a strong emphasis on teaching teamwork, responsibility, and respect for authority. It is imperative that our staff members have the ability to role model Christ-like character to our students.Organizational Statement of FaithWe believe the Bible is God's Word, that it was written by men, Divinely inspired and is the Christian's supreme, infallible authority in all matters of faith and conduct. We believe in God the Father, perfect in holiness, infinite in wisdom, measureless in power. We rejoice that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of men, that He hears and answers prayer and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ. We believe Jesus Christ is divine, the second person of the holy Trinity, the eternal and only begotten Son of God, conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, sinless in life, making atonement for the sins of the world by His death. We believe in His bodily resurrection, His ascension and His visible return to the world according to His promise. We believe in the Holy Spirit who came forth from God to convince the world of sin, of righteousness and of judgment and to regenerate, empower, sanctify and comfort those who receive Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior.——-Update 2021: Squad leader is dead. Maybe he was an OK guy in a fucked up system. Maybe we all are.Budd Davis Teare Obituary - Visitation & Funeral InformationShare Memories & Support the Family.https://www.nswcares.com/obituaries/Budd-Davis-Teare?obId=19585814

Joseph Smith tolerant of all“If I esteem mankind to be in error, shall I bear down on them? No. I will lift them up, and in their own way too, if I cannot persuade them my way is better. I will not seek to compel any man to believe as I do, only by force of reasoning, for truth will cut its own way. Do you believe Jesus Christ and the gospel of salvation which he revealed? So do I. Christians should cease wrangling and contending with each other, and cultivate the principles of union and friendship. I am just as ready to die defending the rights of a Presbyterian, a Baptist, or a good man of any other denomination.” (Joseph Smith, Sermon 1843, quoted by Southern Baptist Minister Dr Lynn Ridenhour in a YouTube video)President Brigham Young also established cordial relations with other Christian denominations:He intervened on behalf of Father Edward Kelly to resolve a disputed title to Catholic Church property in Salt Lake City;He donated land in Salt lake City to the Episcopalian Church for the building of a church and donated money out of his own pocket to assist with the construction.President David O. McKay was always kind and respectful to people of other faiths, and he praised the good work of all churches.However, he was firm in his testimony that the fulness of the gospel is found only in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. To teach the importance of obeying the principles and ordinances of the restored gospel, he spoke of membership in the Church as citizenship in a great kingdom:“All churches and all creeds contain some good which lead toward the kingdom of our Father; but to become a citizen of that kingdom everyone must conform to the requirements made by the King. Indeed, there is only one way in which entrance into the Church of Jesus Christ may be obtained, and that is the way marked out by Jesus Christ, the Lord. ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.’ (John 14:6.)Teachings of Presidents of the Church: David O. McKay, Chapter 21, Introduction© 2019 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. (IRI)President McKay had many inter-denominational friendships that paved the way for inclusiveness and ecumenical equality. He had his own vision of a much wider, friendlier world.“There is a genuine affection between members of the Church and non-members. How did it come about? When you get to know a fellow, chances are you’ll get to like him too.” [1]His friendships included·Episcopal Bishop Arthur W. Moulton;·Rev. Warren Bainbridge of the First Methodist Church of Salt Lake City;·Rev. A. Cadman Garretson of Trinity Presbyterian Church of Ogden to whom President McKay gave a Latter-day Saint contribution that allowed the completion of a church remodeling project;·Catholic Bishop Duane Hunt;·Dr Israel Goldstein, president of the American Jewish Congress; and·Joseph Rosenblatt, a Jewish industrialist and Salt Lake City resident.Defining the doctrines of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the domain of the Church’s President-Prophet. President David O. McKay was not fearful of the Church suffering from listening to or reading news with which they did not agree. President McKay made no secret of his passion for free agency (i.e., free will), speaking frequently on the subject in public settings.President McKay stated that all organizations, both governments and even churches, ran the risk of depriving their members of free agency, and his comments to this effect still stand as a timely warning to members of The Church of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.Footnote [1]David O. McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism, Gregory A. Prince and Wm. Robert Wright, University of Utah Press, 2005, p.108. ISBN 978—0-87480-822-3Statement of the First Presidency RegardingGod’s Love for All Mankind(15 February 1978)The First Presidency (Spencer W. Kimball,N. Eldon Tanner, Marion G. Romney)Based upon ancient and modern revelation, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gladly teaches and declares the Christian doctrine that all men and women are brothers and sisters, not only by blood relationship from common mortal progenitors but as literal spirit children of an Eternal Father.The great religious leaders of the world such as Mohammed, Confucius, and the Reformers, as well as philosophers including Socrates, Plato, and others, received a portion of God’s light. Moral truths were given to them by God to enlighten whole nations and to bring a higher level of understanding to individuals.The Hebrew prophets prepared the way for the coming of Jesus Christ, the promised Messiah, who should provide salvation for all mankind who believe in the gospel.Consistent with these truths, we believe that God has given and will give to all peoples sufficient knowledge to help them on their way to eternal salvation, either in this life or in the life to come.We also declare that the gospel of Jesus Christ, restored to His Church in our day, provides the only way to a mortal life of happiness and a fulness of joy forever. For those who have not received this gospel, the opportunity will come to them in the life hereafter if not in this life.Our message therefore is one of special love and concern for the eternal welfare of all men and women, regardless of religious belief, race, or nationality, knowing that we are truly brothers and sisters because we are sons and daughters of the same Eternal Father. (“God’s Love for All Mankind,” First Presidency Statement, 15 February 1978)President Gordon B. Hinckley, former Apostle, and Prophet-President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:“We can respect other religions and must do so. We must recognize the great good they accomplish. We must teach our children to be tolerant and friendly toward those not of our faith. We can and do work with those of other religions in the defense of those values which have made our civilization great and our society distinctive…” (General Conference, April 1998)Of Rights and Responsibilities: The SocialEcosystem of Religious FreedomBy Elder Patrick Kearon of the Presidency of the SeventyThis talk was a keynote address at the Religious Freedom Annual Review at Brigham Young University on June 19, 2019.Healthy societies run on trust, confidence and a sense of safety. With freedom of religion and belief, people feel safe in their deepest convictions and can express and exercise them publicly. The great enemy of religious freedom is estrangement and alienation. When a society or government divides people based on what they believe, how they think, the words they say, whom they worship or the manner in which they worship, common ground is lost, and life together becomes a battle. The test of a pluralistic society is to achieve unity without diminishing the diversity within it.Religious freedom means nothing if you protect your own religious practice while neglecting the practice of others, especially those who might be less secure and able to defend themselves. It only works if you protect the rights of everyone. As Elder D. Todd Christofferson, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has said, religious freedom is important precisely because it gives everyone — religious or not — the “space to determine for ourselves what we think and believe.”[1] In terms of numbers and inherited culture, the United States has a Christian majority, but unless it honors the lawful practices of Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Native American religions and everyone else, including individuals and groups who profess no faith at all, it will fail to live up to its own ideals. [2]Footnote [1] “A Celebration of Religious Freedom,” interfaith address in São Paulo, Brazil, April 29, 2015.[2]Pew Research Center on Religion and Public Life, Religious Landscape Study, 2019, Religion in America: U.S. Religious Data, Demographics and Statistics.© 2019 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. (IRI)PART 11: ECUMENICAL OUTREACH (CONT’D)For members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ecumenism is about Christ-like love for our brothers and sisters with whom we share this Earth as children of our Heavenly Father, and performing acts of service to and with, these brothers and sisters.Topic: How Church Donations Are UsedMembers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints endeavor to follow the Savior’s admonition to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, take in the stranger, clothe the naked and visit the sick and those in prison (see Matthew 25:35–36). Millions of people have benefited from temporal and spiritual assistance through humanitarian and welfare donations.Breakdown of DonationsThe following are some of the ways in which Latter-day Saint resources and donations are used.TithingIn keeping with the biblical practice of tithes, Latter-day Saints offer one-tenth of their income to the Church. These funds are used to:·Provide buildings or places of worship for members around the world.·Provide education programs, including support for Church universities and seminary and institute programs.·Support the Church’s worldwide missionary program.·Build and operate temples around the world and administer the world’s largest family history program.·Support the Church’s welfare programs, which serve people around the world regardless of religion, nationality or race.Note: Not all Christian denominations tithe. Mostly because Tithing is taught in the Old Testament, many people, not fully understanding the book Acts [of the Apostles], think that it is not part of the New Covenant. Tithing was taught at early Christian church councils, including the Council of Tours in 567, as well as the Third Council of Mâcon in 585.Those who teach tithing TODAY include:·Joseph Prince (Joseph Prince is the evangelist and senior pastor of New Creation Church based in Singapore. He was one of the church's founders in 1983) Wikipedia RETRIEVED Friday 13/03/2020. At the end of each television program there is an announcement that tithes should be paid to your local church;·Joyce Meyer (Joyce Meyer Ministries, Enjoying Everyday Life, Hand of Hope. Joyce Meyer is an American Charismatic Christian author and speaker and president of Joyce Meyer Ministries. Joyce and her husband Dave have four grown children, and live outside St. Louis, Missouri. Her ministry is headquartered near the St. Louis suburb of Fenton, Missouri.) Wikipedia RETRIEVED Friday 13/03/2020·Seventh Day Adventists;·Congregationalist Churches;·Methodist Churches;·The former Worldwide Church of God (WCG). There was a major schism in 1995, and from what I have read, The Restored Church of God led by David C. Pack as Pastor General is the correct successor to Herbert W. Armstrong.·Rev. Lovejoy of The First Church of Springfield in The Simpsons animated TV show, reminded his congregation that “tithing is based on ten percent (10%; 1/10) of a person’s gross income before tax.Fast OfferingsOn the first Sunday of the month, members of the Church in good health are encouraged to fast for two consecutive meals and donate generously to the Church the money they would have spent on food. These funds help those in local congregations, where Latter-day Saint leaders confidentially allocate funds to those in need, with the ultimate goal of self-reliance.Humanitarian AidLDS Charities, the nonprofit humanitarian arm of the Church, focuses on relieving suffering, fostering self-reliance and providing opportunities for service for people around the world regardless of religion, nationality or race. It sponsors ongoing initiatives such as maternal and newborn care, immunization, clean water, vision care, wheelchairs, refugee response and emergency and disaster relief throughout the world.When a disaster strikes, Latter-day Saints work with local Church leaders, government officials and trusted partners to determine what supplies and food are needed. Materials are then purchased or assembled locally or shipped from Latter-day Saint storehouses. After urgent needs are met, the Church looks for additional ways to aid in long-term efforts.One hundred percent of donations are used for humanitarian efforts. The Church absorbs its own overhead costs and utilizes a global network of volunteers who generously contribute their time and expertise. Volunteers often live in the communities in which they serve.Welfare ProgramLatter-day Saints contribute to the welfare program, which is primarily designed to care for the needy within the stewardship of the Church. At the discretion of bishops, local funds can, where possible, assist others in need who are not of our faith. Individuals typically depend on the Church’s food assistance for a few weeks to several months before they become self-sufficient once again. In addition to meeting the need for food, clothing and shelter, the program provides vocational rehabilitation and employment opportunities for citizens, immigrants and refugees. The approach is to help people become self-reliant by teaching skills and providing resources for a self-sustained life.PHOTO CAPTION: Elder Adrián Ochoa, president of the Central America Area, assists in volcano relief efforts at a collection center in Guatemala City, Monday, June 4, 2018. © 2018 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.Perpetual Education FundDonations to the Perpetual Education Fund support Latter-day Saints in nearly 70 countries outside the United States to help them afford technical or vocational education. Loans are granted at minimal interest, and participants do their best to repay the loan as soon as possible to become free of debt and to enjoy greater self-reliance. Repayments from existing participants and donations are used to make new loans to qualified students. Since the start of the PEF program in 2001, over 90,000 loans have been offered in nearly 70 countries around the world. Donations to the Perpetual Education Fund also help support individuals in 130 countries to become more self-reliant through courses focused on getting an education, finding a job, improving finances and starting or growing a business.LDS Family ServicesLDS Family Services draws on charitable donations to offer counseling services related to addiction recovery, familial conflict resolution, abuse and other issues for individuals, couples and families.Helping HandsThe Church sponsors the Helping Hands program, which brings together members of the Church and their neighbors to provide community service all around the world. In recognizable yellow shirts or vests, tens of thousands of volunteers help people whose lives have been affected by disasters or other emergencies. Volunteers also partner with government and nonprofit organizations to support and improve the communities where they live; they clean parks, restore public structures and perform various other community services. Originally started in South America, the program has since spread to nearly every corner of the earth. Hundreds of thousands of Latter-day Saints and other volunteers have donated millions of hours of service to their communities through this program.Other DonationsLatter-day Saints strive to follow the scriptural counsel to be “anxiously engaged in a good cause” (D&C 58:27). There are many opportunities for service outside of what the Church provides, such as those found on JustServe. The Church encourages its members to be generous with their time and resources in any way they can.Additional Resources·LDS Charities·Pacific Tonga eggs·Ixhautan working.jpg·Bishop Davies in Puerto Rico·Penn Research Shows That Latter-day Saints Are Generous and Active in Helping Others·Commentary: Publicizing Good WorksRelated TopicsWelfare and Self Reliancehttps://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/humanitarian-aid-welfare-services-breakdown-donations-costs-resourcesRETRIEVED Friday 13/03/2020Topic: Humanitarian ServicesCaring for the poor and needy is a foundational belief of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Built on the principles of personal responsibility, community support, self-reliance and sustainability, humanitarian efforts are designed to give individuals and communities the tools they need to improve their own circumstances in permanent and meaningful ways.Humanitarian service may include emergency response to natural or man-made disasters. It may also be part of a longer-term effort to meet serious and more entrenched human needs, such as alleviating disease.LDS Charities, the humanitarian arm of the Church, was created in 1985 in response to the Ethiopian famine. The Church called for a special fast and monetary donation among its membership. Since then, the Church has responded to many other needs around the world.When a disaster strikes, Latter-day Saints work with local Church leaders, government officials and trusted partners to determine what supplies and food are needed. Materials are then purchased or assembled locally or shipped from Latter-day Saint storehouses. After urgent needs are met, the Church looks for additional ways to aid in long-term efforts.A woman In Hyderabad, India, receives eye care from LDS Charities volunteers. © 2018 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. vision-care-india.JPGClean water in Nigeria © 2018 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.Humanitarian efforts are also supported through nine signature programs of LDS Charities:Food Security: Benson Food (President Eisenhower appointed Ezra Taft Benson as Secretary of Agriculture. [Elder] Benson accepted with the permission and encouragement of church president David O. McKay; Benson therefore served simultaneously in the United States Cabinet and in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles). Ezra Taft Benson - WikipediaClean Water and SanitationCommunity ProjectsEmergency ResponseImmunizationMaternal and Newborn CareRefugee ResponseVision CareWheelchairsOne hundred percent of donations are used for humanitarian efforts. The Church absorbs its own overhead costs and utilizes a global network of volunteers, who generously contribute their time and expertise. Volunteers often live in the communities in which they serve.The Church also sponsors many other welfare and self-reliance programs, including vocational, rehabilitative, counseling and other services. This includes millions of hours donated by Latter-day Saint doctors, nurses and other Church members each year. Thousands of professionals and volunteers give freely of their time and means to those in need, with no expectation of praise, publicity or reward.https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/topic/humanitarian-servicesRETRIEVED Friday 13/03/2020Guiding PrinciplesLatter-day Saint Charities is founded on three guiding principles. These principles, based on our faith in Jesus Christ, empower individuals and families regardless of race, religion, or nationality.CARE FOR THOSE IN GREATEST NEEDWe are all connected and have a responsibility to care for people in need. In many instances, both immediate relief and long-term solutions are needed to help a community.PROMOTE VOLUNTEERISMWe all have gifts and talents to contribute. Through volunteerism, benefits come to those who give service and to those who receive service.INSPIRE SELF-RELIANCEEvery community has the talents and resources to find solutions to its needs. As individuals and communities become more self-reliant, they are equipped to solve challenges and lift others.THROUGH GENEROUS DONATIONS FROM INDIVIDUALS, LATTER-DAY SAINT CHARITIES HAS PROVIDED OVER $2.3 billion WORTH OF ASSISTANCE IN 197 countries SINCE 1985.2019 Annual Reports17 March 2020 - Salt Lake CityNews ReleaseLatter-day Saints Provide Disaster Relief to Tennessee Tornado VictimsIn mid-March, more than 1,200 helpers from Tennessee and Kentucky came to provide disaster cleanup, resources for victims, uplifting music and even photograph restoration.The deadly storm killed over three dozen people along its 50-mile path on March 2 and 3, 2020.“It’s like a war zone, seeing all the debris laying around,” described Randi Elliot, a local Latter-day Saint congregant who was affected by the storm.Elliot was sleeping when she first heard the tornado hit.“The window in our bedroom blew out,” she said. “We had glass everywhere … the house across the street was flattened.”“Until you see it when you’re there with your feet on the ground and you see the devastation up close, you have no idea how they lost so few people,” said Wendy Bird, president of a local Relief Society, an organization for Latter-day Saint women.Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints joined people of other religious and charitable organizations to repair damaged homes, distribute hygiene kits, cut down fallen trees and remove other types of debris.During the disaster relief effort, local Church meetinghouses were converted into command centers in the Nashville, Murfreesboro and Cookeville areas.Latter-day Saints also gifted storehouse supplies, including cleaning and hygiene kits, to local charities and government agencies.Among the Helping Hands volunteers who donated over 9,500 hours of cleanup time, some provided unique services.“I started a Facebook group called ‘Found in the Storm,’ and we made it a place where it’s just for photos and things to be found,” said Sadie Barrientos, a Helping Hands volunteer from Cookeville.According to Barrientos, Tennessee Tech University took interest in her efforts and decided to facilitate photography enhancement and digitizing.Barrientos explained that she’s not only looking for photos. “As volunteers are coming into the building, we asked them to collect … wedding dresses, baby hats, anything that we think is salvageable that could potentially be returned to the people who lost everything.”Among those providing unique services was Jane Turvaville, a volunteer from Cookeville. Turvaville is a pianist and was asked to provide music for those providing cleanup services.To accomplish this, volunteers painstakingly lifted a piano from one of the local churches into a trailer. They visited many different destination spots for Turvaville to uplift those who were assisting with the cleanup.“I played all kinds of hymns — Protestant hymns, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints hymns,” Turvaville said.“Workers were there, and there were lots of them from all different faiths and with all different-colored T-shirts,” Bird said. “And they all expressed the desire to serve their Savior.”Latter-day Saints Provide Disaster Relief to Tennessee Tornado Victims17 March 2020 - Kangaroo Island, AustraliaNews StoryLatter-day Saint Charities Makes Significant Donation to Kangaroo Island ResidentsLatter-day Saint Charities, the humanitarian arm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, made a significant donation to families and the community of Kangaroo Island, Australia on Saturday 14 March.The donation will help many who were seriously impacted by a major bushfire that recently burnt almost half the land mass of the island off the coast of South Australia.The Kangaroo Island “Ravine” fire tore through more than 200,000 hectares with a perimeter of over 600kms. First reported on 30 December 2019, the fire burnt for several weeks before it was brought under control. Two property owners were killed fighting the massive fire.A home on Kangaroo Island after fires ravaged the community in late 2019 and early 2020.Charred remains of a property on Kangaroo Island.Kangaroo Island, Australia. 14 March 2020.Missionaries in Adelaide Assemble Gift Wallets for Kangaroo Island FamiliesElder Ian S. Ardern Presents Donations to Kangaroo Island FamiliesChurch and community representatives participated in a humanitarian donation hand-over on Kangaroo Island on 14 March 2020. Island residents are are recovering from catastrophic fires in late 2019 and early 2020.It destroyed 65 homes on farm properties and other buildings. The world-renowned Flinders Chase National Park and its visitor centre, and many other tourism facilities were also affected.On Saturday 14 March 2020, Pacific Area President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Elder Ian S. Ardern, Sister Paula Ardern, Area Seventy Elder Paul N. Lekias, Sister Rebecca Lekias, Steven Petersen, Director for Temporal Affairs for the Pacific Area, and Sister LuAnn Petersen, travelled to Kangaroo Island to meet with Mayor Michael Pengilly and several families impacted by the fire. The visitors were accompanied by President Jason Ellis of the Adelaide Australia Marion Stake.Kangaroo Island Latter-day Saint Branch President, Shaun Hinves, and his wife Anthea, met the group and showed them around the island during the day. President Hinves, a professional bee-keeper, is one of many locals whose livelihood has been severely impacted by the fire.Elder Ardern presented 100 gift wallets to families who are recovering from the natural disaster. Within each wallet were three vouchers, each valued at $100, to be spent at the island’s hardware store, petrol station and supermarket. The wallets also contained several self-help ideas, and messages of love and support from missionaries from the Adelaide Australia Mission.Elder Ardern also presented four fully equipped trailers to Blaze Aid, a not-for-profit organisation whose volunteers repair rural fencing destroyed by natural disasters, to assist in their efforts.The Church had previously donated 10 semi-trailer loads of hay and water to farming families on the island.Mayor Pengilly was very appreciative of the donations, saying the items will have a major positive impact within his constituency.The Church leadership group visited two properties whose farms were significantly impacted by the fire. Mrs Paula Buck and her family lost two homes, several buildings, farm machinery and livestock to the fire.Paul Stanton’s family are well known farmers on the island, but also known for the work they do caring for injured wildlife. Even though their substantial stone home was destroyed, Paul and his family have maintained their care of local wildlife, some of which were injured in the fire.The visiting group saw the damage to the Stanton property firsthand, and also witnessed some of the great work they are still doing to care for injured animals.Elder Ardern was moved by the resilience of the families and their ability to rebound after the devastating effects of the fire. He said he was grateful that he and others were able to visit the island and that the Church could bring some relief through the generosity of Church members worldwide.Latter-day Saint Charities Makes Significant Donation to Kangaroo Island ResidentsEmergency Relief Efforts and Hope During COVID-1920 March 2020In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, many people around the world are in need of help, supplies, and support. At Latter-day Saint Charities, we believe that there is hope and that the best way to cope with emergency situations is to help each other. We are working closely with our partners worldwide to provide emergency relief and hope to those in need.COVID-19 Emergency Response EffortsWe are currently providing support, supplies, and funding in Cambodia, China, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Italy, Iran, Japan, Mongolia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam.Efforts include providing medical and emergency supplies and commodities to healthcare professionals and patients. They also include training for healthcare professionals regarding physical, mental, and emotional support to those struggling. Funding and supplies are also being provided to help with the prevention and treatment of COVID-19.We are working with a variety of partners to maximize efforts in countries all over the world. As we monitor the situation worldwide, we will continue to evaluate new projects and provide help in additional places. We anticipate responding for months to come as families, communities, and nations band together to address the long-term effects of the virus. Strengthening and supporting each other long after the news cycle ends is part of the mission of Latter-day Saint Charities.Where the Church has canneries and food processing plants, production schedules have been adjusted to meet the increasing needs. The goods will be made available as needed to Church leaders, community agencies, school feeding programs, food banks, and other partners.Due to its global reach and long trajectory, this emergency is like no other. We are grateful for strong partnerships with governments, international non-governmental organizations, and the host of people around the world contributing to solutions. This event is more than any one organization can handle, and we thank all in the global community who have stepped up in positive ways to lift one another. We also thank the many thousands of people who donate to support the efforts of Latter-day Saint Charities. These donations allow us to respond immediately without any delay, and we are grateful for the generosity and trust of all who support these efforts.How You Can HelpAs an individual, you may be wondering how you can help during the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular during this time, one of the best things you can do is be a good global citizen. Pay close attention to and follow the guidelines from the World Health Organization (WHO) to reduce the spread of the virus. Be good neighbors when shopping or using medical resources. Check on neighbors and friends in appropriate ways for the situation in your community. Creatively use technology to help people stay connected and to keep spirits positive. This is a time when every person can do something, and kindness is evidence of who we really are.https://www.latterdaysaintcharities.org/blog/emergency-relief-efforts-and-hope-during-covid-19?lang=engLatter-day Saint Charities responds to coronavirus, assisting with commodities and financing worldwideUpdated 21 Mar 2020 12:27 pm MDTIn helping address global health concerns, Latter-day Saint Charities is assisting with commodities and financing worldwide — from Asia to North America and into Europe and the Middle East — while working with Church canneries and food-processing plants to help meet increased needs.In a post titled “Emergency Relief Efforts and Hope During COVID-19,” on the organization’s website, Latter-day Saint Charities acknowledged providing support, supplies and funding to date in Cambodia, China, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Italy, Iran, Japan, Mongolia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States and Vietnam.That includes providing medical and emergency supplies and commodities to healthcare professionals and patients; training for healthcare professionals in offering physical, mental and emotional support to those who are struggling; and funding and supplies to help with the prevention and treatment of COVID-19.It also noted that the Church’s canneries and food-processing plants have adjusted production schedules to help meet increased needs, making products and goods available as needed to Church leaders, community agencies, school feeding programs, food banks and other partners.Latter-day Saint Charities’ work with partners worldwide maximizes its effort and reach, and the organization continues to evaluate new projects and consider help in additional locations.Inside a Church cannery in Harrisville, Utah. Credit: Intellectual Reserve, Inc.“We anticipate responding for months to come as families, communities, and nations band together to address the long-term effects of the virus,” the post stated. “Strengthening and supporting each other long after the news cycle ends is part of the mission of Latter-day Saint Charities.”Latter-day Saint Charities expressed appreciation for its partnerships with governments, international non-governmental organizations and others contributing to solutions. The organization also thanked donors who contributed well before the pandemic ever began, allowing for funds and commodities to be available for immediate response, without delay.The post also listed ways individuals can help during the pandemic:Be a good global citizen.Follow World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines to help reduce the spread of the virus.Check on neighbors and friends in the community while practicing safe methods of interactions.Use technology to help stay connected and remain positive.“This is a time when every person can do something, and kindness is evidence of who we really are,” the blog post concluded.In its 2019 Annual Report released last month, Latter-day Saint Charities documented its efforts last year in 142 countries and territories. In all, Latter-day Saint Charities completed 3,221 projects working shoulder-to-shoulder with 2,000 partners.Emergency response efforts included 194 projects in 64 countries and territories, while international community projects totaled 994 in 107 countries and territories. Community projects in the United States and Canada were done in 42 states and provinces.Latter-day Saint Charities responds to coronavirus, assisting with commodities and financing worldwide

I am not well today, so I hope you don’t mind that I just copy and paste this information from a previous http://answer.It will provide most o the information I think you are looking for.Is the LDS church ecumenical?Ted McCartin·June 6Elder/Lay Minister in the Church of Jesus Christ.Joseph Smith tolerant of all“If I esteem mankind to be in error, shall I bear down on them? No. I will lift them up, and in their own way too, if I cannot persuade them my way is better. I will not seek to compel any man to believe as I do, only by force of reasoning, for truth will cut its own way. Do you believe Jesus Christ and the gospel of salvation which he revealed? So do I. Christians should cease wrangling and contending with each other, and cultivate the principles of union and friendship. I am just as ready to die defending the rights of a Presbyterian, a Baptist, or a good man of any other denomination.” (Joseph Smith, Sermon 1843, quoted by Southern Baptist Minister Dr Lynn Ridenhour in a YouTube video)President Brigham Young also established cordial relations with other Christian denominations:He intervened on behalf of Father Edward Kelly to resolve a disputed title to Catholic Church property in Salt Lake City;He donated land in Salt lake City to the Episcopalian Church for the building of a church and donated money out of his own pocket to assist with the construction.President David O. McKay was always kind and respectful to people of other faiths, and he praised the good work of all churches.However, he was firm in his testimony that the fulness of the gospel is found only in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. To teach the importance of obeying the principles and ordinances of the restored gospel, he spoke of membership in the Church as citizenship in a great kingdom:“All churches and all creeds contain some good which lead toward the kingdom of our Father; but to become a citizen of that kingdom everyone must conform to the requirements made by the King. Indeed, there is only one way in which entrance into the Church of Jesus Christ may be obtained, and that is the way marked out by Jesus Christ, the Lord. ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.’ (John 14:6.)Teachings of Presidents of the Church: David O. McKay, Chapter 21, Introduction© 2019 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. (IRI)President McKay had many inter-denominational friendships that paved the way for inclusiveness and ecumenical equality. He had his own vision of a much wider, friendlier world.“There is a genuine affection between members of the Church and non-members. How did it come about? When you get to know a fellow, chances are you’ll get to like him too.” [1]His friendships included·Episcopal Bishop Arthur W. Moulton;·Rev. Warren Bainbridge of the First Methodist Church of Salt Lake City;·Rev. A. Cadman Garretson of Trinity Presbyterian Church of Ogden to whom President McKay gave a Latter-day Saint contribution that allowed the completion of a church remodeling project;·Catholic Bishop Duane Hunt;·Dr Israel Goldstein, president of the American Jewish Congress; and·Joseph Rosenblatt, a Jewish industrialist and Salt Lake City resident.Defining the doctrines of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the domain of the Church’s President-Prophet. President David O. McKay was not fearful of the Church suffering from listening to or reading news with which they did not agree. President McKay made no secret of his passion for free agency (i.e., free will), speaking frequently on the subject in public settings.President McKay stated that all organizations, both governments and even churches, ran the risk of depriving their members of free agency, and his comments to this effect still stand as a timely warning to members of The Church of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.Footnote [1]David O. McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism, Gregory A. Prince and Wm. Robert Wright, University of Utah Press, 2005, p.108. ISBN 978—0-87480-822-3Statement of the First Presidency RegardingGod’s Love for All Mankind(15 February 1978)The First Presidency (Spencer W. Kimball,N. Eldon Tanner, Marion G. Romney)Based upon ancient and modern revelation, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gladly teaches and declares the Christian doctrine that all men and women are brothers and sisters, not only by blood relationship from common mortal progenitors but as literal spirit children of an Eternal Father.The great religious leaders of the world such as Mohammed, Confucius, and the Reformers, as well as philosophers including Socrates, Plato, and others, received a portion of God’s light. Moral truths were given to them by God to enlighten whole nations and to bring a higher level of understanding to individuals.The Hebrew prophets prepared the way for the coming of Jesus Christ, the promised Messiah, who should provide salvation for all mankind who believe in the gospel.Consistent with these truths, we believe that God has given and will give to all peoples sufficient knowledge to help them on their way to eternal salvation, either in this life or in the life to come.We also declare that the gospel of Jesus Christ, restored to His Church in our day, provides the only way to a mortal life of happiness and a fulness of joy forever. For those who have not received this gospel, the opportunity will come to them in the life hereafter if not in this life.Our message therefore is one of special love and concern for the eternal welfare of all men and women, regardless of religious belief, race, or nationality, knowing that we are truly brothers and sisters because we are sons and daughters of the same Eternal Father. (“God’s Love for All Mankind,” First Presidency Statement, 15 February 1978)President Gordon B. Hinckley, former Apostle, and Prophet-President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:“We can respect other religions and must do so. We must recognize the great good they accomplish. We must teach our children to be tolerant and friendly toward those not of our faith. We can and do work with those of other religions in the defense of those values which have made our civilization great and our society distinctive…” (General Conference, April 1998)Of Rights and Responsibilities: The SocialEcosystem of Religious FreedomBy Elder Patrick Kearon of the Presidency of the SeventyThis talk was a keynote address at the Religious Freedom Annual Review at Brigham Young University on June 19, 2019.Healthy societies run on trust, confidence and a sense of safety. With freedom of religion and belief, people feel safe in their deepest convictions and can express and exercise them publicly. The great enemy of religious freedom is estrangement and alienation. When a society or government divides people based on what they believe, how they think, the words they say, whom they worship or the manner in which they worship, common ground is lost, and life together becomes a battle. The test of a pluralistic society is to achieve unity without diminishing the diversity within it.Religious freedom means nothing if you protect your own religious practice while neglecting the practice of others, especially those who might be less secure and able to defend themselves. It only works if you protect the rights of everyone. As Elder D. Todd Christofferson, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has said, religious freedom is important precisely because it gives everyone — religious or not — the “space to determine for ourselves what we think and believe.”[1]In terms of numbers and inherited culture, the United States has a Christian majority, but unless it honors the lawful practices of Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Native American religions and everyone else, including individuals and groups who profess no faith at all, it will fail to live up to its own ideals. [2]Footnote [1] “A Celebration of Religious Freedom,” interfaith address in São Paulo, Brazil, April 29, 2015.[2]Pew Research Center on Religion and Public Life, Religious Landscape Study, 2019, Religion in America: U.S. Religious Data, Demographics and Statistics.© 2019 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. (IRI)PART II: ECUMENICAL OUTREACH (CONT’D)For members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ecumenism is about Christ-like love for our brothers and sisters with whom we share this Earth as children of our Heavenly Father, and performing acts of service to and with, these brothers and sisters.Topic: How Church Donations Are UsedMembers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints endeavor to follow the Savior’s admonition to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, take in the stranger, clothe the naked and visit the sick and those in prison (see Matthew 25:35–36). Millions of people have benefited from temporal and spiritual assistance through humanitarian and welfare donations.Breakdown of DonationsThe following are some of the ways in which Latter-day Saint resources and donations are used.TithingIn keeping with the biblical practice of tithes, Latter-day Saints offer one-tenth of their income to the Church. These funds are used to:·Provide buildings or places of worship for members around the world.·Provide education programs, including support for Church universities and seminary and institute programs.·Support the Church’s worldwide missionary program.·Build and operate temples around the world and administer the world’s largest family history program.·Support the Church’s welfare programs, which serve people around the world regardless of religion, nationality or race.Note: Not all Christian denominations tithe. Mostly because Tithing is taught in the Old Testament, many people, not fully understanding the book Acts [of the Apostles], think that it is not part of the New Covenant. Tithing was taught at early Christian church councils, including the Council of Tours in 567, as well as the Third Council of Mâcon in 585.Those who teach tithing TODAY include:·Joseph Prince (Joseph Prince is the evangelist and senior pastor of New Creation Church based in Singapore. He was one of the church's founders in 1983) WikipediaRETRIEVED Friday 13/03/2020. At the end of each television program there is an announcement that tithes should be paid to your local church;·Joyce Meyer (Joyce Meyer Ministries, Enjoying Everyday Life, Hand of Hope. Joyce Meyer is an American Charismatic Christian author and speaker and president of Joyce Meyer Ministries. Joyce and her husband Dave have four grown children, and live outside St. Louis, Missouri. Her ministry is headquartered near the St. Louis suburb of Fenton, Missouri.) WikipediaRETRIEVED Friday 13/03/2020·Seventh Day Adventists;·Congregationalist Churches;·Methodist Churches;·The former Worldwide Church of God (WCG). There was a major schism in 1995, and from what I have read, The Restored Church of God led by David C. Pack as Pastor General is the correct successor to Herbert W. Armstrong.·Rev. Lovejoy of The First Church of Springfield in The Simpsons animated TV show, reminded his congregation that “tithing is based on ten percent (10%; 1/10) of a person’s gross income before tax.Fast OfferingsOn the first Sunday of the month, members of the Church in good health are encouraged to fast for two consecutive meals and donate generously to the Church the money they would have spent on food. These funds help those in local congregations, where Latter-day Saint leaders confidentially allocate funds to those in need, with the ultimate goal of self-reliance.Humanitarian AidLDS Charities, the nonprofit humanitarian arm of the Church, focuses on relieving suffering, fostering self-reliance and providing opportunities for service for people around the world regardless of religion, nationality or race. It sponsors ongoing initiatives such as maternal and newborn care, immunization, clean water, vision care, wheelchairs, refugee response and emergency and disaster relief throughout the world.When a disaster strikes, Latter-day Saints work with local Church leaders, government officials and trusted partners to determine what supplies and food are needed. Materials are then purchased or assembled locally or shipped from Latter-day Saint storehouses. After urgent needs are met, the Church looks for additional ways to aid in long-term efforts.One hundred percent of donations are used for humanitarian efforts. The Church absorbs its own overhead costs and utilizes a global network of volunteers who generously contribute their time and expertise. Volunteers often live in the communities in which they serve.Welfare ProgramLatter-day Saints contribute to the welfare program, which is primarily designed to care for the needy within the stewardship of the Church. At the discretion of bishops, local funds can, where possible, assist others in need who are not of our faith. Individuals typically depend on the Church’s food assistance for a few weeks to several months before they become self-sufficient once again. In addition to meeting the need for food, clothing and shelter, the program provides vocational rehabilitation and employment opportunities for citizens, immigrants and refugees. The approach is to help people become self-reliant by teaching skills and providing resources for a self-sustained life.PHOTO CAPTION: Elder Adrián Ochoa, president of the Central America Area, assists in volcano relief efforts at a collection center in Guatemala City, Monday, June 4, 2018. © 2018 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.Perpetual Education FundDonations to the Perpetual Education Fund support Latter-day Saints in nearly 70 countries outside the United States to help them afford technical or vocational education. Loans are granted at minimal interest, and participants do their best to repay the loan as soon as possible to become free of debt and to enjoy greater self-reliance. Repayments from existing participants and donations are used to make new loans to qualified students. Since the start of the PEF program in 2001, over 90,000 loans have been offered in nearly 70 countries around the world. Donations to the Perpetual Education Fund also help support individuals in 130 countries to become more self-reliant through courses focused on getting an education, finding a job, improving finances and starting or growing a business.LDS Family ServicesLDS Family Services draws on charitable donations to offer counseling services related to addiction recovery, familial conflict resolution, abuse and other issues for individuals, couples and families.Helping HandsThe Church sponsors the Helping Handsprogram, which brings together members of the Church and their neighbors to provide community service all around the world. In recognizable yellow shirts or vests, tens of thousands of volunteers help people whose lives have been affected by disasters or other emergencies. Volunteers also partner with government and nonprofit organizations to support and improve the communities where they live; they clean parks, restore public structures and perform various other community services. Originally started in South America, the program has since spread to nearly every corner of the earth. Hundreds of thousands of Latter-day Saints and other volunteers have donated millions of hours of service to their communities through this program.Other DonationsLatter-day Saints strive to follow the scriptural counsel to be “anxiously engaged in a good cause” (D&C 58:27). There are many opportunities for service outside of what the Church provides, such as those found on JustServe. The Church encourages its members to be generous with their time and resources in any way they can.Additional Resources·LDS Charities·Pacific Tonga eggs·Ixhautan working.jpg·Bishop Davies in Puerto Rico·Penn Research Shows That Latter-day Saints Are Generous and Active in Helping Others·Commentary: Publicizing Good WorksRelated TopicsWelfare and Self RelianceLDS Charities: How Church Donations are UsedRETRIEVED Friday 13/03/2020Topic: Humanitarian ServicesCaring for the poor and needy is a foundational belief of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Built on the principles of personal responsibility, community support, self-reliance and sustainability, humanitarian efforts are designed to give individuals and communities the tools they need to improve their own circumstances in permanent and meaningful ways.Humanitarian service may include emergency response to natural or man-made disasters. It may also be part of a longer-term effort to meet serious and more entrenched human needs, such as alleviating disease.LDS Charities, the humanitarian arm of the Church, was created in 1985 in response to the Ethiopian famine. The Church called for a special fast and monetary donation among its membership. Since then, the Church has responded to many other needs around the world.When a disaster strikes, Latter-day Saints work with local Church leaders, government officials and trusted partners to determine what supplies and food are needed. Materials are then purchased or assembled locally or shipped from Latter-day Saint storehouses. After urgent needs are met, the Church looks for additional ways to aid in long-term efforts.A woman In Hyderabad, India, receives eye care from LDS Charities volunteers. © 2018 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. vision-care-india.JPGClean water in Nigeria© 2018 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.Humanitarian efforts are also supported through nine signature programs of LDS Charities:Food Security: Benson Food (President Eisenhower appointed Ezra Taft Benson as Secretary of Agriculture. [Elder] Benson accepted with the permission and encouragement of church president David O. McKay; Benson therefore served simultaneously in the United States Cabinetand in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles). Ezra Taft Benson - WikipediaClean Water and SanitationCommunity ProjectsEmergency ResponseImmunizationMaternal and Newborn CareRefugee ResponseVision CareWheelchairsOne hundred percent of donations are used for humanitarian efforts. The Church absorbs its own overhead costs and utilizes a global network of volunteers, who generously contribute their time and expertise. Volunteers often live in the communities in which they serve.The Church also sponsors many other welfare and self-reliance programs, including vocational, rehabilitative, counseling and other services. This includes millions of hours donated by Latter-day Saint doctors, nurses and other Church members each year. Thousands of professionals and volunteers give freely of their time and means to those in need, with no expectation of praise, publicity or reward.Through LDS Charities, the Church Does Humanitarian Work Around the WorldRETRIEVED Friday 13/03/2020Guiding PrinciplesLatter-day Saint Charities is founded on three guiding principles. These principles, based on our faith in Jesus Christ, empower individuals and families regardless of race, religion, or nationality.CARE FOR THOSE IN GREATEST NEEDWe are all connected and have a responsibility to care for people in need. In many instances, both immediate relief and long-term solutions are needed to help a community.PROMOTE VOLUNTEERISMWe all have gifts and talents to contribute. Through volunteerism, benefits come to those who give service and to those who receive service.INSPIRE SELF-RELIANCEEvery community has the talents and resources to find solutions to its needs. As individuals and communities become more self-reliant, they are equipped to solve challenges and lift others.THROUGH GENEROUS DONATIONS FROM INDIVIDUALS, LATTER-DAY SAINT CHARITIES HAS PROVIDED OVER $2.3 billion WORTH OF ASSISTANCE IN 197 countries SINCE 1985.2019 Annual Reports17 March 2020 - Salt Lake CityNews ReleaseLatter-day Saints Provide Disaster Relief to Tennessee Tornado VictimsIn mid-March, more than 1,200 helpers from Tennessee and Kentucky came to provide disaster cleanup, resources for victims, uplifting music and even photograph restoration.The deadly storm killed over three dozen people along its 50-mile path on March 2 and 3, 2020.“It’s like a war zone, seeing all the debris laying around,” described Randi Elliot, a local Latter-day Saint congregant who was affected by the storm.Elliot was sleeping when she first heard the tornado hit.“The window in our bedroom blew out,” she said. “We had glass everywhere … the house across the street was flattened.”“Until you see it when you’re there with your feet on the ground and you see the devastation up close, you have no idea how they lost so few people,” said Wendy Bird, president of a local Relief Society, an organization for Latter-day Saint women.Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints joined people of other religious and charitable organizations to repair damaged homes, distribute hygiene kits, cut down fallen trees and remove other types of debris.During the disaster relief effort, local Church meetinghouses were converted into command centers in the Nashville, Murfreesboro and Cookeville areas.Latter-day Saints also gifted storehouse supplies, including cleaning and hygiene kits, to local charities and government agencies.Among the Helping Hands volunteers who donated over 9,500 hours of cleanup time, some provided unique services.“I started a Facebook group called ‘Found in the Storm,’and we made it a place where it’s just for photos and things to be found,” said Sadie Barrientos, a Helping Hands volunteer from Cookeville.According to Barrientos, Tennessee Tech University took interest in her efforts and decided to facilitate photography enhancement and digitizing.Barrientos explained that she’s not only looking for photos. “As volunteers are coming into the building, we asked them to collect … wedding dresses, baby hats, anything that we think is salvageable that could potentially be returned to the people who lost everything.”Among those providing unique services was Jane Turvaville, a volunteer from Cookeville. Turvaville is a pianist and was asked to provide music for those providing cleanup services.To accomplish this, volunteers painstakingly lifted a piano from one of the local churches into a trailer. They visited many different destination spots for Turvaville to uplift those who were assisting with the cleanup.“I played all kinds of hymns — Protestant hymns, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints hymns,” Turvaville said.“Workers were there, and there were lots of them from all different faiths and with all different-colored T-shirts,” Bird said. “And they all expressed the desire to serve their Savior.”Latter-day Saints Provide Disaster Relief to Tennessee Tornado Victims17 March 2020 - Kangaroo Island, AustraliaNews StoryLatter-day Saint Charities Makes Significant Donation to Kangaroo Island ResidentsLatter-day Saint Charities, the humanitarian arm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, made a significant donation to families and the community of Kangaroo Island, Australia on Saturday 14 March.The donation will help many who were seriously impacted by a major bushfire that recently burnt almost half the land mass of the island off the coast of South Australia.The Kangaroo Island “Ravine” fire tore through more than 200,000 hectares with a perimeter of over 600kms. First reported on 30 December 2019, the fire burnt for several weeks before it was brought under control. Two property owners were killed fighting the massive fire.A home on Kangaroo Island after fires ravaged the community in late 2019 and early 2020.Charred remains of a property on Kangaroo Island.Kangaroo Island, Australia. 14 March 2020.Missionaries in Adelaide Assemble Gift Wallets for Kangaroo Island FamiliesElder Ian S. Ardern Presents Donations to Kangaroo Island FamiliesChurch and community representatives participated in a humanitarian donation hand-over on Kangaroo Island on 14 March 2020. Island residents are are recovering from catastrophic fires in late 2019 and early 2020.It destroyed 65 homes on farm properties and other buildings. The world-renowned Flinders Chase National Park and its visitor centre, and many other tourism facilities were also affected.On Saturday 14 March 2020, Pacific Area President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Elder Ian S. Ardern, Sister Paula Ardern, Area Seventy Elder Paul N. Lekias, Sister Rebecca Lekias, Steven Petersen, Director for Temporal Affairs for the Pacific Area, and Sister LuAnn Petersen, travelled to Kangaroo Island to meet with Mayor Michael Pengilly and several families impacted by the fire. The visitors were accompanied by President Jason Ellis of the Adelaide Australia Marion Stake.Kangaroo Island Latter-day Saint Branch President, Shaun Hinves, and his wife Anthea, met the group and showed them around the island during the day. President Hinves, a professional bee-keeper, is one of many locals whose livelihood has been severely impacted by the fire.Elder Ardern presented 100 gift wallets to families who are recovering from the natural disaster. Within each wallet were three vouchers, each valued at $100, to be spent at the island’s hardware store, petrol station and supermarket. The wallets also contained several self-help ideas, and messages of love and support from missionaries from the Adelaide Australia Mission.Elder Ardern also presented four fully equipped trailers to Blaze Aid, a not-for-profit organisation whose volunteers repair rural fencing destroyed by natural disasters, to assist in their efforts.The Church had previously donated 10 semi-trailer loads of hay and water to farming families on the island.Mayor Pengilly was very appreciative of the donations, saying the items will have a major positive impact within his constituency.The Church leadership group visited two properties whose farms were significantly impacted by the fire. Mrs Paula Buck and her family lost two homes, several buildings, farm machinery and livestock to the fire.Paul Stanton’s family are well known farmers on the island, but also known for the work they do caring for injured wildlife. Even though their substantial stone home was destroyed, Paul and his family have maintained their care of local wildlife, some of which were injured in the fire.The visiting group saw the damage to the Stanton property firsthand, and also witnessed some of the great work they are still doing to care for injured animals.Elder Ardern was moved by the resilience of the families and their ability to rebound after the devastating effects of the fire. He said he was grateful that he and others were able to visit the island and that the Church could bring some relief through the generosity of Church members worldwide.Latter-day Saint Charities Makes Significant Donation to Kangaroo Island ResidentsEmergency Relief Efforts and Hope During COVID-1920 March 2020In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, many people around the world are in need of help, supplies, and support. At Latter-day Saint Charities, we believe that there is hope and that the best way to cope with emergency situations is to help each other. We are working closely with our partners worldwide to provide emergency relief and hope to those in need.COVID-19 Emergency Response EffortsWe are currently providing support, supplies, and funding in Cambodia, China, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Italy, Iran, Japan, Mongolia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam.Efforts include providing medical and emergency supplies and commodities to healthcare professionals and patients. They also include training for healthcare professionals regarding physical, mental, and emotional support to those struggling. Funding and supplies are also being provided to help with the prevention and treatment of COVID-19.We are working with a variety of partners to maximize efforts in countries all over the world. As we monitor the situation worldwide, we will continue to evaluate new projects and provide help in additional places. We anticipate responding for months to come as families, communities, and nations band together to address the long-term effects of the virus. Strengthening and supporting each other long after the news cycle ends is part of the mission of Latter-day Saint Charities.Where the Church has canneries and food processing plants, production schedules have been adjusted to meet the increasing needs. The goods will be made available as needed to Church leaders, community agencies, school feeding programs, food banks, and other partners.Due to its global reach and long trajectory, this emergency is like no other. We are grateful for strong partnerships with governments, international non-governmental organizations, and the host of people around the world contributing to solutions. This event is more than any one organization can handle, and we thank all in the global community who have stepped up in positive ways to lift one another. We also thank the many thousands of people who donate to support the efforts of Latter-day Saint Charities. These donations allow us to respond immediately without any delay, and we are grateful for the generosity and trust of all who support these efforts.How You Can HelpAs an individual, you may be wondering how you can help during the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular during this time, one of the best things you can do is be a good global citizen. Pay close attention to and follow the guidelines from the World Health Organization (WHO) to reduce the spread of the virus. Be good neighbors when shopping or using medical resources. Check on neighbors and friends in appropriate ways for the situation in your community. Creatively use technology to help people stay connected and to keep spirits positive. This is a time when every person can do something, and kindness is evidence of who we really are.Emergency Relief Efforts and Hope During COVID-19Latter-day Saint Charities responds to coronavirus, assisting with commodities and financing worldwideUpdated 21 Mar 2020 12:27 pm MDTIn helping address global health concerns, Latter-day Saint Charities is assisting with commodities and financing worldwide — from Asia to North America and into Europe and the Middle East — while working with Church canneries and food-processing plants to help meet increased needs.In a post titled “Emergency Relief Efforts and Hope During COVID-19,”on the organization’s website, Latter-day Saint Charitiesacknowledged providing support, supplies and funding to date in Cambodia, China, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Italy, Iran, Japan, Mongolia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States and Vietnam.That includes providing medical and emergency supplies and commodities to healthcare professionals and patients; training for healthcare professionals in offering physical, mental and emotional support to those who are struggling; and funding and supplies to help with the prevention and treatment of COVID-19.It also noted that the Church’s canneries and food-processing plants have adjusted production schedules to help meet increased needs, making products and goods available as needed to Church leaders, community agencies, school feeding programs, food banks and other partners.Latter-day Saint Charities’ work with partners worldwide maximizes its effort and reach, and the organization continues to evaluate new projects and consider help in additional locations.Inside a Church cannery in Harrisville, Utah. Credit: Intellectual Reserve, Inc.“We anticipate responding for months to come as families, communities, and nations band together to address the long-term effects of the virus,” the post stated. “Strengthening and supporting each other long after the news cycle ends is part of the mission of Latter-day Saint Charities.”Latter-day Saint Charities expressed appreciation for its partnerships with governments, international non-governmental organizations and others contributing to solutions. The organization also thanked donors who contributed well before the pandemic ever began, allowing for funds and commodities to be available for immediate response, without delay.The post also listed ways individuals can help during the pandemic:Be a good global citizen.Follow World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines to help reduce the spread of the virus.Check on neighbors and friends in the community while practicing safe methods of interactions.Use technology to help stay connected and remain positive.“This is a time when every person can do something, and kindness is evidence of who we really are,” the blog post concluded.In its 2019 Annual Reportreleased last month, Latter-day Saint Charities documented its efforts last year in 142 countries and territories. In all, Latter-day Saint Charities completed 3,221 projects working shoulder-to-shoulder with 2,000 partners.Emergency response efforts included 194 projects in 64 countries and territories, while international community projects totaled 994 in 107 countries and territories. Community projects in the United States and Canada were done in 42 states and provinces.Latter-day Saint Charities responds to coronavirus, assisting with commodities and financing worldwideSorry about the formatting and that the photos didn’t copy.If you are really desperate for me to improve formatting and add pictures, get back to me and I will try to do it in the next week.