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. "All I know is, he said, 'Don't worry about it. In a message dictated immediately after the one to Newman, White told Kanakuks executive director, Kris Cooper, to follow up with Newman. 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. WebSample Page; ; 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.. Newman did not have an attorney on file for the case Monday. The next morning, Caroline said, three other girls tearfully told her theyd been assaulted by the same camper. 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 Camp leaders rebuked the girls, not the boy, she said. Caroline said her experience at Kanakuk made it harder to trust. 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 since he's a guy, I mean, that's what he would say, like, 'We're just guys, we're not gay. "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.". That's the No. I went on many speaking engagements with him. She said they reported it to their counselor, who arranged a meeting with camp director Keith Chancey. More:Former Kanakuk counselor Peter Newman named in new sex-abuse lawsuit. 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. A civil lawsuit filed lateragainst Newman stated that Newman abused 57 underage victims linked to Kanakuk. Youre growing up and becoming a teenager, hanging around boys. But even after Newmans 2010 conviction, Kanakuk leaders esteem for Newman remained evident. I was in a room with the director, and about three other people. She accused the boy of lying in the eyes of the Lord.. In the old days, bathing in the river and bathing in the lake were commonplace, said White, who also serves a board chair of Kanakuk Ministries. Growing public awareness of controversy linked to Kanakuk camp began early last year. Eventually there was some touching. Whites daughter concluded his problems stemmed from watching rated R movies. ", Kanakuk alsosaid it developed a "comprehensive Child Protection Plan" because of the "tragedy.". 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. He also went onfather-son retreats with Newman. Robert John Morgan, a former pilot for Kanakuk CEO White, pleaded guilty in 2004 to sexually abusing a young girl and remains on Missouri's sex offender registry. Just really screwed-up stuff.". "'Dygert, you're one of my best friends. Accusations of sex abuse tied to Newman and Kanakuk have made headlines recently as two journalists with conservative online news site The Dispatch published a report on March 28 that asserted the Newman scandalwas more widespread and systemic than previously understood. 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. 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. 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. Tredennick said Grimes actions did not constitute a reportable offense in a criminal context when Grimes was terminated in 1989. At K-Kountry, counselors and campers all showered together in a facility with no separate stalls or partitions, said former director Will Cunningham. 25 Feb/23. The playbook rules were geared toward counselors, however, not senior leadership. Few reporters knew about the camps size or importance. And they need to suffer the repercussions of that, to show and send a message that you cannot take this lightly. In a July 6, 2001 message printed on Kanakuk Kamps letterhead, Newmans supervisor, Cunningham, warned Newman to use extreme caution in his alone time with children.. The documents concerning the This guy | (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 She didnt think much of it at first. 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. It wasnt right.. The shame I experienced as a victim is something that I do not wish to bear on anyone. And they vouched for Pete. Nothing happened to you?' Hoffpauir, now 34, recalledthat during the phone call, Newmantold him, "Things are getting crazy. 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. Branson-based Kanakuk Kamps and its associated ministries area multimillion-dollar global enterprise that includes the largest evangelical sports summer camp in the world. "'Cool. Great. A request to interview Chancey and another staff member present at the meeting was declined by a lawyer for Kanakuk. I had a towel around my shoulders and just the bathing suit on.. 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. Two years later, after further complaints, Cunningham and several other camp leaders confronted Newman, who admitted to being naked with kids. Dygert's family learned about the abuse around 2010, the year Newman was convicted and sentenced to life in state prison. The fun ended when Caroline felt a male camper slide his hands into her athletic shorts. One of the victims was a boy he had chaperoned from Florida to the Branson camp. More than 20,000 kids age 7-18 attend each summer. He would bring me along to sporting events. ), 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. And while Kanakuk promised it had changed its policies to prevent future abuse, another counselor, Lee Bradberry, was convicted in 2011 two years after They left all the time , Goodwin said. 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. shaka wear graphic tees is candy digital publicly traded ellen lawson wife of ted lawson pete newman kanakuk wife. WebNewman's guilty plea did not end the problems for Kanakuk officials. As the News-Leader reported last month, the unsigned open letter argued that Kanakuk should agree to an external, independent investigation by a law firm. Such awareness was had by Kanakuk years before Newmans actual employment termination. Joe and his camp, Kanakuk, have been sued by Multiple former campers claiming that he and the Its a fun event.. The connection is so deep, and that loyalty is so strong, that you'll essentially kind of do whatever to keep that relationship. ", Hoffpauir now says, "I hate it with a passion" that Newman performed the marriage. So I started going to Youth Life, hanging out with Pete. 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. 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.". 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. Kanakuk plays a key role in Branson, itself a homespun tourism hub andglobal bastion of American-style conservative Christianity. 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. Were going to help him through his problems.. In March, less than a month after Whites open letter to victims, the National Center on Sexual Exploitation included Kanakuk in its2022 Dirty Dozen list, alleging decades of child sexual abuse at Kanakuk Kamps have been swept under the rug by the organization., When Ed Ringheim was arrested in Florida in 2011 for allegedly abusing several boys including one he had chaperoned to Kanakuk the camp issued a statement noting it had extensive policies in place to protect the health and safety of every child attending Kanakuk., Ringheim had once worked as a counselor at the camp but the statementsought to distance the camp from KLIFE, the youth ministry for which Ringheim volunteered. WebSample Page; ; 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 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.. Were not bringing the Lord into this, Chancey interrupted, according to Caroline. I knew he knew.. 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 Years passed before she managed to tell anyone. A growing amount of evidence contradicts that narrative. She also said she told her counselor and a camp director. Camp officials reportedly rub elbows with powerful people, and have done so for a long time: In "Pure Excitement," a "righteous" guide to sex, love and dating for teenagers first published in 1996 by camp owner Joe White, White tells ofhis friendship with "an heir to the Coors brewery throne," Shane Coors. So he would sayyou could do things like sing a worship song while you're masturbating, or you could quote Scripture while masturbating, or you could just not think of women. The stated objective: To help Pete understand what healthy ministry is, and to make sure Pete never places himself in a compromising position that his integrity would be in question. WebDygert, 34, is a Branson resident the News-Leader interviewed Friday night, shortly after Kanakuk posted its new comments on child sex abuse online. "Pretty much any chance I could get, I was trying to hang out with him," Dygert said. Craig Heidemann, attorney for the plaintiffs, dubbed John Doe XII and John Doe XIII in court filings, declined to comment on the lawsuits during a brief interviewMonday. Newmans supervisor recommended he be fired in 2003, after receiving reports that Newman swam and played basketball with children while he 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 He was never a Kanakuk camper, but he said he took part in plenty of activities with Newman. After a few moments of silence, Fusch said, Green replied: It was an isolated situation and itll never happen again.. As soon as Kanakuk became aware of abuse, we took action, including immediate termination and reporting of this individual. shaka wear graphic tees is candy digital publicly traded ellen lawson wife of ted lawson pete newman kanakuk wife. In February 2010, Peter Newman pleaded guilty in Taney County to several counts of statutory sodomy and child enticement involving child abuse of a boy on Kanakuk property between approximately 2005 and 2008, court records said. More:Kanakuk's statement provided in response to the News-Leader's questions. That culture of forgiving extended to Newmanas well. On Feb 4., a separateanonymous plaintiff sued Newman for the same amount of money. I remember conversations about virginity on purity nights when they would discuss these topics, said Riggs, the former camper. They gave all the boys rubber bands and told them to snap them every time they were having impure thoughts A girl would walk by and snap! The other is located near Table Rock Lake in the Lampe area. When heentered the room, kids chanted his name, Fusch said. 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. Jones said she was laying down to watch the movie when Chuck Price sat next to her and began tickling her foot. More than 20,000 It was a turning point in my life. He said it wouldnt be lusting because we were with someone else. Kanakuk Kamp CEO Joe White. 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. I talked to Keith.". One night, Kanakuk Kamps counselorspacked every single camper, like 300 kids in a mosh pit type of thing, said Caroline, who was 13. Joe White had a meeting about the Gold Bond parties and shut them down after it was documented in an incident report, Clark said. 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. 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. While his family's home is locatedless than a mile from Kanakuk, he and his siblings never attended. And she realized, oh no, something had happened. It was the largest settlement of its kind in Missouri that year. A portion of Kanakuks attorneys response follows: This is a blatant factual misstatement. The abuse itself began in a relatively "minimal" way, Dygert said. 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. And it no longer felt likecounseling.". I know what you were doing to me at night, and I didn't like it, he said on the phone with Green. Hed squirt this Gold Bond at the campers like it was baby powder. Goodwin indicated there was nothing unusual about Grimes departure. I still remember it., Missouri native Alison Morrow, who attended Kanakuk in 2007, says leaders dismissed her concerns about modesty., Its not that big of a deal, its just a shower, Morrow said she was told. The death was harder for me to deal with than the abuse,Fusch said, because I felt like I had driven him to it.. In Junior High, I started doing things with my friends like streaking and skinny dipping. Counselors monitored us in the shower while they sat on a bench. The counselor was allowed to stay and to return the following summer, Horn said. 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. In 2018, Newman was found liable for $10 million in damages, but was later released from a garnishment.) According to the civil lawsuit Dygert later filed, these and other abusive behaviors by Newman, including mutual masturbation, continued for "several years." 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. Newman was "just a fun dude," Hoffpauir said:"He invited me to hang out with him. "We took off," Hoffpauir said, referencing himself and his wife, Madison. The next day, Fusch asked to have a friend spend the night so they could sleep in the living room. All rights reserved. ", "A lot of times he called me by my last name," Dygert 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. 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. BRANSON, Mo. ", Hoffpauir characterized this line of thinking as "just kind of a toxic purity culture. We will never stop being sorry for the pain inflicted on victims and their families. ", "She, it's horrible," he told the News-Leader. And at that point, I was like, OK, this is weird. A reporter attempted calls to four phone numbers linked to Staples in public records databases. Yet according to an affidavit of Newmans former supervisor, included along with the lawsuit, Kanakuk leadership received reports of Newman engaged in nude activity with campers as early as 1999. 367, creates a cause of action for vulnerable 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 snap! At a meeting with the detective the next Monday morning, the family was told to expect an arrest that week. "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. When they vacationed in Florida, where Green was living, they invited him along, a common practice among Kanakuk families. 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. Reporters working for theSpringfield News-Leader have confirmed reports of at least four other menaffiliated with Kanakuk who sexually abused children they met through the organization. He wrote his phone number on my hand and said, 'Hey, let's hang out sometime.' 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.. Cunningham, who was Newmans supervisor at the Branson camp, confirmed the practice was in place in the 1980s through at least the early 2000s.. () 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. Newman was the camps rock star. Courtesy of I mean, it happened.. 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. 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