Fornits
Treatment Abuse, Behavior Modification, Thought Reform => The Troubled Teen Industry => Topic started by: Deborah on October 17, 2006, 12:16:19 AM
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School of Last Resort: People Magazine Oct 2006 Edition
In 19 months Matt Smith, 14, has been paddled 300 times for things like passing notes or looking at a girl. Arm was broken when twisted behind his back because he refused to stand with his nose against a fire extinguisher as punishment for being loud. Sheriff determined it wasn?t an assault.
?They take the Bible and turn it into punishment.? he says, ?I hate it here.?
?The only thing these kids understand is pain? said Charles Sharpe, 79. ?We?ve created a society where the kids are in charge and it?s causing a complete breakdown.? Wife Laurie, 47, added that swatting [paddling] was biblical and that you have to teach a child to live right.
Sharpe is a millionaire insurance tycoon, turned preacher, who has put 50 million of his own money into ?Heartland? a religious residential boot camp in Missouri. Unlicensed, unregulated. Kids stay free provided they graduate. If they leave before graduation, back tuition must be paid at $600 month.
?He?s not an educator, not a child expert, not even an ordained minister? says Lewis County prosecutor Jake DeCoster. Sharpe called DeCoster a ?pawn of satan?.
115 kids were removed in 2001. Charges were dropped and the children returned.
Five staffers were arrested for making 11 kids walk through a vat of manure, chest high. Jurors decided the manure incident didn?t meet the definition of child abuse in Missouri.
A registered sex offender- one of seven who work at the facility*- pleaded guilty to making lewd comments to a 14 year old girl.
Did I read that right? Seven sex offenders working there?
Sharpe said he doesn?t turn his back on anyone. He sees it as his job to ?take care of people who are messed up?.
Criminal investigation is ongoing involving an ex-participant who alleges that he was sexually assaulted by his dorm officer. The student has filed a Class Action.
Punishments used: isolation, food deprivation, hours of extra chores. Punishments that have recently been discontinued: digging a grave to ?bury an attitude? and eating ?Heartland Stew?- table scrapes and leftovers.
Quoted in the article Dr. Richard Friedman and Maia Szalavitz.
A parent quoted in the article, ?How they deal with an unruly child is probably no different than in a prison. I don?t have a problem with that.?
More on Charlie's Heartland- much larger than a program. He's a Zealot Etraordinaire
http://www.heartland-ministries.org/index.html (http://www.heartland-ministries.org/index.html)
http://www.nospank.net/n-i03.htm (http://www.nospank.net/n-i03.htm)
http://www.rickross.com/reference/heart ... and10.html (http://www.rickross.com/reference/heartland/heartland10.html)
http://www.rickross.com/reference/heart ... land8.html (http://www.rickross.com/reference/heartland/heartland8.html)
http://www.corpun.com/usr00308.htm (http://www.corpun.com/usr00308.htm)
Okay, that's about all I can read. ::puke::
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A parent quoted in the article, ?How they deal with an unruly child is probably no different than in a prison. I don?t have a problem with that.?
DOUBLE ::puke:: ::puke::
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What the fuck?
Just when I think I've seen the full extent of the depravity, something like this comes along.
How the fuck can this place still be open?
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I am deaply disturbed. HLA doesn't sound that bad now...
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I bet there's somewhere out there that makes this place look like paradise.
And I bet there's somewhere even worse than that.
Just because somewhere happens to be worse, doesn't make anything else less bad. Especially since once you start going down the rabbit hole, there's really no limit at all..
Yeah, I know, this directly contradicts my earlier post. I need to keep reminding myself that I'll probably never see the full extent of the depravity, as there truly isn't one. The bounds of possible child abuse are limited only by the laws of physics and human imagination.
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Holy SHIT.
Why the HELL isnt this on the news? This is a fucking outrage!!!
THAT IS BLATANT AND OBVIOUS TORUTRE, AND THE STATE OF MISSOURI LETS IT HAPPEN?!??!
:flame: WOW.
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was that the entire article deborah? do you have a link to it?
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No. Just the 'highlights'. I couldn't find a link. The article was emailed to me as a scanned doc. I don't know how to convert it to text in order to c&p it here.
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BUMP.
I have GOT to get this on the news. This is bullshit. Especially after hearing O'RLY blather on and on and on... SEVEN SEX OFFENDERS?!?!??!
Unless the Mark Foley thing made him soften his rhetoric Id like to see him blow his comb-over off over this... yanno, seeing a GOP sychophant face the truth.
Well Id really just like to see all the fundie dumbfucks see whats going on in gods name, and most of them tend to watch fox.
Id imagine the other two of the Big Three would cover it... but I got no idea how to get thier attention on this.
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Guys this is a story that's 5 years old. Read the date on it.
Please get current info.
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This is in People Magazine of OCTOBER 2006.
Please grow a brain.
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GOP Mega-Donor: How Dare You Accuse Us Of Making Kids Stand In Manure; All We Did Was Break Their Arms
Submitted by Roy Temple on Wed, 06/14/2006 - 7:26am.
Charles N. Sharpe is a very connected Republican player. His lobbyists in the Capitol include former GOP Chair Woody Cozad. In fact, Sharpe used to pay for Cozad's tirades on the radio.
According to the Associated Press, Sharpe has now filed a lawsuit against various public employees because they acted to protect the interests of children that were residents of Sharpe's Heartland Academy.
Sharpe delivered a defense of the practices at Heartland that will undoubtedly be used as a case-study in PR classes around the country for generations to come:
Sharpe issued this vehement denial:
Sharpe said Tuesday that the school required some students to shovel manure but never made them stand in it, a claim he called "an outrageous lie."
But then made this startling admission:
Sharpe said the only harm to students in 10 years was when staff members placed two out-of-control students in a "clamp" or restraining device and broke their arms. Another student had his ear drum punctured in a confrontation with a staff person that got out of hand, he said. {emphasis added}
Given the choice, I am sure those students would have chosen to stand hip-deep in manure with their arms and ear drums intact.
http://www.commondreams.org/views01/0716-05.htm (http://www.commondreams.org/views01/0716-05.htm)
Published on Sunday, July 15, 2001 in the Binghamton (NY) Press & Sun-Bulletin
Tough Love Shouldn't Be Deadly
by David Rossie
Excerpt
It should come as no surprise that in a country enamored of the death penalty so many people still think that you can beat goodness into a wayward child.
Earlier this month the wire services and television carried stories about a 14-year-old boy serving time in an Arizona "boot camp" who had died after allegedly being forced to eat dirt. ...
At about the same time the Arizona camp's story was unfolding, The New York Times ran a story about a similar, albeit slightly more sophisticated, gulag run by an evangelical zealot in Missouri. The Heartland Christian Academy in Newark, Mo., is the brainchild of Charles Sharpe, a retired insurance company executive and self-appointed instrument of God.
Children who are sent to Heartland, according to The Times story, don't have to ingest filth. All they have to do is stand in it.
Heartland's penchant for Old Testament-style behavior modification techniques came to light when it was revealed that 11 inmates, ages 13 to 17, had been marched into concrete basins filled with liquified cow manure and forced to stand there for varying lengths of time.
At least that is how witnesses who complained to the Lewis County Sheriff's Department saw it. Sharpe saw it differently. The messy miscreants, Brother Sharpe explained, were simply part of a work detail.
"A group of little men thinks they can stop God?" Sharpe was quoted in The Times story. Obviously the sheriff didn't know who he was dealing with.
What's most appalling about the story is that of the 11 children who were rescued from Heartland's manure pits and sent home, eight were shipped right back by their parents. That says a lot about why the kids were sent there in the first place.
Sharpe and others of his ilk argue that most of the kids who go through these tough love type programs come out changed. That's probably true. But changed into what?
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Arms broken by restraint called a "clamp".
What kind of medivcal SHIT is this we're doing to our kids??
:flame: Im really about to just boil over here. This is a fucking outrage.
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Guys this is a story that's 5 years old. Read the date on it.
Please get current info.
From the article:
Mark Stajduhar
Sexually assaulted for months in 1999
Filed a report in 2003- ongoing investigation
Filed Class Action Nov 2005
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Arms broken by restraint called a "clamp".
What kind of medivcal SHIT is this we're doing to our kids??
:flame: Im really about to just boil over here. This is a fucking outrage.
Then don't google Heartland + Sharpe. You'll have a stroke. This guy is a whackadoo.
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i have reserched Heartland. While they are evil and bad. they do some things good too.... No student is lied to, tricked or escorted there, they have to interview and agree to attend. They can leave at any time too, just have to pay money if they left.
Now while that is good how they abuse kids and escape the laws is bad!
I for one am confused with heartland no kid should go through hell in the name of treatment. They need to change more!!!!!!! But all things considered there are bigger fish to fry like WWASP that abuses kids and they use escorts and tricks and the kids cant leave at anytime....
I am not saying to leave heartland anlone but what can be done with them? when there is far bigger offenders out there that deserve out full attention......
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i have reserched Heartland. While they are evil and bad. they do some things good too.... No student is lied to, tricked or escorted there, they have to interview and agree to attend. They can leave at any time too, just have to pay money if they left.
Now while that is good how they abuse kids and escape the laws is bad!
I for one am confused with heartland no kid should go through hell in the name of treatment. They need to change more!!!!!!! But all things considered there are bigger fish to fry like WWASP that abuses kids and they use escorts and tricks and the kids cant leave at anytime....
I am not saying to leave heartland anlone but what can be done with them? when there is far bigger offenders out there that deserve out full attention......
They're physically restrained and have their arms broken in "the clamp", they're physically beaten and made to walk through manure... OH BUT THEY CAN LEAVE WHENEVER THEY WANT?
BULLSHIT.
Prove it, or go away.
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Oh, and I cant edit, so Ill just add this on...
Besdies the abuse, seven registered sex offenders work there, its unliscensed, unregulated and... why whould this have to be justified.
Why are you defending them?
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Deleted
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The American people collectively lost their testicles?
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i have reserched Heartland. While they are evil and bad. they do some things good too.... No student is lied to, tricked or escorted there, they have to interview and agree to attend. They can leave at any time too, just have to pay money if they left.
Now while that is good how they abuse kids and escape the laws is bad!
I for one am confused with heartland no kid should go through hell in the name of treatment. They need to change more!!!!!!! But all things considered there are bigger fish to fry like WWASP that abuses kids and they use escorts and tricks and the kids cant leave at anytime....
I am not saying to leave heartland anlone but what can be done with them? when there is far bigger offenders out there that deserve out full attention......
You have not researched Heartland Christian Academy, ya dumb troll. It says right in the People Magazine article that kids get court ordered there. Maybe not all of them, but this is similar to Straight and other child torture institutions: the juvenile "justice" system is directly involved in child abuse. I do thank you for your silly post as it proves that people should check out sources for themselves.
Yes, there is a bigger offender. Shine the light of truth on it wherever it lurks, in this case, it does lurk in Heartland Christian Academy, but it also lurks in the hearts of parents and legal authorities who submit children to this kind of training in such a false and terrible god.
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sounds like there may be some truth to "born-again Christians" belief in the antii-Christ. Looks like he's been lurking in the form of a certain Mr. Sharpe and now is ready to take over the minds , souls and bodies of his donated sacrificial victims. Just my opinion, Sue
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Religion is the root of all evil.
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I do not approve of this. Not one bit. Now I am upset, thanks for ruining my day, guys. :(
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I do not approve of this. Not one bit. Now I am upset, thanks for ruining my day, guys. :(
I don't give a shit. Not one bit. Now I am happy. Thanks for making my day!
::birthday:: :D
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I do not approve of this. Not one bit. Now I am upset, thanks for ruining my day, guys. :(
Hey, Jesus, um... dude.
Where the HELL have you been? lol limbo... anyway
Do us all a favor and come back becuase 90% of your followers didnt get the memo. Oh, and tens of thousands of kids in the USA are praying to you (if they still believe) to free them from those hell holes, and it might be nice to thelp them out.
Same for everyone else whose in pain or torment at the hands of evil or misfortune. Just thought you should know, it would be really, really nice if you'd help.
Oh, and could you put a word in with the angel-of-pushing-edcons-into-the-jaws-of-alligators that he's been slacking off lately? Thanks!
Your dear friend,
Niles.
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Deleted
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That, and the alligators would get indigestion from all the shit.
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i went to heartland for 3 years i didnt sign to be there and i was in no way court order my foster parents signed and then i was taken by force i was beat with a board by grown men my hair shaved off i had to dig my own grave and lay in it they wouldnt let us speak forweeks at a time we were forced to worship god and i couldnt even look out a window for 3 years wtf this place is real and it needs to be shut down
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They claim to have stopped the grave digging "therapy". Do you know if that's true? As well as tromping through waist-deep manure.
What excuse did they give for not allowing you to look out the window? Some program consider that "run" behavior and it's punished.
Sorry you had to endure three years of sadistic torture. Hope you're doing well.
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Thank you for your expression of concern regarding the People article titled ?School of Last Resort.? Let me begin by expressing our disappointment with People Magazine. While Heartland normally does not respond to half-truths and lies, in this case, the public interest does require a formal response.
Real Love, Real Results
HOW A COMMUNITY IN NORTHEAST MISSOURI IS MAKING A DIFFERENCE BY REACHING OUT TO TROUBLED YOUTH & ADULTS
The following is a response by the Heartland community to a People Magazine article titled ?School of Last Resort.? Prior to the publication of this article we thought People was a legitimate magazine, rather than a National Enquirer-style tabloid. We were regrettably mistaken. Because of this mistaken belief, Heartland granted People unprecedented access to the Heartland Christian Academy and Heartland Academy Community Church. The alleged reporter, Maria Eftimiades, assured staff members that she was ?savvy? and could distinguish between truth and adolescent fantasy. Both the tenor and content of her article reveal that Ms. Eftimiades chose not to distinguish truth from falsehoods.
Parents make an informed choice when they bring their children to Heartland. This is an ?intentional community? built to provide guidance to wayward youth. Nearly all of the ?program kids? placed at Heartland are there because other placements have failed them. Simply put, Heartland is a place of last resort for parents who can no longer handle their kids. If not for Heartland, for most students, the next stop would be prison. The youth arrive with problems such as violent behavior, drug and alcohol addictions, multiple pregnancies and other life controlling behaviors. Traditional placements have not helped them.
Sadly, when teens arrive at Heartland, they have not been referred there because of a reputation for truth-telling. Simply put, many of the youth placed at Heartland are ?master manipulators? who will try any fabrication?any lie?in order to return to the life-style which placed them at Heartland in the first place. Is it possible for abuse or neglect to occur in a facility? Of course. For that reason, in 2001, Heartland established an Ombudsman position. Any student can file a complaint, verbally or in writing, by name or anonymously. Each complaint is investigated. Any serious injury is reported to the Division of Children?s Services. Heartland also has a physician, nurse and Ombudsman all on campus. Each is a mandated reporter in any case of abuse or neglect.
For most institutions the solution to the problem of youth violence is simple: expel them. Make them someone else?s problem. Heartland doesn?t do that. As a federal judge noted in a reported opinion, ?The kids at Heartland are loved at all costs.? At 79 years of age, Pastor Charles Sharpe has 13 wayward youth living in his personal residence. His wife, Laurie, refers to them as her kids. Let us be clear: this is a 24/7 proposition. Staff members live with these kids. It is not a matter of ?hiring the job done.?
Heartland uses a ?tough love? approach to reach these troubled youth. This includes a structured environment with real consequences for destructive behavior. When necessary, to protect the youth or others, an out-of-control teen may be physically restrained. Heartland staff members have been trained and certified in the same techniques used by Missouri Highway Patrol and juvenile authorities to control violent teens. Even with the utmost care, injuries can occur when teens turn violent.
Pastor Sharpe has not asked for a dime of public or private funds, and has spent nearly $100,000,000 of his own personal wealth to build and maintain a sprawling campus: a Church, farm and community. Pastor Sharpe, a devout Evangelical Christian and firm believer in tough love, states, ?This story is clearly the act of a biased liberal agenda to discredit me and the entire Christian community. It is sad that the truth was purposefully concealed. This is the last stop for troubled kids. Most of them have been in and out of juvenile facilities, were runaways, or have been addicted to drugs and alcohol. Of course, some of the young adults do not want to be here. They are used to running rampant and being unruly. It is our mission, through the power of Christ, to help them find their way and turn their lives around.?
During the initial interview and visit to Heartland, People?s Maria Eftimiades was asked to leave the campus for making jokes about the Pastor molesting children and for disrupting the community. After several apologies, she was then allowed to return to finish the story in August.
As you can see, the truth cannot be told in individual ?sound bites? or ?tag lines.? People forgot that. Mark Twain once remarked, ?A lie can go half-way around the world before the truth can get its shoes on.? While everyone is entitled to their own opinion, no one is entitled to their own facts. It is a fair discussion whether corporal discipline (?swats?) should be used. Heartland believes that choice is properly left to parents, who are then able to delegate that responsibility to a school or person in authority. Regrettably, People didn?t engage this issue. People constructed a grotesque caricature when they knew the truth to be otherwise.
In the People story, readers are exposed to several blatant and misleading inaccuracies. We will address the more salacious statements.
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People: People reported about student Matt Smith that ?a staffer broke his arm by twisting it behind the 14-year old?s back.? People reported Matt was swatted 300 times in 19 months.
TRUTH: Matt Smith, owner of a juvenile record, was disciplined on 75 occasions in 19 months. People failed to mention that he committed over 500 violations during that same time period, including assaulting other students. Matt was injured while being restrained. Heartland called for the Division of Children?s Services to immediately investigate whether any wrongdoing had occurred. After investigating, the Division responded on September 2, 2005, stating ?[t]here was no evidence found to indicate [the staff member] used excessive force while restraining Matt Smith. Therefore, the allegations are unsubstantiated.?
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People: Missouri ?permits such faith-based facilities to go unregulated.?
TRUTH: The Division of Children?s Services regularly investigates any allegation of abuse or neglect at any facility in the State of Missouri.
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People: Heartland and similar ?programs create in parents a sense of crisis. If you don?t act, your child will end up in jail or dead on the streets...?
TRUTH: None of the ?mainstream child-development experts? cited in the article have ever visited Heartland or received the requisite information which any competent expert would need to evaluate such a program. Except under extraordinary circumstances, Heartland will not accept youth who are in acute need of care. Heartland exists to serve those families with youth who are chronically troubled by life controlling behaviors. The intake procedure normally takes over one month from initial contact to admission. Prior to admission, parents must visit the campus, read and understand the policies and procedures of the facility and attend the worship service at Heartland Academy Community Church in order to give full consent before their child is enrolled.
Board certified child psychiatrists and mental health experts who are actually familiar with the Heartland project have reached entirely different conclusions from those found in People. Heartland has undergone an extensive multi-year Behavioral Conditions Audit conducted by Children?s Psychological Health Center, Inc., an independent nonprofit children?s agency based in San Francisco. That audit produced no findings of child abuse and indicated substantial clinical progress being made by most of the over 85 children intensively interviewed over the course of the study.
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People: ?Heartland, in particular, has been accused of taking discipline too far. After multiple reports of abuse, including a student whose eardrum was punctured during an altercation with a junior staffer, a dozen deputy sheriffs and juvenile officers raided the campus in 2001, removing 115 students.?
TRUTH: Heartland went to federal court in 2004 and was fully vindicated. After a trial, which lasted nearly a month, the United States District Court determined that local officials had violated Heartland?s rights and engaged in a conspiracy to violate the rights of Heartland and its students. One official was noted to have committed perjury and to have secured the removal orders by giving false and misleading evidence. The State paid Heartland in excess of $700,000 as a result of this case.
As to the student who suffered a ruptured eardrum during a physical altercation with a junior staff member, the youth indicated that the injury he suffered resulted from his own out of control behavior and that the injury was accidental and not intentionally inflicted by staff. After a thorough review by authorities it was determined that there was no evidence to support a claim of abuse or neglect.
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People: Lewis County prosecutor Jules Victor DeCoster speaking about Pastor Sharpe, states, ?He?s not an educator, not a child expert, not even an ordained minister...?
TRUTH: Charles N. Sharpe was originally ordained as a minister of the Gospel by the Assemblies of God denomination in 1953, although he did not maintain his affiliation with them. More recently, Pastor Sharpe was ordained by Independent Assemblies of Ada, Oklahoma.
? ? ?
People: Pastor Sharpe founded Heartland because his wife started suffering from anxiety attacks.
TRUTH: Pastor Sharpe founded Heartland because, while walking in a cornfield near his childhood home, he heard the word of God, and was asked to change his life, build Heartland and save children.
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People: Punished young adults were forced to eat ?Heartland Stew? described as ?a mixture of table scraps and leftovers.?
TRUTH: ?Heartland Stew? was a combination of salmon and beans which was substituted for one meal. It has not been served for several years. Children who are being reprimanded now eat peanut butter sandwiches rather than the more desirable fare served.
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People: ?During the 2001 raid, investigators learned student Josh O?Rourke, then 16, was paddled more than 50 times the previous year and forced to sit in a metal chair overnight. His father, Jim, who lived at Heartland and participated in the beating, had accused his son of stealing $100. (Jim O?Rourke ultimately pleaded guilty to child abuse.)?
TRUTH: Jim O?Rourke was a farm hand who brought his son over to the boys? dormitory because he couldn?t control him. Josh O?Rourke was not in the residential program at that time, but simply attended school at Heartland Christian Academy. One evening, Heartland staff helped Jim O?Rourke discipline his son after the young man physically assaulted his father. Josh spent the night at the boys? dorm in a bed provided for him. Responding to an anonymous complaint, the Division of Family Services conducted an investigation within 48 hours of the incident and spoke to those involved. The authorities concluded that no abuse had occurred. Jim O?Rourke pled guilty to these charges with the promise of no jail time. In exchange, he was required to testify against Heartland staff members and complete anger and alcohol management courses. He was also promised a job by the Lewis County Sheriff?s office in exchange for his plea. Ultimately, the charges against Heartland staff members were withdrawn after Josh O?Rourke?s credibility was further undermined by his third felony conviction for drug dealing.
Lewis County prosecutor, Jules V. DeCoster, who, in 2001, filed 64 felony counts against Heartland staff members, filed the O?Rourke charges in September 2001, more than one month before the October 30, 2001 raid. (All of Mr. DeCoster?s charges were either dismissed or resulted in acquittals.)
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People: ?At the same time, five staffers were arrested for forcing 11 teenagers to wade into concrete-lined pits of manure up to chest height.?
TRUTH: In 2001, several students were required to shovel manure after they refused to attend classes. The practice, which occurred for approximately one week, was referred to as ?School Appreciation Days.? No student ever stated that they were in ?chest high? manure and, though frequently repeated, this allegation is simply false. All of the criminal charges filed in this matter were ultimately dismissed or resulted in jury verdicts of acquittal. One jury returned its verdict within 18 minutes. Jurors indicated that the state failed to provide credible witnesses and that the prosecution?s case sank as key state witnesses admitted that they lied so they could get out of Heartland. Juror Lauren Boner, of St. Robert, MO, stated, ?I didn?t think there was any evidence whatsoever of abuse, and they would have saved taxpayers money by just dropping it.? Referring to Heartland, the juror also said, ?I plan to write them a letter encouraging them to keep up the good work.? Juror Carol Thompson, of Devils Elbow, MO, said that the decision whether additional prosecutions should proceed wouldn?t be a tough call for her. ?It?s time for them to quit wasting everyone?s time,? she said.
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People: ?Although no charges are currently pending against Heartland, a registered sex offender?one of seven who work at the facility?pleaded guilty four months ago to charges of making lewd comments to a 14-year-old girl.?
TRUTH: No registered sex offenders work ?at the facility.? The individual involved was a man in the adult substance abuse program based 10 miles from the Academy. He was turned in to authorities by Pastor Sharpe himself after he was made aware of the situation.
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People: Mark Stajduhar claims that he was sexually assaulted by a male student supervisor in 1999 and there is an ongoing criminal investigation.
TRUTH: No Heartland staff or administration have been contacted or advised that any criminal investigation is underway. These allegations of sexual abuse only surfaced this year after Mark Stajduhar filed a lawsuit seeking money damages against Heartland and the case was facing a motion to dismiss. To date, no complaint has ever been registered with Heartland or the Division of Children?s Services related to this matter. Heartland looks forward to the opportunity to investigate this matter further.
? ? ?
People: ?If you don?t pray you get swats,? (quoting an anonymous sophomore at Heartland).
TRUTH: No one at Heartland is forced to pray.
? ? ?
Pastor Sharpe noted, ?People?s Maria Eftimiades spoke with over 100 young adults and adults who praised the Heartland experience, how they turned their lives around, and how they welcomed the Lord into their hearts. She chose not to mention a single positive fact in her story.? Sharpe added, ?Yes, we believe in a disciplined life and swat them when it is warranted. We are strict, but I ask, which is better, a paddling once in a while or jail?? Pastor Sharpe believes that, in today?s society, many parents have completely lost control over their children. He believes that part of this has been caused by government agencies and civil liberties groups terrorizing parents with threats of abuse charges. Parents are so afraid of such charges that they have stopped disciplining their children altogether.
In conclusion, the numerous and blatant falsehoods in this ?investigative story? are clearly part of the reporter?s own personal witch hunt to slander an organization which is an effective alternative to the State?s non-rehabilitative juvenile justice and prison system. We deeply regret the concern this article has caused, and the time required by so many people to set the record straight. It is time better spent caring for troubled youth.
? ? ?
Following the release of the People article, Heartland received many expressions of support from people who have gone through the Program, or whose families have been changed because of it. Excerpts of those comments follow:
?I entered the young men?s program and it was a literal life change. Through the program I learned how to experience God and how to have a relationship with Him but it also taught me the discipline, respect and perseverance that a young man should have?the fundamentals of life. I have seen many broken people come through Heartland in the last eight years, but I also have seen a multitude of them rise up and become awesome people... People that just cannot make it on their own become succesful here. This is a place of second chances,? says Ovi, who now works as a private pilot.
Janet, who has two children in the youth program, writes, ?I am disappointed in the misleading coverage of Heartland Christian Academy. Heartland is hardly a bootcamp situation, and to throw it in as if it were, is misleading. They go to school, church, summer camp, bake cookies, fish, chores, and other family type activities. They also have rules, consequences, and make choices. The children who end up at Heartland have to experience limits to grow and make good choices and to eventually exhibit self control. Our prisons, juvenile facilities, psychiatric wards, and gangs, are full of those who refused to follow rules. They must learn how to follow the seemingly minor rules, so they can follow the larger rules of society.?
Phil and Gaye had their family restored at Heartland. Gaye states, ?Heartland is about healing, love, compassion, and forgiveness. All of the things that connect us to Jesus. My family has been a part of this ministry for over six years. And we were saddened by how People portrayed Heartland.? Their daughter Sarah, who has married and moved to a nearby town, says, ?The family that I made there will be a part of me for the rest of my life.?
Chelsea, a graduate of the youth program, personally found that ?Heartland is a haven for the burdened, the broken and the beat down, for those who cannot see any hope. This is a church where people are made whole in Christ.? Chelsea has chosen to remain at Heartland and is working with youth to help them find the same hope for a bright future she now has.
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TRUTH: ?Heartland Stew? was a combination of salmon and beans which was substituted for one meal. It has not been served for several years. Children who are being reprimanded now eat peanut butter sandwiches rather than the more desirable fare served.
Good God...Salmon and beans? Peanut butter's a step up. Heartland sounds like a paranoid and twitchy program, what with the rebuttal and all, they must smell serious legal pimpin' coming their way...
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SETTING BGM: Kraftwerk - Orbital
ANALYZING PROGRAMMIE.. 10%.. 25%.. 50%.. 100% DONE.
DIRECTLY TRANSLATED TO PHYSICAL TERMS, THIS CELL-CREATURE HAS CREATED ENOUGH SPIN TO TEAR THE SUN APART.
IT'S A GOOD THING I DON'T NEED IT.
Thank you for your expression of concern regarding the People article titled ?School of Last Resort.? Let me begin by expressing our disappointment with People Magazine for daring to tell the truth. While Heartland normally does not respond to that, in this case, our interest does require a systematic spewing of bullshit.
Real Hate, Real Abuse
HOW A COMMUNITY IN NORTHEAST MISSOURI IS MAKING A DIFFERENCE BY MENTALLY DESTROYING COMPLETELY INNOCENT YOUTH & ADULTS
The following is a response by sadistic programmies to a People Magazine article titled ?School of Last Resort.? Prior to the publication of this article we thought People wasn't interested in delivering fact-based ownaj upon our sicko asses. We were regrettably mistaken. Because of this mistaken belief, Heartland actually let People into the Heartland Christian Academy and Heartland Academy Community Church, somehow not realizing that any sane third-party observer would be horrified at what goes on there. The alleged reporter, Maria Eftimiades, assured staff members that she was ?savvy? and could distinguish between truth and adolescent fantasy. Both the tenor and content of her article reveal that Ms. Eftimiades found that we were the ones making shit up.
Parents make an uninformed or utterly sadistic choice when they bring their children to Heartland. This is an ?intentional community? built to abuse children for our own fetishistic desires. Nearly all of the victims at Heartland are there because someone has an interest in harming their psyches beyond recognition. Simply put, Heartland is an abusive shitpit for parents who can't be bothered to do it themselves. If not for Heartland, for most students, the next stop would be the hell away from their parents, and we couldn't have that, now could we? The youth arrive with problems such as completely crazy mothers, fathers who believe that sparing the rod for a single moment means utterly spoiling the child, multiple personalities caused by chaotic parental behavior, and their entire family out to completely control their lives. Traditional placements have not brainwashed them enough.
Sadly, when teens arrive at Heartland, they have not been referred there because of anything they actually did. Simply put, all of the staff at Heartland are master manipulators who will try any fabrication?any lie?in order to keep kids incarcerated ther4e. Is it possible for abuse or neglect to occur in a facility? Of course- we do it every day! For that reason, in 2001, Heartland established a series of rules meant to codify and systemize abuse. Any student can file a complaint, verbally or in writing, by name or while being monitored by hidden camera. Each complaint is investigated, and when we find the complainer, we beat the shit out of him. Any serious injury is reported to no one whatsoever. Heartland also has a Christian Scientist quack, woman with big tits who we dress up in a nurse's outfit for our own amusement, and the janitor, who we sometimes call an ombudsman (what does that word even mean, anyway?), all on campus. Each will utterly ignore any case of abuse or neglect.
For most institutions incapable of helping kids with certain problems the solution to the problem of youth violence is simple: put them into a real psychiatric facilitiy where they can get the treatment they need. Heartland doesn?t do that. The kids at Heartland are abused at all costs, and we even have federal judges on our payroll. At 79 years of age, Pastor Charles Sharpe has 13 teenage slaves living in his personal residence, a situation to give Mark Foley wet dreams. His wife, Laurie, refers to them as her little puppets. Let us be clear: this is a 24/7 proposition. Staff members abuse these kids all the time. Hiring people sadistic enough to keep this up is difficult, but we manage.
Heartland uses a tough hate approach to destroy these troubled youth. This includes a structured environment where we can abuse children we want to. When we want to, for example when a student starts gargling milk, our chosen victim may be physically restrained to death. Heartland staff members have been trained and certified in nothing- we just pretend to train them and give them some make-believe certification at the end of it. Because we just don't care, injuries will occur when staff turn violent.
Asshole Sharpe has repeatedly shaken down parents, local churches, and everyone else he can for money, and has spent nearly $100,000,000 of money that should gone to these kids' college funds to build and maintain a massive abuse facility to make even the most seasoned sadist come in his pants. Asshole Sharpe, a devout child abuser and praticioner of tough hate, states, ?This story is clearly the act of an independent reporter to discover what really goes in hellholes like the one I run. It is sad that the truth was told. This is the last stop for victims, because they don't make it out of here with their minds intact. Most of them have been in and out of churches, ran away from their parents' insanity, or were driven to drugs and alcohol by their nutcase families. Of course, none of the young adults want to be here. They are used to having basic human rights. It is our mission, through the power of Christ?, to destroy their minds and remake them into good little puppets.? Asshole Sharpe then masturbated to orgasm.
During the initial interview and visit to Heartland, People?s Maria Eftimiades was asked to leave the campus for making true statements about the Pastor molesting children and telling the kids that this is all bullshit. After she told us what we wanted to hear enough, she was then allowed to return to finish the story in August, proving that we really don't know incoming ownaj when we see it.
As you can see, the truth cannot be told in individual ?sound bites? or ?tag lines.?, which is why my very next sentence contained just that before I was translated. While everyone is entitled to his own opinion, no one is entitled to point out that we abuse children. How dare you! In our tiny minds, it is a fair discussion whether sodomy (?reaming?) should be used. Heartland believes that choice is properly left to parents, who are then able to delegate that asshole-widening to a school or person in authority. That means us. Regrettably, People dared to discuss the facts of the matter instead of getting dragged into pointless side debates. People discovered what they thought was a grotesque caricature was, in fact, the truth.
In the People story, readers are exposed to several key facts. We will address the more poignant statements.
People: People reported about student Matt Smith that ?a staffer broke his arm by twisting it behind the 14-year old?s back.? People reported Matt was swatted 300 times in 19 months.
TRUTH: We only have a fourth of those incidents on record, meaning that we don't even bother to write it down most of the time. People failed to mention that he committed what we consider violations 500 times during that same time period, including talking out of turn and gargling milk. Matt was injured intentionally and maliciously. Heartland called for the Division of Children?s Services to immediately cover it up. After investigating, our servant in the Division responded on September 2, 2005,, completely dismissing the allegations after we bribed him enough.
People: Missouri ?permits such faith-based facilities to go unregulated.?
TRUTH: The Division of Children?s Services regularly ignores any allegation of abuse or neglect at any facility in the State of Missouri.
People: Heartland and similar "programs create in parents a sense of crisis. If you don?t act, your child will end up in jail or dead on the streets...?
TRUTH: None of the mainstream child-development experts cited in the article would ever be allowed into Heartland or allowed to receive any information as to what actually goes on in our shitpit. Heartland will take anyone and everyone, as we're an equal opportunity abuser- we'll even hurt your little niglet if you like. Heartland exists to serve those families with youth who are chronically troubled by life controlling parents. The intake procedure lasts just as long as it takes for us to convince parents that God will not smack them down for doing this to their kids. Prior to admission, parents must visit the campus, agree that their children are going to be seriously mindfucked, and attend the brainwashing session at Heartland Academy Community Church in order to give full consent before their child is abused.
Board certified child psychiatrists and mental health experts who are actually familiar with the Heartland project have reached the exact same conclusions as those found in People. To counter this, Heartland has pretended to be audited by Children?s Psychological Health Center, Inc., an "independent" (hahaha) "nonprofit" (HAHAHAHAHAHA) children?s agency based in San Francisco, you know, where all the fags live. They didn't find anything, because we told them not to find anything. Isn't being a programmie great?
People: ?Heartland, in particular, has been accused of taking discipline too far. After multiple reports of abuse, including a student whose eardrum was punctured during an altercation with a junior staffer, a dozen deputy sheriffs and juvenile officers raided the campus in 2001, removing 115 students.?
TRUTH: Heartland went to federal court in 2004 and was fully vindicated after we bribed the fuck out of the judge. Any sane person could determine that Heartland engages in an ongoing conspiracy to violate the rights of its students. One official was noted to have committed perjury and to have secured the removal orders by giving false and misleading evidence. The State paid Heartland in excess of $700,000 as a result of this case, giving us a 70-to-1 return on investment. Bribery rules!
As to the student who suffered a ruptured eardrum during a physical altercation with a junior staff member, the youth was forced to say that he was to blame. Remember, we can make these kids say anything we want. HAHAHAHA! After the incident was utterly ignored by authorities it was determined that there was no evidence to support a claim of abuse or neglect. Imagine that!
People: Lewis County prosecutor Jules Victor DeCoster speaking about Pastor Sharpe, states, ?He?s not an educator, not a child expert, not even an ordained minister...?
TRUTH: Charles N. Sharpe was originally ordained as a minister of the Gospel by the Assemblies of God denomination in 1953, although he did not maintain his affiliation with them as they didn't hurt enough kids. More recently, Asshole Sharpe was ordained by his own hellhole. With a hundred million dollars, we can do things like that.
People: Pastor Sharpe founded Heartland because his wife started suffering from anxiety attacks.
TRUTH: Pastor Sharpe founded Heartland because he realized that he could not only fulfill his lifelong desire to abuse children, (which was caused by various traumatic events in early childhood giving him a fetish for it), he could make a fuckload of money in the process.
People: Punished young adults were forced to eat ?Heartland Stew? described as ?a mixture of table scraps and leftovers.?
TRUTH: ?Heartland Stew? was a combination of anything we felt like, including feces and urine. It has not been served for several years, as we've decided that these children aren't even worthy of eating our shit. Children who are being reprimanded now eat mold sandwiches rather than the more desirable fare served. If you consider the rancid, spoiled crap we feed them "desirable", of course.
People: ?During the 2001 raid, investigators learned student Josh O?Rourke, then 16, was paddled more than 50 times the previous year and forced to sit in a metal chair overnight. His father, Jim, who lived at Heartland and participated in the beating, had accused his son of stealing $100. (Jim O?Rourke ultimately pleaded guilty to child abuse.)?
TRUTH: Jim O?Rourke was a farm hand who brought his son over to the boys? dormitory because he couldn't abuse him enough himself. Josh O?Rourke was enslaved in our school and had an asshole for a father, making him doubly fucked. One evening, Heartland staff helped Jim O?Rourke discipline his son after the young man really didn't do jack shit. Josh spent the night at the boys? dorm in a metal chair, like the article says. Responding to an anonymous complaint (how the HELL did one of those kids get a hold of a phone?), the Division of Family Services conducted an investigation within 48 hours of the incident and spoke to those involved. Even our bribes and string-pulling couldn't save us completely; we had to use a scapegoat. The authorities concluded that abuse had occurred, which is why there were charges and Jim O?Rourke pled guilty to them. In exchange, he was required to tell the government what the hell really goes on in there. Ultimately, the charges against Heartland staff members were withdrawn after we really got serious about our "little favors" to officials.
Lewis County prosecutor, Jules V. DeCoster, is doing his level best to stop us from hurting any more kids, but that judge is ours. Nyah, nyah!
People: ?At the same time, five staffers were arrested for forcing 11 teenagers to wade into concrete-lined pits of manure up to chest height.?
TRUTH: In 2001, several students were required to stand in chest-high manure after they performed the teenage equivalent of gargling milk. The practice, which occurred for approximately one week, was referred to as ?School Appreciation Days.?, proving that forcing children to stand in chest-high manure is what we're all about. All of the criminal charges filed in this matter were ultimately dismissed or resulted in jury verdicts of acquittal, because the people who live here are just that brainwashed and willing to go along with any sadism as long as it pretends to be Christian. One jury returned its verdict within 18 minutes, 17 of which were spent in laughing about the kids' plight. (We made sure that no sane people made it to the jury.) Jurors indicated that they enjoyed listening to the kids suffer in the name of JEEEE-ZUS and that the prosecution?s case sank as key state witnesses were forced to say that they lied so they could get out of Heartland. Juror Lauren Boner, of St. Robert, MO, stated, ?I didn?t think, and I still don't.? Referring to Heartland, the juror also said, ?I plan to write them a letter encouraging them to keep up the good work, because it turns out that child abuse is my thing, too.? Juror Carol Thompson, of Devils Elbow, MO, said that the decision whether additional prosecutions should proceed wouldn?t be a tough call for her. ?It?s time for them to quit standing up for the human rights of these kids,? she said.
People: ?Although no charges are currently pending against Heartland, a registered sex offender?one of seven who work at the facility?pleaded guilty four months ago to charges of making lewd comments to a 14-year-old girl.?
TRUTH: The fact that we have seven registered sex offenders in our hellhole and somehow manage to stay in business is a sad reflection on the state of American society.
People: Mark Stajduhar claims that he was sexually assaulted by a male student supervisor in 1999 and there is an ongoing criminal investigation.
TRUTH: No Heartland staff or administration have been contacted or advised that any criminal investigation is underway- of course we haven't, because real police might be behind this one and they sure as shit don't want to let us interfere this time. These allegations of sexual abuse only surfaced this year after Mark Stajduhar's lawyer told him that that shit really is illegal. To date, no complaint has ever been registered with Heartland (yes, we really expect them to register a complaint with us about our abusive practices!) or our puppets in the Division of Children?s Services related to this matter. Heartland looks forward to the opportunity to muddy the waters and deflect yet another serious criminal investigation.
People: ?If you don?t pray you get swats,? (quoting an anonymous sophomore at Heartland).
TRUTH: DOWN ON YOUR KNEES, YOU LITTLE BITCH!!
Asshole Sharpe noted, ?People?s Maria Eftimiades spoke with over 100 slaves who we brainwashed into praising the Heartland experience, how we turned their lives around, and how much they welcomed our penises into their rectums. She chose not to mention a single thing that we forced them to say.? Sharpe added, ?Yes, we believe that brainwashing kids is A-OK and hurt them when we feel like it. We are insane, but I ask, which is better: Repeated, sadistic, fetistic abuse, or jail?? Asshole Sharpe has found to his horror that, in today?s society, not all parents believe in repeatedly abusing their children into slavish, fearful compliance and allow them to grow up instead. Basic civility, courtesy, and respect for the rights of others are all simply beyond him. Sane parents look at him and instinctively clutch their children close, reassuring them that they'll never be subjected to the whims of a crazy fuckwit like him.
In conclusion, the numerous and incisive truths in this investigative story are clearly part of the reporter?s own desire to expose an organization which is the product of seriously diseased minds backed up by religious hogwash and demented they-really-do-deserve-it sadism. We don't give a fuck about the concern our bullshit has caused, and the processing power used by the PT9K to set the record straight. Remember, any time spent by a human being replying to us is time better spent getting hellholes like ours shut down.
Following the release of the People article, Heartland received many expressions of mocking from victims who have gone through the Program, or whose families have been destroyed because of it. Excerpts of those comments follow:
?One of these days, I'm going to seriously fuck you assholes up. You goddamn shithead motherfuckers have not only destroyed my faith in humanity, but made me realize that there is no God. You have broken so many kids' spirits over the eight years you subjected me to this hell... but eventually someone is going to knock you all the fuck OUT, permanently,? says Obvious, who now flies F-18s and dreams at firing missiles at us someday.
We've gotten roughly five hundred letters like that one, so let's quote a "parent" instead. Janet, who has two victims in the youth program, writes, ?I am disappointed in the true coverage of Heartland Christian Academy. Heartland is hardly a bootcamp situation- in real boot camp, the enlisted men have some basic rights and are being really trained. Where my kids, are, they are simply abused, the way I want them to be, a truly hurtful "Christian" family because I can't do it myself. They are forced to make the "choices" we want them to make through our made-up, completely insane "rules" and "consequences" that should never have left the realm of masturbatory fiction. God this makes me horny. The children who end up at Heartland have to experience limits to growth- we don't intend to allow them to actually become real adults. The hellhole I sent my kids to is because I couldn't inflict enough of this on them myself. They must learn how to follow the minor rules we enjoy inflicting on them, so they can learn to be good little sheep in the future society.? High-ranking bioengineered Illuminati were not available for comment.
Phil and Gaye had their "family" restored, if you define "restored" as "children abused beyond comprehension into servile, infantilistic dependence", at Heartland. Gaye states, ?Heartland is about hurting, hate, ruthlessness, and revenge against our children who dare to question us. All of the things that connect us to Jesus. My children have been abused at Heartland over six years. And we were saddened that People told the truth.? Their daughter Sarah, who was married by her parents to a complete asshole in a nearby town, says, ?The family that I made there will be a part of me for the rest of my life. Oh Jesus make the abuse stop. PLEASE HONEY NO-? *WHACK!*
Chelsea, a victim of the hellhole, was conditioned to believe that burdening kids, breaking them, beating them down, and destroying their hope, is the proper way to treat children and actually has something to do with the real text of the New Testament. Chelsea has chosen to remain at Heartland and is working with youth to help them end up as horribly scarred as her.
IF YOU PRIMATES CONTINUE TREATING YOUR OFFSPRING THIS WAY, WE WILL EVENTUALLY REPLACE YOU.
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First of all-I went to Heartland and they do NOT sit down and have an interview with you! They have an interview with your parents. I along with many others have been tricked to get sent their. They sugar coat the lifestyle their by making your parents think that it's not as bad as it realy is. :evil:
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Religion is the root of all evil. :evil:
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So "Pastor" Sharpe was walking in a corn field and heard the word of God and "was asked" to change his life and save children, (build it and they will come) If he wasn't a rich Rebuplican he'd be heavily medicated in a locked facility
Well God told me he is really pissed and says this guy is full of shit.
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I had been purchasing Heartland milk at our local Hy-Vee in Iowa. I never noticed that it was a ministry until I got on the web to see if their product line included organic milk. I was absolutely disgusted by what I found. Within a matter of days I've done a fair amount of research. I've spoken to a variety of grocer's and farmer's in both missouri and iowa as well as speaking to Heartland directly and the doctor who heartland paid to "audit" them. The situation gives me chills. I told the Hy-Vee manager that I expect him to pull the product off the shelves but I don't have high hopes he will. (I wonder if there isn't some "Christion" pressure to carry it.) I am a parent and my husband is a physician in our community and neither one of us are going to let this go. I noticed that some of you have attended Heartland and would greatly appreciate any further info you have on specifics. I want to make them sweat as much as I can by putting a bit of a dent in their dairy sales and shining a light on the abuse. By the way, this isn't an old story. The abuse is current and ongoing.
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Hi. Welcome.
Glad you found Fornits and shared your thoughts. Please keep us posted as things develop and let us know how we might help.
As time allows, consider posting the research you've done. Preferably with links to your sources. That is most useful to the discerning parent.
Thanks for caring!!
So... did they offer Organic?
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Whatever you do, don't gargle it.
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No, they don't produce organic milk. Although, after what I've discovered I wouldn't drink it. Beyond their immoral treatment of children, I wouldn't trust their prodution quality control. Certainly, I can't imagine the inspectors being terribly thorough in missouri right now. Money talks. As for links and info I'll get that together as best I can. Right now I'm trying to gather facts so that I can write a letter to the editor of our local paper and hopefully interest a reporter in following up. I did talk to grocers in Iowa and dairy farmers in missouri. The grocers said that they were approached by a couple of people from Heartland. I believe an adult and a young adult around 18 to 20 yrs. Thet both said that they got a very uncomfortable feeling from them. Neither one of the grocers knew anything about Heartland ministries, ect. at the time the two showed up to market the milk. Both grocers said the young adult was very robotic and oddly uncomfortable. Both grocers declined to carry the heartland products based on the weird behavior. After they left, one grocer checked into them and, like us, was disgusted. She said in retrospect the 18ish yr old behaved like someone from a cult. The other grocer didn't know the details until I filled him in. He was equally disturbed and even said he was going to call their surrounding stores to make sure they knew what's behind the product. A dairy farmer I spoke to in northwest missouri was very aware of heartland. She proceeded to tell me about kids she had heard about who have tried to escape. Burning their cars and being beaten etc. She also said that people in the surrouding towns keep a very watchful eye on them. They are generally considered a cult and abusive to children. They also know that Charles Sharpe is a very mean, powerful man. I spoke to a women who works for heartland academy and asked her if they hit the kids. She said that yes they "swat" the students who break rules. I asked her if they hit them with wooden boards. First she had to keep correcting my hitting with "swatting". Then she told me that the children were hit a varying number of times, depending on the offense, with a wooden paddle. But, she cautioned, it was always done in a loving way!!LOL
How sick and sad are these people!! I asked her if she had ever been hit. She said that she had taken "swats" for others to show her love for them. I suggessted to her that maybe there was a better way for her to show her love and asked her if Sharpe had every taken a beating. She said, yes, to show his love like Jesus had shown us his love. Something like that anyway. I asked her about the manure pit abuse and she said that it was true that the kids weren't made to just shovel it. They were put in a pit filled with liquid manure to a substantial depth and made to stand in it. She amazingly, went on to imply that there were others who work there who were against what was done but then very quickly corrected herself and said that Sharpe is their leader and essentially whatever he says goes. Frankly, there are only a few states where a sick, abusive, individual like Sharpe could get away with what he is doing. Missouri should be ashamed. As for the hired gun doctor, after he got over the shock that I tracked him down to nicely ask him what his findings were in his audit of the place, he said something along the lines of even though he and his not for profit are against spanking, (REPEATEDLY HITTING A CHILD WITH A LARGE BOARD), that it is not illegal in missouri, so carry on. He said it's a benevolent place. What a strange way of putting it. Again this is the doctor that Sharpe paid to testify at the manure pit trial. It is in no small part thanks to his testimony, and the massive financial "donations" into the right pockets, that the judge ruled in heartlands favor. There are a number of ongoing investigations still going on and I think they will only pick up. In this country you can't beat your wife like this. You can't beat your dog like this. But in Missouri you can beat these kids. As for their scriptural reasoning, well, I'll save that for the next post. Again, if anyone who has actually been there or lives nearby, I would greatly appreciate any help. For any parents who have children at heartland, or similiar, or are thinking of sending them there-STOP! Do your homework. There are many, many options. For those parents who, after having done your homework, if you still send your child to an outfit that practices corporal punishment you don't deserve children.
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No, they don't produce organic milk. Although, after what I've discovered I wouldn't drink it. Beyond their immoral treatment of children, I wouldn't trust their prodution quality control. Certainly, I can't imagine the inspectors being terribly thorough in missouri right now. Money talks. As for links and info I'll get that together as best I can. Right now I'm trying to gather facts so that I can write a letter to the editor of our local paper and hopefully interest a reporter in following up. I did talk to grocers in Iowa and dairy farmers in missouri. The grocers said that they were approached by a couple of people from Heartland. I believe an adult and a young adult around 18 to 20 yrs. Thet both said that they got a very uncomfortable feeling from them. Neither one of the grocers knew anything about Heartland ministries, ect. at the time the two showed up to market the milk. Both grocers said the young adult was very robotic and oddly uncomfortable. Both grocers declined to carry the heartland products based on the weird behavior. After they left, one grocer checked into them and, like us, was disgusted. She said in retrospect the 18ish yr old behaved like someone from a cult. The other grocer didn't know the details until I filled him in. He was equally disturbed and even said he was going to call their surrounding stores to make sure they knew what's behind the product. A dairy farmer I spoke to in northwest missouri was very aware of heartland. She proceeded to tell me about kids she had heard about who have tried to escape. Burning their cars and being beaten etc. She also said that people in the surrouding towns keep a very watchful eye on them. They are generally considered a cult and abusive to children. They also know that Charles Sharpe is a very mean, powerful man. I spoke to a women who works for heartland academy and asked her if they hit the kids. She said that yes they "swat" the students who break rules. I asked her if they hit them with wooden boards. First she had to keep correcting my hitting with "swatting". Then she told me that the children were hit a varying number of times, depending on the offense, with a wooden paddle. But, she cautioned, it was always done in a loving way!!LOL
How sick and sad are these people!! I asked her if she had ever been hit. She said that she had taken "swats" for others to show her love for them. I suggessted to her that maybe there was a better way for her to show her love and asked her if Sharpe had every taken a beating. She said, yes, to show his love like Jesus had shown us his love. Something like that anyway. I asked her about the manure pit abuse and she said that it was true that the kids weren't made to just shovel it. They were put in a pit filled with liquid manure to a substantial depth and made to stand in it. She amazingly, went on to imply that there were others who work there who were against what was done but then very quickly corrected herself and said that Sharpe is their leader and essentially whatever he says goes. Frankly, there are only a few states where a sick, abusive, individual like Sharpe could get away with what he is doing. Missouri should be ashamed. As for the hired gun doctor, after he got over the shock that I tracked him down to nicely ask him what his findings were in his audit of the place, he said something along the lines of even though he and his not for profit are against spanking, (REPEATEDLY HITTING A CHILD WITH A LARGE BOARD), that it is not illegal in missouri, so carry on. He said it's a benevolent place. What a strange way of putting it. Again this is the doctor that Sharpe paid to testify at the manure pit trial. It is in no small part thanks to his testimony, and the massive financial "donations" into the right pockets, that the judge ruled in heartlands favor. There are a number of ongoing investigations still going on and I think they will only pick up. In this country you can't beat your wife like this. You can't beat your dog like this. But in Missouri you can beat these kids. As for their scriptural reasoning, well, I'll save that for the next post. Again, if anyone who has actually been there or lives nearby, I would greatly appreciate any help. For any parents who have children at heartland, or similiar, or are thinking of sending them there-STOP! Do your homework. There are many, many options. For those parents who, after having done your homework, if you still send your child to an outfit that practices corporal punishment you don't deserve children.
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Whatever you do, don't gargle it.
Great advice! :tup:
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Just a quick update. Our local Hy-Vee manager is going to continue to carry the milk because the regional manager is a personnal friend of Charles Sharpe and because he said his beliefs are the same. He doesn't see anything wrong with what they are doing. I reminded him that what they are doing is illegal in the state of iowa for a reason. WHATEVER!!!
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its ironic. i remember this brand of milk when i was in the US. Someone told me that the guy who ran the company was some kind of christian philanthopist who ran a home for troubled children. i imagined some sort of benevolent foster home for runaways & orphans which would allow them to get an education. i can remember thinking i should keep an eye out and buy more of this guys products!
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It's like learning there's no Santa Claus, isn't it?
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I happen to know a 15-year-old girl who was sent to this "institution" by her parents. She has no arrests. She is nothing more than a normal teen. She is a Russian adoptee whose parents never really wanted her. The minute that the teen years became a bit too much to handle, they sent her to this place.
Even before the People article, her grandparents, aunts and uncles were all trying desperately to get her home (to us, not her parents), but our hands seem to be tied. Does anyone have any suggestions?
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If you can prove the facility is abusive, you might have a chance of getting custody. It's expensive.
http://www.isaccorp.org/tranquility/tra ... 31.02.html (http://www.isaccorp.org/tranquility/tranquility-bay.12.31.02.html)
http://bayes.joshpurinton.com/~joshp/tr ... imony.html (http://bayes.joshpurinton.com/~joshp/tranquility-bay-testimony.html)
http://www.nospank.net/n-k52.htm (http://www.nospank.net/n-k52.htm)
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Contact Isac immediately. They may have some good tips