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A good society does not teach children that might makes right. The school was founded by Dr. Ron Williams in the seventies, but his son says he's glad to see it all come to an end. Rountree, who bluntly calls Patterson evil, says he and his staff traveled extensively to gather testimony from former Reclamation Ranch kids, but found little usable evidence. they substitute mind control for spanking! (Key fundraisers for Mitt Romneys 2008 and 2012 campaigns hail from Utahs teen-home sector.) Brenda, I just came from that site and thought exactly the same thing!! Those were the days of the ungodly provocative lets-go-to-bed-look fashions. The shocking accounts of survivors who were beaten, starved,enslaved, and humiliated.Today young girls are still. Parents need to read these stories before sending their children to be tortured! I suffer to this day from the emotional and mental truama of being separated from society and my family and friends, all the while having my head pounded full of lies about God, my rebellious and sinful nature, and normal things that they made into something twisted and taught to us as truth. Pastor Don Williams graduated from Hyles-Anderson College in 1987 with a Bachelor of Science in Pastoral Theology. The Hephzibah House, a recovery home in Newton, recently closed permanently after about eight years of helping . Neither characteristic is a Godly one. Hopefully the more the word gets out, the fewer girls and families can be devastated by this so-called "ministry.". For church and special occasions or a precious date with my honey, I wear my finest. DCS says that's why there are no formal inspections unless child neglect or abuse is reported, and even then they don't investigate claims against unlicensed facilities without law enforcement. (Please read Whos to Blame For the Tragic Death of IFB Missionary Charles Wesco?). Michelle Guenther Leonard, resident of Hephzibah House January 2, 2009 until May 18, 2010 I am a survivor of Hephzibah House located in Winona Lake, IN. Audio Documentary of the practices and teachings of Ron and Patti Williams of Hephzibah House in Warsaw Indiana, a so-called "Home for Troubled Girls" that makes it a policy to humiliate, degrade, and improperly feed and care for teenage girls, all in the name of making them godly Christian women. He blames this on the contracts parents signone mother who owed Patterson money feared that Big Jack might sue her if she cooperated with the stateas well as fervent support for men like Patterson among many Christian fundamentalists. Religious reform school closes after former students allege - WNDU After months of punitive mealtimes, including five-minute force feeding sessions for girls on redshirt, she wolfed her food. Her letters went unansweredonly one of Roxys replies got past the academys censors. Heres some of what he said: When this thing aired, Wednesday morning guess who was at our door. Hephzibah House to be Featured in CNN Investigation Are you on Social Media? Hephzibah House describes itself as a private Christian boarding school for teenage girls. Nor would he divulge the name of his attorney or agree to have his attorney contact me. Back in Maryland, Jeannie Marie was unaware of her daughters plight. ACE is recognized by the State of Indiana, as well as many other states. Fear. Mary Kumar is a survivor of a lockdown reform school for the wayward. Standing Strong against ignorance, preconceptions, labels and excessive housework. A private religious school does not require state certification. Karen Glover, a Navy veteran who attended Indianas Roloff-inspired Hephzibah House as a girl, described what she calls the bowel and bladder torture. The girls were given bran, made to drink lots of water at breakfast, and then denied bathroom access until lunchtime. We had pants, shorts, bathing suits, immodest clothing, television, movies, dancing lessons, circuses etc. The girls found themselves at a remote compound bordered by a rural highway and ringed with barbed wire. Kumar says the neglect was beyond physical, leaving her unprepared for the real world. At Hephzibah House Ron Williams preached from the pulpit that menstruation was called the curse because it was a curse. In a locked-up basement where they never see the light of day, as a prisoner and that's over. Reclamation Ranch founder Lee Patterson calls the abuse allegations bogus: The ranch, he insists, had a family-style atmosphere., We have laws to protect people from illegal incarceration, says an alum of one tough-love home for teens. Hephzibah House is a small private boarding school in Winona Lake, Indiana, a small town about an hour west from Fort Wayne. Our daughters are virtuous women because we have obeyed the Lords commands. But the thing that makes my stomach churn is that these horrible ideas of how girls and women should behave, the ideas about how to raise and discipline a child, and the banality of the infractions that got the girls sent to the place in some casesthese are all celebrated by some versions of Christianity. We live in very unbiblical times where people do not like certain rules.Our church is considering supporting this ministry and I am supportive of this decision. Besides being very hard on the back, difficult to walk in, and cold on the feet in the winter when there is snow and ice. In 1982, they sent her to New Bethany, and her 10-year-old sister followed soon after. I reached him at home on three occasions, and he hung up on me twice. The only times we really got good food were holidays, Friday nights (sometimes) and whenever a girl recieved treat money. Of course not it was for men! That was round-about long-winded way of saying that I am glad that I did not grow up under the regime of such extremism and do not know what it is like to have to be completely deprogrammed of that false version of Christianity. Those who say they were abused will continue to try to get Hephzibah House shut down. I dressed for men, I desired to be beautiful for men. Lambright told 16 News Now she had to carry a pink mat to church after that incident, which she felt was done to humiliate her. To hear another outside observer recognize the rehearsed statements feels a little like being validated. Hephzibah House, which still operates today and was championed to the end by WMUU, the radio station started by Bob Jones University, has been investigated in the past for child abuse. There was no apparent reason for this treatment, Glover says, save reminding the girls who was in charge. Shoddy work by both agencies. It sounded like a discipleship program, Jeannie Marie recalls. Our position does not win friends and influence people to love us. Can you pitch in a few bucks to help fund Mother Jones' investigative journalism? They could have said anything, they could have maligned us and bashed us, and all they did was praise us. Of course they should have interviewed girls that have left the place who will tell the truth willingly. The combination does not really go together. Perhaps you are wondering how you can have freedom of movement in a dress. Thank you for reading this post. Kalie, Susan, and Gabby say they want to raise awareness about Hephzibah House, where they claim they experienced abuse that still haunts them to this day. Oh how I pray some will stand for Jesus! The school reopened the next year in Walterboro, South Carolina, under a new administrator, Olin King. Fear of government intrusionparticularly on account of the communitys spare the rod, spoil the child worldviewis so pervasive that IFB congregations are primed to dismiss regulatory actions against abusive facilities as religious persecution. There's girls there right now and my heart hurts for them every day," she said. They are our fruits. Hephzibah, GA Rentals - Apartments and Houses for Rent I see it as an attack on Christianity. Officials with Hephzibah House say they're still praying for former students in a statement that reads in full: While Ben, Mary, and countless others plan to continue working together. She had posted her phone number for anyone wanting to talk, drawing a cautious but earnest call from Word. When another girl snitched, Roxy said, McNamara locked some girls in makeshift isolation cells, tiled closets without furniture or windows. This is yet another example of why I hate fundamentalism. And my lesbian friends would disagree that all girls and women are out to get attention from men. Deuteronomy 22:5 says you are an abomination to God if you wear the clothing of a man. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Indeed, Olin King (who through his wife declined to comment for this article) now runs a North Carolina home for preteen boys under the names King Family Ministries and Second Chance Ranch. The girls could have said anything. Thats sick. Good thing his wife isnt alive. "We would get cases of, banana boxes full of dented cans that had no labels. thank you so much for shedding light on this place. Its good to know that someone isn't actively being abused right now, she explains. I found it very odd that the so called testimonies of the complimenting parents and former students and staff all sounded to me overly flowery and sooooo similar in content and that not one testimony given so much as included even a first name! Still, without proof of a crime, law enforcement officials say little can be done. She wanted to know how Id turned out, Word recalls. It has long been my goal, as well as the goal of over one hundred to two hundred other girls, to expose the things we had to endure while in Hephzibah House's care in the hopes of protecting . That is an absolute contradiction of standards and another aspect of a feminine schizophrenic personality. Our clothes should draw attention to the whole being and not certain areas of our body especially areas that may arouse a man sexually. Getting through by phone also proved challenging, and calls were monitored. Celebrating original thought, religious freedom, parenthood, free enterprise and chocolate. Hephzibah House operates under the authority of Believers Baptist Church in Warsaw, Indiana. I am sorry that these girls did not like the rules I will pray for them, An excellent documentary on this school by Jeri Massi.http://www.jeriwho.net/tlohh.html. A woman is not submissive in a pair of pants. Through the years, the ministry has changed locations a few times and altered its outreach programs to meet the needs of the day, at various times publishing periodicals and . However, common sense is laid aside for the sake of style! Shut down Hephzibah house. Stopping a curse can be accomplished by obeying Gods Word. She must be crazy or something. Has Hephzibah House Mended Its Ways in the Wake of Public Criticism Isn't it strange that those who testify against abuse boldly sign their names and those who are supposedly supporting the school don't dare to? He surrendered to preach in 1982. "I had an accident and they were like, 'Oh! Mothers and single adult women, you are responsible for the molding of young girls and children. What do normal 18-year-olds do?" MLS# 481380. (Rapiers ex-wife Dee told me she sent Guy to recover at her mothers Texas home before returning him to his parents.). Lets not tell them or maybe we should- that Indian Indians think pants are more modest than skirts. It is interesting to note that as far as I can tell, we have never had a girl or woman come into our program at Hephzibah House that did not wear pants. These people are sick, and not in the have compassion for way, but in the complete fruitcake doing really bad stuff way. If God tells me pants are sin (and He does) then my children are not wearing them whether they do at Christian Camp Youth Group Church or Christian School. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist. No man would control my life! But because deputies neglected to seize Pattersons computer, which the escapee claimed contained files of videotaped beatings, Patterson was able to plead his felony charges down to a verbal harassment misdemeanor carrying a $500 fine. And we've received some from every one of the 50 states and from some foreign countries because of missionaries having trouble with their daughters," Williams said. Unfortunately, just like there is in the public schools and public sector, there are disgruntled parents, who, instead of looking at their own child and situation, choose to talk about the school, he said. This location included Believers Baptist Church, a school and staff houses. [MORE: See photos of life at New Bethany. Dr. Williams served in the United States Marine Corps Reserves from 1960 to 1966.He was educated at the State University of South Dakota at Vermillion and Augustana College (Sioux Falls, South Dakota), earning the Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and History with a minor in Russian in 1964. Kalie, Susan, and Gabby raise awareness about a Christian boarding school, where they say they were abused; Lucinda, another former student, defends the work she says that pastor Ronald Williams has done; the founder's son, Ben Williams, speaks out; In 2007, she sent her 14-year-old daughter, Kelsey, to the Circle of Hope Girls Ranch in Humansville, Missouri. The Lord has shown me the role of the woman in the home. First she jumped through the glass of a second-story window. The Cassells offer the listener a front row seat to the enormous conspiracy of lies that only slowly began to unfold in 2005.These interviews are pulled from the podcast, with very little sound added, but they are powerful in their own right, without adornment. They do an excellent job of imitating our bad qualities. He and his wife have six grown children and twelve grandchildren. Most references were to his dad but he seems to have very little good to say about his mom. Theyre [the accusations made on Dr. Phil] either blatant lies or complete distortions. Please take the time to read the Times Union article about Halymans response. It was founded in 1971. Authorities and watchdog groups are familiar with the patternsthe state-hopping, the frequent openings and closingsbut people forget, says Deputy Rush. I never went to Hephzibah House but was horrified to read the comments of survivors. The Bible tells us in I Timothy 2:9 that a woman is to dress in a modest way. I felt they stole whatever was inside me that allowed me to trust, Rider says. In a 1979 standoff that would become the stuff of fundamentalist folklore, Roloff declared his cause the Christian Alamo, organizing hundreds of supporters into barricades to keep state officials off his compound. One-time donations can be made through PayPal. After Word had been there for almost seven months, his watch escaped. Despite being investigated by the state numerous times, Hephzibah House remains in operation. It will ruin your daughter physically, mentally, emotionally," Lambright pleaded. Geez, the cop and CPS should have known this. The irony almost knocked me over.. Well you say we are in different times, they wore different clothing and besides they both wore robes. There's good people there to this day but when you get captured into that culture, it takes years for you to literally deprogram," Ben Williams explained. Ladies it was and is hard for me to change. A traveling chorus from New Bethany. This rating has decreased by -9% over the last 12 months. I again pulled out one of my mini skirts and my shiny black boots and immediately I felt like a strange woman and I desired to dance and prance. I too was there and I too was beaten by them. The mission headquarters has been located in Winona Lake, Indiana, since 1971, the year of its organization. The school is still asking for financial support from Fundamentalist Baptist church-goers, which leaves former students with unanswered questions. krystal pritchard started this petition to Abuse at Hephzibah House a boarding school for girls . Eighteen-year-old Olivia Lambright just left the school last June. You must log in or register to reply here. Kalie, Susan, and Gabby say they want to raise awareness about Hephzibah House, where they claim they experienced abuse that still haunts them to this day. The school/home does not fit any category for a state license. It's not. You have to wear diapers now.'". What follows are several video clips from the show. SIA is planning a 2012 convention for adults who have been through lockdown teen facilities., Back in Maryland, Jeannie Marie has introduced Roxy to the survivor community in the hope that sharing her ordeal will help her recover. I was conscious of how I walked and sat. They also endured exhaustive corporal punishment. This beautiful home has a nice rocking chair front porch. We found 84 addresses and 85 properties on Highway 88 in Hephzibah, GA. After Dr. Phils expos, Dave Halyaman publicly voiced his objections to the story. But you Christian mothers, why are you allowing your daughter to be a strange woman, a schizophrenic woman? He earned an Associate of Arts degree in Fine Arts from Cerritos Junior College in Los Angeles in 1971 and a certificate in radio broadcasting in 1972. No, I do not know how it is! I do not want him to be embarrassed at how his wife looks but to be proud of me. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. That is true. The Lord will forgive and forget but her body and mind will bear nonerasable scars. The Lambs of Hephzibah House. Beginning initially in the suburbs of Chicago, it was not long until the Lord providentially led us to Winona Lake, Indiana, where we have been until this present hour. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist. October 25, 2018 Mary Kumar's Story. Hephzibah Children's Association - Helping children thrive and families flourish since 1897 Award-Winning Foster Care Our Foster Care Program licenses and supports foster families and foster children in transition.