More:Kanakuk camper says she was told to apologize, denied call home after reporting abuse. Few reporters knew about the camps size or importance. Were not bringing the Lord into this, Chancey interrupted, according to Caroline. Caroline said her experience at Kanakuk made it harder to trust. "We're going to try to renew our vows and do something different because of it. Theyre spending ($4,800) a month to bring their kid, and some of these parents have two, three or four kids that are going through Kanakuk every summer, and so theres so much money that goes through the camp that ends up going to Branson and Taney County.. When she asked what was up, Hoffpauir remembersreplying, "Hang on a second.". On June 9, 2010, Newman, then 34, pleaded guilty in Taney County court to eight charges of sexually abusing six children in connection with his role as a counselor Something about a bubble party? she said her parents asked her. Dygert's family learned about the abuse around 2010, the year Newman was convicted and sentenced to life in state prison. ", "It's just, 'how's it going?'" 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. 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. WebNewman's guilty plea did not end the problems for Kanakuk officials. The negotiations were a bruising experience. 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. As far as campers and camp employeesgo, "thousands" of high school and college-aged students come to Branson each year, Hoffpauir said, some drawn to Kanakuk's educational arms, Link Academy and Kanakuk Institute. Webcatherine weatherall soames pete newman kanakuk wife And including a former President. Survivors says Newmans idea of bonding often involved invitations to participate in nude activities. One would stay and keep an eye on the boys in the main cabin. The first time former Kanakuk camp director Pete Newman was reported for being nude with kids was in 1999 the same year he became a full-time employee at the Branson-based Christian athletic camp and a decade before he confessed to abusing multiple underage boys he met through Kanakuk and related ministries. Both say they were sexually abused for years by former Kanakuk camp counselor Peter Newman. It also offers an all-ages family resort, along withday camps in eight states including Missouri, Illinois and Texas. I went on many speaking engagements with him. Administrators response to the violation fell far short of the Kanakuk playbooks threat of instant dismissal, however. Twodozen of them now regularly communicate by text message, Hoffpauir said. Jones said Price left and she continued to watch the movie. "And the counselor was like, the camp's reaching out to victims, and don't worry about that. Both men said the Frenches' reporting gave them a sense of validation, even as it "rocked the boat a lot," in Dygert's words: They learned they weren't alone. He is serving a 10-year sentence at a Jefferson City prison facility, Missouri Department of Corrections records show.). Former Kanakuk director Pete Newman went to prison in 2010 for abusing boys. We went together, stayed in the cabin together. 2023 www.news-leader.com. One of those boys was among the victims when Ringheim was convicted of sex crimes in 2012. A prosecutor told the News-Leader at the time that Newman admitted to sexual activity with as many as 13 other minors. snap! "He, like, challenged me," Dygert said. Kanakuk Ministries president Doug Goodwin, who also has been identified as the camps chief operating officer, said in an interview that Newmans case was the first time weve ever dealt with anything like this., In a deposition in a civil suit filed by one of Newmans victims, Kanakuk CEO Joe White said sexual abuse wasn't even on the radar screen. So I did masturbate by hand and he did too, under the water. And it no longer felt likecounseling.". "She's not doing well. What do I do? the camper asked him, according to White. In the latest lawsuit, attorneys for John Doe XIIIargue that he began to be groomed by Newman for sexual abuse as early as 1999, when he was an underage camp attendee. In fact, Grimes did not leave voluntarily. Another prohibition, spelled out in Kanakuks 2008 employee handbook, specified Gold Bond powder could only be used for legitimate reasons presumably the purposes listed on its container: relieving itching and controlling odor. For more than a decade following these tragic events, Kanakuk has continued to work tirelessly to help ensure that this deeply deceptive and abusive behavior does not happen again. Please consider subscribing to support vital local journalism. Kanakuk CEO Joe White also responded to the calls to release victims from NDAs in his first public letter on the issue. He was sentenced to prison for two life sentences, with an additional 30 years. The abuseexperiencelastedfrom 1999 until roughly 2003, during the time that Newman was a counselor at Branson-based Kanakuk Kamps. Price, who has worked with at least three schools and is a girlsvolleyball coach in St. Louis, continued to volunteer with the Kanakuk-affiliated KLIFE youth ministry until at least February 2022, when a reporter called the Urban KLIFE chapter in St. Louis. Newman was in his mid-20s. Like Hoffpauir, Dygert says he accompanied Newman on speaking engagement trips linked to Kanakuk. It welcomes tens of thousands of campers to five overnight "kamps" each summer more than 500,000 to date, Kanakuk says. DocumentsKanakuk released during civil court proceedings show camp leaders were made aware of Newmans nudity with children and other inappropriate behavior on multiple occasions from 1999 until his confession in 2009. 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 In a message dictated immediately after the one to Newman, White told Kanakuks executive director, Kris Cooper, to follow up with Newman. Jones told a friend about the 1985 incident, who confirmed her account when contacted for this story. Counselors said these parties were a kind of Christian fellowship and dubbed the experience gold bonding time, according to former St. Louis camper Tim Clark, who attended K-Kountry from 1998 to2001 and was at other Kanakuk sitesafter that., Pete Newman bragged about starting these parties, Clark said. She's blaming anyone else she can find. 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.. Newman was charged with crimes involving six underage victims butadmitted during sentencing to having inappropriate activity with as many as 13 more campers, according to News-Leader coverage of the proceedings. This guy has a raging love for God and it spills over constantly to the kids at kamp.. ", "And it was Pete," Hoffpauir said. Dygert said he met Newman in a Branson public school lunchroom. Shaffer said that at one point during his tenure he and other counselors learned that amother had made an accusation Ed (Ringheim) had been sexually inappropriate with her son., Shaffer recalled that his supervisor told the counselors Ed crawled into bed with the boy because he was homesick and was attempting to comfort him. The supervisor encouraged the counselors, he said, to continue to support and love Ed and to pray for him.. The contract also called on Newman to stop spending a lopsided, inordinate amount of time with kids.. Kanakuk will forever grieve the victims of Pete Newman and their suffering and continue to pray for their healing and restoration. I couldnt afford to go to Kanakuk even if I wanted to. Evan Hoffpauir, a man from Branson who says he survived sex abuse by former Kanakuk counselor Peter Newman, praised the First Baptist Church in West Plains for its move. WebSample Page; ; And they vouched for Pete. In at least one instance which he wrote about he asked his young daughter to participate in these conversations. Home; Features; Services; About; Contact; Login; Get Free Demo; pete newman kanakuk wife The camp developed its Child Protection Plan in 2009,after one of its directors was arrested and charged with abusing children hed met at camp andthrough related ministries. We believe in salvation, we dontbelieve in punishment, Jesus forgives, and we are going to forgive the camper, Caroline said Chancey told her. We figured out that system on our own., In addition to the communal showers, campers in past decades were required to stand nude, exposing their genitalia to counselors during regular physical inspections.. In 2018, Newman was found liable for $10 million in damages, but was later released from a garnishment.) Rather than firing Newman, Kanakuk leaders gave him additional authority. At minimum, this does not look good. Home; Features; Services; About; Contact; Login; Get Free Demo; pete newman kanakuk wife Can you make a circus tent? The more casual attitudes toward nudity at Kanakuk where communal showering and physical inspections of unclothed campers continued into the 1990s and early 2000s, former staff members said made some campers uncomfortable. ", Later, while Newman workedat one of Kanakuk's overnight camps, Dygert visited him on the job. Nothing happened to you?' In fact, the man who The letter also demands that Kanakuk release all victims from legal non-disclosure agreements, which civil parties often sign when they settle a lawsuit out of court. It might have been the first time he was abused; he can't remember. And she looked at me (at the birthday dinner). I was a young girl, a virgin at the time, she said. Like independent house churches, they have no outside reality check if they go sour Joe and his camp, Kanakuk, have been sued by Multiple former campers claiming that he and the In the book he says he left out the details but asked her to sit down and advise the camper on the teenagers masturbation and lust issues. Counselors monitored us in the shower while they sat on a bench. 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. They left all the time , Goodwin said. The other is located near Table Rock Lake in the Lampe area. White, Kanakuks CEO, frequently had conversations with campers about sex, condoms, date rape, and masturbation. Caroline asked to go home but says she was told that could only happen if she were injured. Fusch said Green packed and left abruptly after hearing Fusch tell his sister about the abuse. This guy has a raging love for God and it spills over constantly to the In Junior High, I started doing things with my friends like streaking and skinny dipping. Kanakuk leaders have described convicted child molester Pete Newman as a lone predator but he wasn't the first or last abuser connected to the camp. He wrote his phone number on my hand and said, 'Hey, let's hang out sometime.' At a meeting with the detective the next Monday morning, the family was told to expect an arrest that week. Pete did it along with us, one unnamed victim said, according to criminal court documents. Pete Newman is the most thorough relationship builder with kids in Kanakuk history, Joe White once said in advertising for a father-son retreat. Growing public awareness of controversy linked to Kanakuk camp began early last year. 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.. "That was like a solid eight hours we're in mediation, just like, zero empathy or respect for us from the Kanakuk side, just downplaying everything that happened, lowballing us on the settlement figure.". She's blaming herself. Kanakuk leaders also have described convicted child molester Pete Newman as a lone predator but he wasn't the first or last abuser connected to the camp. Nudity is just what they do.. This happened four or five times.. Like Price and Newman, Green was popular. According to him, The first time former Kanakuk camp director Pete Newman was reported for being nude with kids was in 1999 the same year he became a full-time employee at A civil lawsuit filed lateragainst Newman stated that Newman abused 57 underage victims linked to Kanakuk. She didnt think much of it at first. That just destroyed her, and my family was shocked.". "We were at a birthday dinner, just our family, and it came out," Dygert said. Caroline refused. He'd take me out for ice cream, one-on-one. On Feb 4., a separateanonymous plaintiff sued Newman for the same amount of money. Physical Inspection involved all ten campers (from a cabin or group) lining up naked in front of their two counselors, so that each counselor could give a once-over with a flashlight, to make sure the child had no ticks, bug bites, poison ivy, or signs of things like ringworm, etc., former director Cunningham wrote in an email. Years passed before she managed to tell anyone. When heentered the room, kids chanted his name, Fusch said. Joe White had a meeting about the Gold Bond parties and shut them down after it was documented in an incident report, Clark said. While we are grateful that we were able to assist law enforcement in the prosecution and conviction of Pete Newman over a decade ago, we also know that victims pain often continues long after the perpetrator is imprisoned. ", Hoffpauir now says, "I hate it with a passion" that Newman performed the marriage. The newspaper left a voicemail for Staples at First Baptist Church, of Branson, where Staples serves as family life pastor. White said, Pete Newman is the most thorough relationship builder with kids in Kanakuk history. Hoffpauir said his mother, who only learned about his abuse experience in early February, "is doing awful. More than 20,000 kids age 7-18 attend each summer. It wasnt a part of our culture.. Webfrom dust we come to dust we return quran. It was there, victims said, that Newman talked to boys about masturbation and encouraged them to use the hot tub jets for sexual stimulation. shaka wear graphic tees is candy digital publicly traded ellen lawson wife of ted lawson pete newman kanakuk wife. Kanakuk Kamp CEO Joe White. pete newman kanakuk wife ", "She, it's horrible," he told the News-Leader. Korte, the former camper from Nebraska, said she was frequently in one-on-one conversations with her counselors about the personal details of her sex life, as they asked her how far she had gone with her boyfriend and whether he pressured her to have sex. Hoffpauir and Dygert said they are now choosing to make their stories widely public through the news and social media in order to help other survivors and to seek accountability. I came from a modest household so I felt weird, that something mustve been wrong with me. Increased responsibility for our camp's 14-acre property, 2.) He saw Newman as a "very popular guy," well-liked, a "powerful, motivated, enthusiastic speaker," a "superstar.". "These are the most affluent kids in the country," he said. Jones said she was laying down to watch the movie when Chuck Price sat next to her and began tickling her foot. It's like a pop-off valve on the water heater." I know what you were doing to me at night, and I didn't like it, he said on the phone with Green. He was a camp director at Kanakuk Kamps, one of the largest Christian Contacted by a reporter last Augustand asked if he was fired from Kanakuk for abusing a child, Price responded: I am busy doing the work of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ, and that is all Im focusing on.. "Its big money. Newman had other suggestions that same night, Dygert said: Dunking a basketball naked from a gymnastics board, for example. In 2003, I banned Pete from the Leadership Weekend and advised Kanakuk's executive director to fire Pete, Cunningham said in an emailed comment for this story. After the conversation with Whites daughter, the book says, the boy changed his media consumption habits and was largely free from lust. No victim should suffer in silence help is available. The newspaper also emailed Staples through a general inbox at First Baptist Church and tried to make contact with Staples though the church's Facebook inbox, as well as through an email account linked to Staples in a public records database, and through an email form on a listing of licensed professional counselors published by Psychology Today. 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. He also went onfather-son retreats with Newman. This will result in instant dismissal of staff with no chance for rehire and probable legal and parental notification.. Why did he leave? While Caroline was discussing the groping incident with Chancey in 2016, she recalled that hebrought the boy into the meeting. Others quickly became accustomed to it, providing fertile ground for a predator like Newman who used nudity and discussions about sexuality to groom his victims. The News-Leaderleft three detailed voicemails on the phone line linked to Staples' Branson-area counseling practice. "Bonding" was just one of the justifications Dygert and Hoffpauir say that Newman offered for his abuse. Just really screwed-up stuff., More:Branson men, both 34, describe Kanakuk sex abuse, call for camp to be held accountable. After showering with the boys once or twice, my co-counselors and I would wait and even take turns. ", He added that the children of Kanakuk managers had, and have, a major role in the community's social life: "They were popular. She said they reported it to their counselor, who arranged a meeting with camp director Keith Chancey. Texas father Joe Alarcon said he sent his son Ashton to Kanakuk after he heard White promoting the camp at a 1997 Promise Keepers rally. Branson-based Kanakuk Kamps and its associated ministries area multimillion-dollar global enterprise that includes the largest evangelical sports summer camp in the world. And justice on earth as it is in heaven is something God has called me to. A camp staffer referred questionsto a general "communications" inbox. He was never a Kanakuk camper, but he said he took part in plenty of activities with Newman. 1 priority. Dygert helped out around the camp and eventually served as a Kanakuk counselor himself, for four years. In his 1996 book Pure Excitement, White describes a conversation with a 15-year-old camper who confessed he frequently masturbated and lusted after girls. "Super-fun guy, muscular, real big, sporty, athletic the guy that all kids wanted to be when they grew up.". There was no Im so sorry this happened to you. . 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. The next morning, Caroline said, three other girls tearfully told her theyd been assaulted by the same camper. More:Kanakuk's statement provided in response to the News-Leader's questions. She said the boy admitted he may have groped the girls, but Chancey wanted the girls to apologize to the boy for making the accusation. The fun ended when Caroline felt a male camper slide his hands into her athletic shorts. 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." 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. I remember us all looking at each other stunned, and the supervisors laughing and saying, Well, if it's in here, it happened., Former camper Elizabeth Hunt Harris said, Even after Pete was busted, the male counselors would tell me stories about being naked around camp for fun. We want to insure [sic]that Pete be involved in a lifetime of ministry.. Now, tragically, Kanakuk is back in the news for all the wrong reasons. And so he's like, how big is your circus tent? At K-Kountry, counselors and campers all showered together in a facility with no separate stalls or partitions, said former director Will Cunningham. The summer of 2016 wasnt the first timeCaroline attended Christian summer camp in Branson, Missouri but it is the one etched most deeply in her memory. I knew he knew.. In one testimonial, CEO White described Newman as the most thorough relationship builder with kids in Kanakuk history. He said that as an underage minor, he was abused on and off Kanakuk property by Newman, though not during the time he was formally enrolled at Kanakuks K-2 facility as a camper. More:From the editor: How we reported stories about sex abuse at Kanakuk Kamps, As he rose through the ranks at Kanakuk, Newman was promoted as someone who excelled at bonding with children and counseling them on sexual topics. Corbie Dale Grimes, a counselor who held a variety of Kanakuk jobsin the late 1970s and 1980s, was sentenced to life in prison in 2002 for sexually abusing a boy in Texas in 1999. A request to interview Chancey and another staff member present at the meeting was declined by a lawyer for Kanakuk. Newman was able to capitalize on the camps permissive attitudes and the campers desensitization toward nudity as he groomed his victims. Moreover, the limited scope of the guilty plea concealed the sheer scale of the abuse. He knew I knew. More:Kanakuk issues new statement on camp child sex abuse; survivor calls it 'disgusting'. 25 Feb/23. Reach News-Leader reporter Gregory Holman by emailing gholman@gannett.com. I talked to Keith.". A day later, Fusch told his parents, who alerted police and met with a Dallas detective who specialized in investigating sex crimes. Were going to help him through his problems.. "Your voice gave me a voice," Hoffpauir said he told journalist Nancy French after reports on Kanakuk by Frenchand her husband, David French, were first published last year by The Dispatch, a conservative-leaning news website. BRANSON, Mo. "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. I lost it. Victim advocates and prosecutors have also said the number of Newman's victimscould be in the "hundreds.". But Green would never face charges. 367, creates a cause of action for vulnerable "They were mostly promoting Youth Life at that time," Dygert said, referencing the religious youth group that Kanakuk now calls "K-Life. Victims say such confidentiality clauses have kept stories of abuse at Kanakuk from reaching a national audience although that is changing. They were spurred by a growing public awareness of controversy linked to Kanakuk that began in early 2021. In 1990, Jones returned to Kanakuk at 13 and saw Price again. But when the summer session ended, she said it was clear her parents hadnt been told the details. I mean, it happened.. 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 Kanakuk camp 'abuse survivors' call for independent investigation into sexual assault accusations, that were reportedly flagged for Kanakuk leaders in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2006, recently issued an open letter to Kanakuk and its owner, Kanakuk issues new statement on camp child sex abuse; survivor calls it 'disgusting', were first published last year by The Dispatch, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. Pete Newman Sexual Abuse Steve Rabey Steve Rabey is a veteran author and journalist who has published more than 50 books and 2,000 articles about religion, spirituality, and culture. He was only a summer staff. That culture of forgiving extended to Newmanas well. I saw it. His mother resisted the idea, but "eventually," Dygert said,shechecked with "one of my friends' parents who had known Pete longer. And she realized, oh no, something had happened. (Another former Kanakuk staff member, Vicki Morgan, confirmed that nude inspections were conducted in the past). Joe White came into the dining hall at lunch and went on and on about how he was a good man who the Lord would continue to use, said the camper, who asked not to be named publicly. (Notably, former KanakukcounselorLee Bradberrywas convictedof second-degree statutory sodomy, sexual misconduct and two counts of child molestation for abusing three underage male campers in 2011. 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. With all those people cheering, I got up the courage.. It wasnt right.. ", Later, Hoffpauir said the sessions with Staples "deteriorated. More:Survivors, ex-employees say unreported abuse at Kanakuk camps in Branson spans decades. Attached to the lawsuit filed by Logan is a sworn affidavit signed by a former supervisor at Kanakuk. We are unable to do so, as these concern people who are no longer employed at Kanakuk and/or concern confidential matters that Kanakuk is not authorized to disclose without parental consent., More:Kanakuk's statement provided in response to the News-Leader's questions. "The sin is what goes on in the mind. The documents concerning the One of the victims was a boy he had chaperoned from Florida to the Branson camp. By 2000, if not earlier, Kanakuks Employee Playbook included specific prohibitions against nudity, according to documents referenced in cases filed by Newman victims. Evan Hoffpauir and Keith Dygert grew up in Branson, Missouri. Mr. It was a turning point in my life. It was a night when we were going to have a swim and then watch a movie, said Jones, who agreed to be identified by name for this story. Plaintiffs accusedother Kanakuk officials, including owner White,of being aware that Newman had abused kidsyearsbefore Newman's criminal conviction. (Last year, Newman was found liable for more than $5 million in damages in that case, Missouri court records show.) When Dygert and Hoffpauir's families learned of the abuse, it caused them to be "damaged from the inside," in the words of Dygert's civil lawsuit papers. White also testified as a character witness on Morgans behalf, saying,rehabilitation on this side of prison walls is much more healthy for him than rehabilitation behind prison walls.. "That was really rough," he said. He was an instructor at Fuller and Denver seminaries and the U.S. Air Force Academy. This horrific pedophile who molested boys for years at Kamp Kanakuk, is Every time we talk, she cries about it. 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. And I told him, 'I don't feel comfortable with that.'". This is worth fighting for. The attention he got from Newman felt like "you've got this really special thing," Dygert told the News-Leader. "I remember asking, I don't really know who's paying, like I don't have money to pay for this," Hoffpauir said. At least two men have gone to prison for crimes committed while they were Kanakuk counselors. Carolineand one other girl gathered the courage to relay what happened. The fact that Newman regularly hosted boys in his hot tub was no secret, although his supervisors at the camp maintain they didnt know of the nudity or abuse. Kanakuk, meanwhile, did not directly respond to inquiries from the News-Leader for this report. Excuse you! And I said some mean words, she said. Courtesy of Camp leaders rebuked the girls, not the boy, she said. We continue to offer support to victims, including independent counseling services (which are not shared with Kanakuk), and desire to help them in their healing journey. But ininterviews with dozens of victims and former camp employees reporters working for the Springfield News-Leader part of the USA TODAY Network learned how camp leaders have repeatedly disregardedred flags and prioritized ministering to those accusedof wrongdoing, instead of seeking justice for victims. 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! It does not name Kanakuk as a defendant. 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. I went to California with him. They were outspoken, they were athletic, they were the people you wanted to be, the kids you couldnt be, at least, because I didnt have money growing up. 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