| 1) When did your parents become JWs?
Dad was born 1897 became JW in 1918,
Mother became JW in late 1920s ( not sure of exact B'day)
2) What was their roles in the Jws?
Dad served at Bethel 13 yrs under
Rutherford, Mom was Colporter with sisters in Michigan Dad went to
jail for draft along with Knorr and others.
3) When where you born?
1950 - only child
4) Did your parents do any special work for the Society?
They did a lot of translation of
correspondence in the Finnish language to English and vice versa since
they where both fluent in the language.
5) When was this?
50s-60s
6) Where did they do this?
Both at home and at Brooklyn Bethel.
7) When they went to Bethel did you accompany them?
Yes
8) Could you tell us what happened when you where at Bethel?
I was sexually molested by Leo Greenlees.
I must state that until only recently I did not know the name of my
molester. A friend sent me some photos of him and Percy Chapman and
others. When I saw his picture I froze because I immediately recognized
his face. I later learned that I wasn't his only victim.
9) Was there any other time you where molested?
Yes, once at a JW picnic by an older boy
who was the nephew of a brother at my KH.
10) Did either of them get reported or in trouble.
No, basically I was terrorized into
silence. I came to believe it was my sin. Neither perpetrator
ever answered for their acts.
11) How has this affected you?
For years I tried to bury it deep in my
mind. I married my child hood sweet heart who ironically I had brought
into the JWs. Through my bringing her in her whole family came into the
JWs. Her sister is now married to Don Culp who is a DO. I worked hard at
pre-assembly work and assemblies in the sound department. I designed and
built a video switching and closed circuit TV system for the
large assemblies. The molestations kept creeping back in my head and I
started a love affair with the bottle. Eventually this led to problems
at home and at the Hall. My ex was running to the elders about every
little thing I did or said and I was rebelling against the unyielding
attitude of the elders. I finally told my story and was branded a liar.
Then the elders tried to DF me on some trumped up charges. I then
disassociated myself because I wasn't going to lower myself to their
level.
I lost a home, business, and
a family and ended up homeless. If it hadn't been for a Catholic friend
of mine I would have ended up in the street. That's how much my ex and
the elders cared. I ended up in the ER where my heart stopped twice and
I was clinically dead for 2 minutes but survived. This was due to my
alcoholism, stress, poor physical condition and anxiety. But even after
this horrible detox I kept drinking for about 3 months. This shows how
strong an addiction can be. A doctor told me that if I kept on drinking
I would be dead within a year. So I voluntarily entered another detox
and this one took.
Without the alcohol to self medicate I
began to experience horrific nightmares, clinical depression, anxiety
attacks, and extreme anger episodes. I eventually sought professional
help. I have been in therapy for some years now and along with the
proper medications it works. My therapist had directly linked my
molestations and my upbringing in the JWs as the direct cause of my
problems.
12) Where are you now?
10 going on 11 years sober. I am in
college and have made Phi Theta Kappa. I work at a substance abuse
agency as the consumer advocate and was recently appointed to the
agency's board of directors. I also am involved in Upper Room
Ministries which is a Ex-JW group whose aim is to assist people who have
left or are considering leaving the WT by providing a safety net. I also
sit on the Massachusetts Department of Health, Substance Abuse Consumer
Panel. I am also Lowell's representative for the Mass. organization for
Addiction Recovery.
13) Do you ever look back or miss the JWs.
Not once, not ever. They ruined my life
for awhile but like the Phoenix I rose from the ashes.
email Mark
Palo |
