Documents in the John Doe IX lawsuit mention later instances in which parents contacted Kanakuk with reports about Newmans behavior, but none specifically mentioned nudity or resulted in notable discipline. ", Hoffpauir characterized this line of thinking as "just kind of a toxic purity culture. 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. That camper, who did not want to be identified, said she reported the incident to Kanakuk leadership. As they discussed the matter, Whites 12-year-old daughter walked by. Satan had won his mind, White wrote, and the only thing the boy knew how to do was masturbate and mentally rape girls.. 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. He currently resides in Branson, Missouri, with his wife, Debbie Jo. He was an instructor at Fuller and Denver seminaries and the U.S. Air Force Academy. We will never stop being sorry for the pain inflicted on victims and their families. 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. For years I tried to forget about it, stuffed it away in the depths of my mind only sharing it with my wife and counselor. Through offshoots like Youth Life (now dubbed "K-Life"), Kanakuk reaches even more children and teenagers than those who attend camp. We want to insure [sic]that Pete be involved in a lifetime of ministry.. At minimum, this does not look good. The abuse itself began in a relatively "minimal" way, Dygert said. He was a camp director at Kanakuk Kamps, one of the largest Christian Jones said she was laying down to watch the movie when Chuck Price sat next to her and began tickling her foot. That culture of forgiving extended to Newmanas well. It wasnt a part of our culture.. And at that point, I was like, OK, this is weird. "And I had still been aware of what had gone on, but at that point, I still didn't know that I had been so successfully groomed in this entire process, thatI still didn't realize it was wrong. Pete Newman is serving two life sentences plus 30 years. She's like, 'Right, Keith? They throw all these bubbles on you. ", Hoffpauir said he does not know who funded the counseling by Staples. Dygert said, "We know people who've never told anyone. Grimes was terminated by Kanakuk for inappropriate behavior and poor judgment, according to an April 3, 2021 letter attorney Ted Tredennick sent to the Facts About Kanakuk website. "Super-fun guy, muscular, real big, sporty, athletic the guy that all kids wanted to be when they grew up.". And they vouched for Pete. It was during that Thanksgiving visit that Fusch said he woke one night and could tell that Green had been reaching into Fuschs underwear from his adjacent trundle bed. And she realized, oh no, something had happened. Youre growing up and becoming a teenager, hanging around boys. Pete did it along with us, one unnamed victim said, according to criminal court documents. In an interview published in the News-Leader in April, Keith Dygert said the first time Newman abused him, during a one-on-one sleepover in a Kanakuk gym, the former counselor suggested they dunk basketballs naked., This would be one of the best bonding things we could do.' He wrote his phone number on my hand and said, 'Hey, let's hang out sometime.' '", 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. 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. he recalled. He also abused campers, including Ashton Alarcon, in the hot tub at his home. Chuck Price, aKanakuk programs director, was fired in 1990, according to a victim, her mother and two former Kanakuk staff members who investigated separate complaints that he inappropriately touched young girls. More:Kanakuk issues new statement on camp child sex abuse; survivor calls it 'disgusting'. People thought of Paul Green as this God-like figure, said Blake Fusch, who was 14 when he spent a summer in the 30-year-old counselors cabin. The counselors told us to hang our towels over a bar which didnt cover our bodies. Dygert's family learned about the abuse around 2010, the year Newman was convicted and sentenced to life in state prison. "They're going to different tables. Webfrom dust we come to dust we return quran. Supervisors told her they would alert her parents to the incident. 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. He said it would feel good but would not be lusting. '", They talked regularly for nine years, Hoffpauir said, from 2012 until September of 2021. In Junior High, I started doing things with my friends like streaking and skinny dipping. He added that Newman "already established in my brain that this masturbation stuff was not wrong, because I wasn't lusting. 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 When we got there, Chuck was up on stage and the entire crowd of kids was cheering, Chuck, Chuck, Chuck! Jones said. We went together, stayed in the cabin together. WebNewman pleaded guilty in 2010 to seven counts of sexual abuse, and the prosecutor said Newmans victim count might be in the hundreds. She's blaming anyone else she can find. I feel like I can tell you anything. More:Former Kanakuk counselor Peter Newman named in new sex-abuse lawsuit. But not everything is cracked up to what it seems, she said. Attached to the lawsuit filed by Logan is a sworn affidavit signed by a former supervisor at Kanakuk. She accused the boy of lying in the eyes of the Lord.. WebNewman's guilty plea did not end the problems for Kanakuk officials. We are committed to our vision that todays young adults are the Christian leaders of tomorrow, and we will continue to advocate for their safety as they grow in friendships, faith, and confidence. Victims say such confidentiality clauses have kept stories of abuse at Kanakuk from reaching a national audience although that is changing. WebThe newspaper left a voicemail for Staples at First Baptist Church, of Branson, where Staples serves as family life pastor. Newman was able to capitalize on the camps permissive attitudes and the campers desensitization toward nudity as he groomed his victims. Excuse you! And I said some mean words, she said. 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. Logan Yandell, now 27, filed a lawsuit last week against Kanakuk Kamps alleging he was sexually abused from around 2005 to 2008 by former camp director Peter Newman. 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. Webhow to get to quezon avenue mrt station Uncovering hot babes since 1919. Like, 'This would take our relationship to the next level,' Dygert said Newman told him. At K-Kountry, counselors and campers all showered together in a facility with no separate stalls or partitions, said former director Will Cunningham. I went on many speaking engagements with him. This will result in instant dismissal of staff with no chance for rehire and probable legal and parental notification.. 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. And I just didn't answer. 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. No one else said it was wrong. This guy has a raging love for God and it spills over constantly to the "He was very macho, manly, like, tough, in a way. Everyone else said, 'it was so long ago. Victim advocates and prosecutors have also said the number of Newman's victimscould be in the "hundreds.". Keith Dygert, another 34-year-old who grew up in Branson and currently lives there, filed a civil lawsuit that was later dismissed when "all parties agreed to a settlement," according to Missouri court records. Newman was the camps rock star. Increased focus on the development of our staff, and 3.) Dygert and Hoffpauir became friends in middle school, and both said that in the years since, each was often the only other confidant available. "These are the most affluent kids in the country," he said. A request to interview Chancey and another staff member present at the meeting was declined by a lawyer for Kanakuk. White said he spoke with Newmans wife after chapel and we were laughing about that statement but I could tell inside she wasnt laughing about that so much , I feel like you need to make sure Pete has some very sincere goals about the time hes spending with his wife and his daughter and perhaps they need to be reassessed.. Youre either one of them or youre not, and its such an economic driver.". WebDygert, 34, is a Branson resident the News-Leader interviewed Friday night, shortly after Kanakuk posted its new comments on child sex abuse online. The negotiations were a bruising experience. "Its big money. He said it wouldnt be lusting because we were with someone else. Kanakuk, meanwhile, did not directly respond to inquiries from the News-Leader for this report. It wasnt right.. Newmans initial arrest and sentencing received little media attention. Other prohibitions in the playbook were oddly specific, according to Erin Wood, who worked as a Kanakuk kitchen helper from 1996 to 1998. There were several guidelines in it that my fellow kitchen staff couldn't make heads or tails of, Wood said, citing directives that included No naked zip lining and No naked devotionals., They had to include a rule telling counselors not to disrobe with their entire cabin of children under their supervision to discuss the Bible before bed, she said. 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. (Another former Kanakuk staff member, Vicki Morgan, confirmed that nude inspections were conducted in the past). pete newman kanakuk wife I didn't talk to anyone. 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! TWW wrote, in August 2016, Peter Newman, Serving 35 Years for Molestations at Kamp Kanakuk, Was Allegedly Hired by Fellowship Memphis While Awaiting Trial. Advocates aligned with No More Victims LLC, a group registered in North Carolina that sponsors a website devoted to publicizing reports of sex abuse allegations and documented crimes linked to the camp, have accused Kanakuk of harboring multiple abusers for decades. Its a fun event.. Hoffpauir grew up in Branson. Were going to help him through his problems.. "We graduated college, we spent about 10 years away from Branson, just being free and clear of everything this town has to offer. Shower time was weird, he said. She's blaming herself. Newman reportedly hadnaked conversations with campersand engaged in mutual masturbation and"hot tub Bible studies" with boys, as the News-Leader reported during his 2009 trial. Goodwin indicated there was nothing unusual about Grimes departure. The News-Leaderleft three detailed voicemails on the phone line linked to Staples' Branson-area counseling practice. He and his wife Lois live in Colorado. 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 Former Kanakuk counselor Michael Horn said he was working at the camp in 2002 when he and another counselor witnessed a third counselor sleeping in a closed sleeping bag with a shirtless child straddling thatcounselors bare chest. I knew he knew.. shaka wear graphic tees is candy digital publicly traded ellen lawson wife of ted lawson pete newman kanakuk wife. 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. The limited scope of the guilty plea concealed the sheer scale of the abuse," wrote David French and Nancy French with The Dispatch. One of those boys was among the victims when Ringheim was convicted of sex crimes in 2012. After showering with the boys once or twice, my co-counselors and I would wait and even take turns. Since 1926, Kanakuk has hosted more than 500,000 campers and 50,000 staffers in Missouri and its many international locations. 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.. Sign up! After Newman's trial, civil lawsuit allegations emerged. 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. I laid there then I sat up and said, Chuck! He froze.. And I told him, 'I don't feel comfortable with that.'". Two weeks after Leadership Weekend, I was informed that Pete would be continuing as my assistant director and that I was to play an enhanced mentoring role in Petes life., I suspected immediately that this decision had been handed down from Joe, and I felt incredibly minimized, used, and angry at being forced to work with a man who had broken serious policies, Cunningham said. And while Kanakuk promised it had changed its policies to prevent future abuse, another counselor, Lee Bradberry, was convicted in 2011 two years after In 2003, he was promoted to assistant director of K-Kountry and in 2006 he was promoted to director. 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