Kanakuk issues new statement on camp child sex abuse; survivor calls it 'disgusting', Survivors, ex-employees say unreported abuse at Kanakuk camps in Branson spans decades, Kanakuk camper says she was told to apologize, denied call home after reporting abuse, Kanakuk's statement provided in response to the News-Leader's questions, From the editor: How we reported stories about sex abuse at Kanakuk Kamps, Branson men, both 34, describe Kanakuk sex abuse, call for camp to be held accountable, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. In 2000, when Morgan was awaiting trial and White knew thathe had confessed to hiw wife that he had sodomizedan adolescent female relative, White gave him off-season housing at Kanakuk. WebThe USA Today piece, Survivors, ex-employees say Kanakuk Christian camp ministered to its sexual predators , reveals several new cases of abuse of children at the hands of Kanakuk staff and even other campers spanning decades, apparent dismissals and cover-ups of cases, and gross mishandling of reports that from the evidence available The fun ended when Caroline felt a male camper slide his hands into her athletic shorts. Counselors monitored us in the shower while they sat on a bench. And while Kanakuk promised it had changed its policies to prevent future abuse, another counselor, Lee Bradberry, was convicted in 2011 two years after Were not bringing the Lord into this, Chancey interrupted, according to Caroline. Kanakuk Kamp CEO Joe White. They were spurred by a growing public awareness of controversy linked to Kanakuk that began in early 2021. In fact, the man who After a few minutes we got out of the hot tub, and he took me home. We believe in salvation, we dontbelieve in punishment, Jesus forgives, and we are going to forgive the camper, Caroline said Chancey told her. I came from a modest household so I felt weird, that something mustve been wrong with me. Through offshoots like Youth Life (now dubbed "K-Life"), Kanakuk reaches even more children and teenagers than those who attend camp. And since he's a guy, I mean, that's what he would say, like, 'We're just guys, we're not gay. The contract also called on Newman to stop spending a lopsided, inordinate amount of time with kids.. The negotiations were a bruising experience. He noted that on one occasion Newman quoted Scripture to justify the activity. On at least two occasions that predated Newmans confession, male counselors at Kanakuk were fired over allegations ofsexual touching. However, those actions were serious enough that former Kanakuk administrator Cooper testifiedat Grimes trial that Grimes was fired after encouraging a camper to pull his pants down, and Mr. Grimes (was)whacking his pee pee with a stick., Cooper characterized this as inappropriate behavior on Corbies part, which the camp deemed inappropriate enough that we let him go.. Former Kanakuk director Pete Newman went to prison in 2010 for abusing boys. () Theyre everywhere. More:Survivors, ex-employees say unreported abuse at Kanakuk camps in Branson spans decades. OK, talk to you later. So I started going to Youth Life, hanging out with Pete. What do I do? the camper asked him, according to White. According to the civil lawsuit Dygert later filed, these and other abusive behaviors by Newman, including mutual masturbation, continued for "several years." Monday evening, Kanakuk marketing officials said they declined to comment on the new lawsuit against Newman, referring the News-Leader to a recently-published statement on sex abuse on the camp's website. Kanakuk, meanwhile, did not directly respond to inquiries from the News-Leader for this report. Administrators response to the violation fell far short of the Kanakuk playbooks threat of instant dismissal, however. A girl in my cabin and I came up with a plan to keep our swimsuits on and just get our hair wet., Dallas native Elizabeth Hunt Harris, who attended camp from 1994 until 2004, said she only went to K-Kountry once due to her discomfort after being watched in the shower. "The resulting civil lawsuits received little attention, and nondisclosure agreements silenced victims and kept evidence under seal. Its a fun event.. "I would say it was helpful for the first year or so, because I was able to just express my thoughts and feelings with someone who I at that time trusted. "I don't think I really questioned why, I was just kind of flattered by it. In the intervening time, another camper reported that Price had rubbed her leg and stuck his hand up her miniskirt on a Kanakuk-affiliated bus trip in the mid-1980s. Please consider subscribing to support vital local journalism. Like other young Christianswho crossed Newman's path, Hoffpauir described Newman, then roughly 26 years old,as an ideal person for evangelical youth ministry: "Very charismatic," Hoffpauir told the News-Leader in a recent interview. The law firm of Douglas, Haun and Heidemann says it secured the judgment on March 20 after suing Kanakuk Ministries, its president and former summer camp Those allegations included incidents with Newman that were reportedly flagged for Kanakuk leaders in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2006, civil lawsuit court documents show. Manybut not all come from wealthy Texas evangelical families. We want to insure [sic]that Pete be involved in a lifetime of ministry.. Filed April 8, the new lawsuit names only Newman. There are people who are suffering in silence, feeling completely alone, to the point of taking their own lives because they don't know how to cope, how to deal with it. ), A probationary agreement Newman signed Oct. 22, 2003 specifically prohibited nudity or sexual behavior, as well as further visits from out-of-state kids and sleepovers during which Newman spent the night alone with one or more children. They were rich. In one testimonial, CEO White described Newman as the most thorough relationship builder with kids in Kanakuk history. "Pretty much any chance I could get, I was trying to hang out with him," Dygert said. The lawsuit accuses the former counselor of sexually abusing the boy in multiple locales: "Newmans home, the Kanakuk Tree Tops Ropes Course, the Kanakuk Bunk house, the Kanakuk K-Kountry Gym, and Kanakuks lake. Twodozen of them now regularly communicate by text message, Hoffpauir said. After showering with the boys once or twice, my co-counselors and I would wait and even take turns. That's the No. Peter Newman Life Sentence Courtroom Criminal Law Law Crime Kanakuk Kamps Jeff Merrell Missouri Southwest Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! He wrote his phone number on my hand and said, 'Hey, let's hang out sometime.' The prosecutor who oversaw the case of Peter Newman said the number of victims could be in the hundreds. Lee Bradbury pleaded guilty in 2013 to four sex related charges involving WebNewman's guilty plea did not end the problems for Kanakuk officials. Since 1926, a He didnt tell me that this sexual purity expert hung out nude with kids or that hed wind up in a hot tub with the guy.. One night, Kanakuk Kamps counselorspacked every single camper, like 300 kids in a mosh pit type of thing, said Caroline, who was 13. In a 2011 email to one victims father, CEO White admitted that Newmans nudity while running through camp was serious, against kamp policy, and treated with sobriety and frankness.. Like, 'This would take our relationship to the next level.' The death was harder for me to deal with than the abuse,Fusch said, because I felt like I had driven him to it.. Joe White had a meeting about the Gold Bond parties and shut them down after it was documented in an incident report, Clark said. Moreover, the limited scope of the guilty plea concealed the sheer scale of the abuse. She's blaming herself. A civil lawsuit filed lateragainst Newman stated that Newman abused 57 underage victims linked to Kanakuk. Tennessee resident Michael Armentrout, who worked at Kanakuk as a counselor in 1997 and 1998, also found the nudity disconcerting. In an interview with Ashton Alarcon on Vice News, he recounted how was abused by Newman at the camp when he was just 12 years old. Former employee Peter Newman admitted to sexually abusing boys at the camp and was sentenced to two life sentences plus 12 years in prison. The counselors told us to hang our towels over a bar which didnt cover our bodies. The next day, Fusch asked to have a friend spend the night so they could sleep in the living room. The bill, H.B. At minimum, this does not look good. The detective suggested having the boy confront Green on a phone call, which police would record. ", In a statement on the camp's website, Kanakuk noted that "no charges for failure to report were ever filed against any Kanakuk staff" in connection with the Newman case and that "we were devastated by the deceptive practices of this individual, and continue to grieve with the victims and their families. Hoffpauirsaid he was in seventh grade when he first encountered Newman. Hoffpauir said that leading up to his marriage, he'd asked himself, "Who's the most spiritual, influential person in my life? For those of you who do not know the history of Pete Newman, please read the entire post. ", Kanakuk alsosaid it developed a "comprehensive Child Protection Plan" because of the "tragedy.". He was sentenced to prison for two life sentences, with an additional 30 years. And so he's like, how big is your circus tent? He also told me that his superstar counselor, Pete Newman, was an expert in that topic too and encouraged me to let Ashton be mentored by Pete. He was only a summer staff. I was pretty shy around boys when I was younger, so it felt uncomfortable for me., More:Kanakuk camper says she was told to apologize, denied call home after reporting abuse. And she looked at me (at the birthday dinner). ", Hoffpauir characterized this line of thinking as "just kind of a toxic purity culture. Those men'sconnections to the organization have never before been fully exposed publicly and, in many cases, the camp has repeatedly denied and downplayed the connections. An in-depth investigation released in March 2021 by former ACLJ and Alliance Defending Freedom senior counsel and National Review author David French and his wife for the online journal The Dispatch revealed a number of victims of Kanakuk were under non-disclosure agreements which were signed as part of legal settlements. Hoffpauir, now 34, recalledthat during the phone call, Newmantold him, "Things are getting crazy. But there was a heavy concentration on what I did sexually.. Webfrom dust we come to dust we return quran. Linda Turley represented Joe Alarcon along with his wife, Brandi, and son, Ashton, in a settlement with Kanakuk in April 2013. ", "It was just things that are not normal," Hoffpauir said. ", In the book, White characterized masturbatingas "a release for a boy when his hormones get 'too hot to handle.' Former Kanakuk counselor Peter Newman is now serving two life sentences for sexually abusing boys at the camp for many years. Since it launched its website in April 2021, an advocacy website,Facts About Kanakuk, says it has collected 60 reports of abuse beginning in the 1950s. WebWarning: strpos(): Empty needle in /var/home/ikvetlvq/meinardadraudze.lv/retro-bowl/index.php on line 1 Pete Newman is the most thorough relationship builder with kids in Kanakuk history, Joe White once said in advertising for a father-son retreat. The other would shower quickly alone. He is serving a 10-year sentence at a Jefferson City prison facility, Missouri Department of Corrections records show.). Newman was the camps rock star. Dygert said he wanted to take the case to the public courts, but the settlement process had taken an "unbelievably enormous toll" on a family member "who was really struggling with her mental health." Mr. They're not getting the help and support they need. Youre growing up and becoming a teenager, hanging around boys. An anonymous "John Doe" plaintiff who says he suffered sex abusewhile he attended a Christian youth camp based near Branson recentlysued a former counselorfor civil damages. I sure love being on your team!. In hindsight, I can definitely see how Physical Inspection would have been a pedophiles playground, and I'm glad it was done away with some time in the late 80s or 90s, Cunninghan wrote. "They're going to different tables. On Feb 4., a separateanonymous plaintiff sued Newman for the same amount of money. '", Newman's logic reflects sexual best practices suggested by Kanakuk's owner, Joe White, as White explicitly outlined in the first edition of his teen manual for "sex, love and dating," titled "Pure Excitement. And while vengeance is not mine, and vengeance is the Lord's, we are called to bring about justice on earth, and that's what I'm here for.". The shame I experienced as a victim is something that I do not wish to bear on anyone. White said, Pete Newman is the most thorough relationship builder with kids in Kanakuk history. I highly recommend never sleeping alone with a kid who comes to visit you at Kamp be it in the tent, the gym, or otherwise, Cunningham wrote. On June 9, 2010, Newman, then 34,pleaded guilty in Taney County court to eight charges of sexually abusing six childrenin connection with his role as a counselor and director at nearbyKanakuk. There was no Im so sorry this happened to you. . Since the 1970s, under the leadership of White and his wife Debbie-Jo, Kanakuk has become one of the largest Christian camps in the world. The site, which says it is run by victims and their family members,issued an open letter in February demanding that Kanakuk agree to an independent investigation of abuse claims and calling onleaders to release victims from non-disclosure agreements. This guy Most parents dont expect their kids would have such conversations at what was billed as an athletic camp, said Korte. Dygert and Hoffpauir became friends in middle school, and both said that in the years since, each was often the only other confidant available. White testified in a 2012 legal deposition he did not realize Newman was naked in the hot tub with campers and said he did not suspect Newman was a pedophile until 2009, when Newman confessed. "We're getting ready to go to bed and I look over and all of a sudden, he's got an erection under the blanket," Dygert said. The first lawsuit, filed Jan. 31, 2011, in Taney County Circuit Court, charges officials at the Christian sports camp Kanakuk with fraud for allowing Pete Newman to masquerade as a role model at the same time he was molesting scores of underage boys. Former Kanakuk staff interviewed for this story, including a supervisor who recommended Newman be fired in 2003, say those complaints were repeatedly excused and dismissed. Reporter Gregory Holman was born and raised in Branson, mostly living in Taney County until 2003. Joe and his camp, Kanakuk, have been sued by Multiple former campers claiming that he and the Caroline said her experience at Kanakuk made it harder to trust. ", Echoing similar suits filed in the past, Doe XIII's complaint asserts that beforeNewmans 2009 arrest and prosecution in Taney County, there were "at least 57 alleged victims of Newman including Plaintiff.". White, Kanakuks CEO, frequently had conversations with campers about sex, condoms, date rape, and masturbation. "They were mostly promoting Youth Life at that time," Dygert said, referencing the religious youth group that Kanakuk now calls "K-Life. 25 Feb/23. None at all., Robert Shaffer, a Kanakuk counselor from 1991 to 1995, contradicted that claim. Over the next several years, Newmans supervisors were alerted to multiple incidents in which Newman ran, swam, played sports and rode four-wheelers naked with children. Webhow to get to quezon avenue mrt station Uncovering hot babes since 1919. In November 1994, Green spent Thanksgiving with them in Dallas. A 2005 edition of the playbook reviewed for this story, for example, specifically forbade nude swimming and nude games, stipulating that bodies should be clothed at all times., It banned [a]ny degree of sexual contact between staff and kamper [i]ncluding verbal harassment or anything with sexual connotations and said [a]ny infraction of the above policy involving even the slightest form of sexual connotation will result in immediate dismissal for the staff with no chances for rehire., The playbook also said We will never, ever, ever in any way display sexual body parts intentionally or touch anothers body parts. They left all the time , Goodwin said. Cunningham, who was Newmans supervisor at the Branson camp, confirmed the practice was in place in the 1980s through at least the early 2000s.. Kanakuk said in its most recent IRS filing thatrevenues topped $31.6 million in 2019. And I told him, 'I don't feel comfortable with that.'". It wasn't until years later that I learned that good man was a pedophile and the people needing the prayers were the countless victims I spent my summers with, not Pete.. In the 1990s, male counselors reportedly held Gold Bond Parties, during which they gathered nude campers into communal showers and applied medicated talc to campers genitals. Kanakuk guidelines also said counselors should avoid any talk about anything related to sexual relationships, including boyfriend/girlfriend stories. But former campers say they could not escape these conversations because the camps emphasis on sexual purity insinuated sex into everyday camp life. It also offers an all-ages family resort, along withday camps in eight states including Missouri, Illinois and Texas. Now, tragically, Kanakuk is back in the news for all the wrong reasons. Courtesy of She's blaming anyone else she can find. Just really screwed-up stuff., More:Branson men, both 34, describe Kanakuk sex abuse, call for camp to be held accountable. In a message dictated immediately after the one to Newman, White told Kanakuks executive director, Kris Cooper, to follow up with Newman. I went to California with him. Excuse you! And I said some mean words, she said. Camp owner White responded that he and Kanakuk will not object to you sharing your story with those who can support your healing. But, he added, becausemost agreements involve insurance companies who may choose to defend their interests, you should keep the terms of your settlement confidential.. The limited scope of the guilty plea concealed the sheer scale of the abuse," wrote David French and Nancy French with The Dispatch. Paul Green, another Kanukuk counselor,was investigated before Newmans crimescame to light after allegedly abusing a Texas boy in 1994 whom he had met at camp. ", "A lot of times he called me by my last name," Dygert said. After White purchased Kanakuk Kamps from his father in 1976, he continued the tradition of communal bathing.. Newman pleaded guilty last year in Taney County court to three counts of second-degree statutory sodomy, two counts of first-degree statutory sodomy and two counts of enticement of a child. Ed Ringheim, a Kanakuk counselor in the 1990s who later volunteered with the Kanakuk-affiliated KLIFE program in Florida, was convicted in2012 of seven sex-related felonies involving underage boys. After 2005, when he was roughly 18, he no longer participated "in Kanakuk programs on Kanakuk property," according to a court filing. Survivors says Newmans idea of bonding often involved invitations to participate in nude activities. They went on fall and summer retreats, too. I feel like I can tell you anything. "'Dygert, you're one of my best friends. Nobody really reacted, Jones said. ", "When that was normalized, when masturbation was kind of an inroad to what he wanted to do with boys, () To me, he kind of made everything else OK," Hoffpauir said.