Nothing happened to you?' 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. Christian summer camp in Branson, Missouri, camp leaders have repeatedly disregardedred flags, Survivors, ex-employees say unreported abuse at Kanakuk camps in Branson spans decades, Kanakuk's statement provided in response to the News-Leader's questions, Kanakuk camper says she was told to apologize, denied call home after reporting abuse, Former Kanakuk counselor Peter Newman named in new sex-abuse lawsuit, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. 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. Kanakuk will forever grieve the victims of Pete Newman and their suffering and continue to pray for their healing and restoration. 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 Kanakuk, meanwhile, did not directly respond to inquiries from the News-Leader for this report. To do these things with someone meant that we trusted each other and that we were close this bonding became really powerful for me, even if it was unhealthy bonding.. WebKanakuk actively concealed what they knew about the sexual abuse being perpetrated by Pete Newman and induced victims and survivors into settlements and NDAs, said Robert Thrasher, one of Yandells attorneys, in a news release. Dygert said he signed a non-disclosure agreement with Kanakuk. "Bonding" was just one of the justifications Dygert and Hoffpauir say that Newman offered for his abuse. WebIts been over 20 years since the abuse began for me by Pete Newman of Kanakuk Kamps. Satan had won his mind, White wrote, and the only thing the boy knew how to do was masturbate and mentally rape girls.. 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. It was there, victims said, that Newman talked to boys about masturbation and encouraged them to use the hot tub jets for sexual stimulation. 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. 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.. ", "She, it's horrible," he told the News-Leader. Why did he leave? The playbook rules were geared toward counselors, however, not senior leadership. Every time we talk, she cries about it. In a message dictated immediately after the one to Newman, White told Kanakuks executive director, Kris Cooper, to follow up with Newman. I was trying to avoid him, Fusch said. Pete did it along with us, one unnamed victim said, according to criminal court documents. "Pretty much any chance I could get, I was trying to hang out with him," Dygert said. he recalled. A growing amount of evidence contradicts that narrative. White said, Pete Newman is the most thorough relationship builder with kids in Kanakuk history. I knew he knew.. He added that Newman "already established in my brain that this masturbation stuff was not wrong, because I wasn't lusting. Reach News-Leader reporter Gregory Holman by emailing gholman@gannett.com. One of the victims was a boy he had chaperoned from Florida to the Branson camp. At maximum, it could destroy your ministry.. There's no one to blamebut Pete and Kanakuk. Please consider subscribing to support vital local journalism. 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. He also hung out with Newman "just in town." They were spurred by a growing public awareness of controversy linked to Kanakuk that began in early 2021. Hoffpauir describedthe abuse as "threefold:" physical, sexual and spiritual. 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. While Caroline was discussing the groping incident with Chancey in 2016, she recalled that hebrought the boy into the meeting. It welcomes tens of thousands of campers to five overnight "kamps" each summer more than 500,000 to date, Kanakuk says. After a few moments of silence, Fusch said, Green replied: It was an isolated situation and itll never happen again.. I had a towel around my shoulders and just the bathing suit on.. Plaintiffs accusedother Kanakuk officials, including owner White,of being aware that Newman had abused kidsyearsbefore Newman's criminal conviction. It only stopped, Hoffpauir said, when he and Madison began seriously dating. He was a camp director at Kanakuk Kamps, one of the largest Christian ", "He came in the lunchroom," Dygert said. More:Survivors, ex-employees say unreported abuse at Kanakuk camps in Branson spans decades. 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. Joe and his camp, Kanakuk, have been sued by Multiple former campers claiming that he and the Carolineand one other girl gathered the courage to relay what happened. White wrote, "It's definitely a mess and a last-resort measure not the way it was intended to function, but better than a major explosion.". Were not bringing the Lord into this, Chancey interrupted, according to Caroline. The detective suggested having the boy confront Green on a phone call, which police would record. The Turner Report: Pete Newman from 2008: Kanakuk kounselors will just suck your kids right up to heaven The Turner Report This blog features observations from A flyer for the Ignite men's conference slated for Liberty University from March 17-18, 2017. 2023 www.news-leader.com. At Grimes' trial, aKanakuk directordisclosed that Grimes had been fired from Kanakuk after an incident involving a young male camper. ", Hoffpauir said he does not know who funded the counseling by Staples. The prosecutor who oversaw the case later estimated the actual number of victims could be in the hundreds. 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. The organization issued a statement on the eve of publication, saying, in part: In addition to questions about Pete Newman, you have now asked that we give an account for things which allegedly occurred 30 or 40 years ago, and for allegations of concerning activity between minor persons that attended Kanakuk. Nobody really reacted, Jones said. He saw Newman as a "very popular guy," well-liked, a "powerful, motivated, enthusiastic speaker," a "superstar.". One of its two main campuses sits on 42 acres near Lake Shore Drive, across Lake Taneycomo from the lights of downtown Branson. In fact, the man who White described Coors as a "well-buffed athlete," "tall and as handsome as a model.". 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. Sign up! 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. Asked whether Kanakuk made a catastrophic mistake by not firing Newman when it first learned of his nude activities, Kanakuk Ministries President Doug Goodwin said Now, looking back, yes., Back then, you know, we were dealing with college kids that kind of stuff was not unusual, Goodwin, the camp's COO, said in a March 2021 interview. Any victim can reach out to Kanakuk by emailing us at victimsupport@kanakuk.com or access several independent victim advocacy organizations such as ChildHelp.org or Rainn.org, which can provide access to local support services, reporting assistance, and educational resources. This happened four or five times.. Home; Features; Services; About; Contact; Login; Get Free Demo; pete newman kanakuk wife Thirteen is an impressionable year for any child. "The sin is what goes on in the mind. Webfrom dust we come to dust we return quran. The negotiations were a bruising experience. It wasnt right.. He said it would feel good but would not be lusting. Newman used similar language in a September 2018 letter he sent from the Jefferson City Correctional Center, where he is serving multiple life sentences for sexually abusing boys he met through Kanakuk. That's the No. As soon as Kanakuk became aware of abuse, we took action, including immediate termination and reporting of this individual. 367, creates a cause of action for vulnerable This guy has a raging love for God and it spills over constantly to the kids at kamp.. Newman, Hoffpauir said, performed the ceremony. He is serving a 10-year sentence at a Jefferson City prison facility, Missouri Department of Corrections records show.). 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. '", He added, "It's given me a voice and has given me strength to keep talking and realizing this was wrong. 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. Dygert referred Hoffpauir then living overseas to Staples, who talked to Hoffpauir using the Skype app. "'Cool. Court filings in multiple lawsuits have alleged that Newmans nudity was reported to camp leaders repeatedly. ", 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. Both say they were sexually abused for years by former Kanakuk camp counselor Peter Newman. He noted that on one occasion Newman quoted Scripture to justify the activity. WebNewman's guilty plea did not end the problems for Kanakuk officials. Jones said Price left and she continued to watch the movie. Dygert said, "We know people who've never told anyone. I showered at midnight to avoid the crowds and got eaten up by mosquitos., More:Kanakuk issues new statement on camp child sex abuse; survivor calls it 'disgusting', Former camper Mallory Korte, who now lives in Nebraska, said she was told she could not eat dinner in 2007 without having a communal shower in front of camp leadership to save time. Our Kanakuk Child Protection Plan, which contains over 340 identifiable and measurable protective elements, is integrated throughout the Kanakuk organization and has been shared with more than 600 youth-serving organizations across the country. I talked to Keith.". The letter demands Kanakuk admit thatnumerous allegations of sex abuse by people linked to the camp are true. 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. | (Photo: Ignite) Ignite, a weekend Christian conference that expects to attract some 10,000 men to Liberty University next month, is now drawing criticism for including on their speakers list accused rapist and NFL quarterback Ben Roethlisberger () Those are red flags in itself, but for some reason, it was just OK to bring your 13-year-old boy (companion) with you on overnight trips. Youre either one of them or youre not, and its such an economic driver.". And he spoke two nights, and I was his minor, little-kid helper. 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.. 2023 www.news-leader.com. The other would shower quickly alone. "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. The next morning, Caroline said, three other girls tearfully told her theyd been assaulted by the same camper. In one testimonial, CEO White described Newman as the most thorough relationship builder with kids in Kanakuk history. The attention he got from Newman felt like "you've got this really special thing," Dygert told the News-Leader. The abuseexperiencelastedfrom 1999 until roughly 2003, during the time that Newman was a counselor at Branson-based Kanakuk Kamps. And I just didn't answer. He knew I knew. 25 Feb/23. That just destroyed her, and my family was shocked.". Newman was in his mid-20s. One night after everybody had left and it was just Pete and I in the hot tub, he suggested we masturbate by hand. "And the counselor was like, the camp's reaching out to victims, and don't worry about that. Just really screwed-up stuff.". It does not name Kanakuk as a defendant. OK, talk to you later. 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. Former Kanakuk counselor Peter Newman is now serving two life sentences for sexually abusing boys at the camp for many years. 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 Pete Newman arrived in Kanakuk in 1995 and was there for 14 years before being caught. 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. In early February 13years after Hoffpauir told his wife about theabuse, and more than two decadesafter he says it began Hoffpauir finally, for the first time, told his parents about the pain that he suffered in secret. 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. A civil lawsuit filed lateragainst Newman stated that Newman abused 57 underage victims linked to Kanakuk. Abuse as `` threefold: '' physical, sexual and spiritual good but not! Rules were geared toward counselors, however, not senior leadership was his minor little-kid!, Caroline said, Pete Newman and their suffering and continue to pray for their healing and.! 57 underage victims linked to Kanakuk `` threefold: '' physical, sexual and spiritual took. 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