anyone here go to the rebekah home after 2000?

[Laiceey]

kinda stumbled onto this.. but my name is jessica ellis- and i went to the rebekah home in like 2001 i believe.. stayed for almost two years.. anyone who knows me- post back! (oh.. you may have even went to the one in missouri or florida and still have known me.. i left just before the new one in missouri was opened..)

[Anonymous]

I didn't go there, but was wondering what the school was like.  I've heard a lot of bad stories, even from recently.  What was your experience like there?  I went to Victory Christian Academy and it was horrible, but I heard Rebekah was worse.

[Laiceey]

Suprisingly- there are few things that I can complain about. I know for some girls- it was horrible- but for me... life in the Rebekah Home was too confined and emotionally draining- yet still very livable. I was never abused.. and I don't remember too many girls who could've even came close to saying they were. The McNamaras were super awesome people- they didn't have it in them to mistreat us. When I was on helper- I remember maybe 5 or 6 girls- during the year and a half that I was there- who were ever even severely disciplined. If a girl tried to runaway- of course someone has to do something! lol.. the McNamaras werent just going to stand back and watch while these girls self-destructed. Some of the girls were unmanageable.. and things had to be coaxed in order to settle them down.
     I think the hardest thing for most of us to accept was being forced to believe something so quickly and being judged if we didn't conform. I think alot of the so called "rebellion" could be blamed on this. No one wants to be forced to do anything.. ecpecially not wild teenage girls.. lol. Girls would do horrible things to the staff themselves, and even eachother- things that deserved alot more punishment than sitting walls or running laps.. or any other of the horrible things girls claim were injust punishments they were put through. And as far as sexual abuse- never! The only man who was ever around us was Bro. Mac- and he wouldn't even give us swats- or speak with us alone in a room.. they were very careful about making sure girls couldn't say things that weren't true along those lines.
   To get away from all the drama and punishment from not believing the "norms"- most girls would conform and mimick what they thought was "religious" to get away from criticism and be left alone.. for me though- I actually truly believed that the life I was trying to live was the best one.. Now- I see differently- I feel as if the person I was in the Rebekah home is no where near close to the person I truly am- or want to be, at that. In a way- without intention- I assure you.. I feel as if I was somehow "brainwashed" to believe that religion was something I needed to be happy. With time- I've learned differently. Now- when I look back on Rebekah- I'm thankful I went through such an experience. Even if I have changed drastically- it was deeper than playing the motions.. I gained sincere character that will never leave me. Looking back- god wasnt what I owe my happiness to- it was a life structure change. Myself- like plenty of the other girls who went through the home- needed stability and rigidness to teach us how to make our own lives work later in life. Regardless if I agree with what they believe to be the true happiness in life.. I know that they intended well- and to them I am forever indebted.
   In a nutshell.. lol... Going through the Rebekah home was an experience that was yes indeed- difficult.. but I'd never regret it in anyway. What doesnt kill you only makes you stronger.. right?!
   Oh- there were like 3 girls that came to us from victory.. shoot.. cant think of their names.. Ill get my yearbook when I go back to Dallas.. (I'm four hours away at college unti this weekend)oh- one of the girls names was "fanny".. or somethiing like that.. she was mexian- and then an asian girl.. kathy- and a white girl- young.. glasses.. I'll get the name.. until then- post back! I love chatting : )

[Anonymous]

I was a rebekah girl in the 80's and let me just say, i think the reason they were nice to you girls was because they learned that abuse was not the cure. you see, we were severly beaten, slapped,you name it. The girls from the 70's and 80's were i think the "guinea pigs"I think what it took was numerous lawsuits in our day, so that maybe you girls didnt have to go through the hell we did. Thank God.We still have issues 20 or 30 years later. You should read about all the lawsuits theyve had they are on the internet just look under roloff. I know of some girls who have developed mental disabilities from that place. All because some people took there authority to far. In your post before you mentioned you dont owe your happiness to God,its "life structure change" Who do you think gave you the "life" in structure changing? God had something to do with your change he is the one that gave you life. Just my opinion. I actually was at rebekah in Mo. in 86. Was there another rebekah also in Mo.? How was the move to louisianna? The big wigs Camerons are still running it in FL. They ran the homes when i was there.It is interesting to me to have someone that was there recently like you to talk to. There is a web site just for rebekah at yahoo its under roloff homes youd like it we have 90 members.oh well didnt mean to go on and on.later!

[Laiceey]

yea.. u may be right : ) i just know that im happy without religion.. and ill stay thisaway until i feel differently : ) can u give me a link to what ur talking about? thanks so much!!

[GentleStormi]

Hi ,
I was in Roloffs Rebekah Home for Girls in 1977-78. It has taken me til now, age 41 from age 14, to gain back my own mind, but i didnt even realize it till i was way into my 20's that i had serious emotional/mental problems based in that place.

i am healed far more today, and am so glad God has moved in my behalf to me to heal me and bring me out of the prison of my mind that the Camerons adn Lester Roloff put me into.

I just recently opened up a new healing forum.
It is set up solely for the survivors from the 1970's and 80's who are more focused on healing work ....and were all at the compound in Corpus Christi Texas...it is a God forum for those who still believe in God and want a safe supportive and healing environment to support and discuss the issues among only those who were there. Some survivors may or may not want or need this particular focused kind of forum, but if any are interested, please inquire of me, and i can send you some information about the forum to help you decide if you would be interested.



ROLOFF REBEKAH SURVIVORS
Private Self-Help Support Healing Environment
For Rebekah Survivors 1970's & 1980's
A God Forum

http://forums.speakezforums.com/directory/


GentleStormi
[email protected]
[ This Message was edited by: GentleStormi on 2005-05-18 18:07 ]

[Anonymous]

On 2005-03-30 17:25:00, Laiceey wrote:

"yea.. u may be right : ) i just know that im happy without religion.. and ill stay thisaway until i feel differently : ) can u give me a link to what ur talking about? thanks so much!!"

I feel the same way about religion.  And I think that I never would have had to think critically about whether I believed in religion or not, except that they made it so horrible an existence.  When I left (VCA), I had to study religion for myself, and based on what I learned, I don't believe any of it.  Forcing religion on someone is all wrong.  If they made it appealing, I would have gone along with it, and never found out it was all a bunch of bullshit.

[GentleStormi]

Religion Puts people in straigtjackest

God sets us free from the straightjackets religion would control us by.

Jesus himself would have said of roloffs the same he said to the religious leaders of his day,

they were whitewashed sepulchres filled with dead mens bones, who load up the people with burdens to grievous to be borne...

that is what Jesus said of the religious people

but to the common people who the religious people would not sit to eat with , to those people and to all the sinners and 'publicans' ,
Jesus went to dine with and Jesus said of them that they were hurting and in need of care.

God is not and never will shove himself down any one, he draws us with love...
if a god was shoved into you, i tell you this truth

it was not the true God..and those who did this in Jesus name to the innocent teens who did nothing more wrong than cry out for help the best they could , to those abusers God would say, "It were better for them to have a millstone on thier neck and have them cast into the lake, than that they would cause one of these little ones to stumble around in unbelief"


I was in Rebekah Home
Roloff Rebekah CULT Survivor 77-78
http://forums.speakezforums.com/directory/


[ This Message was edited by: GentleStormi on 2005-05-18 18:08 ]

[Anonymous]

go to yahoo and click on groups. then it takes you to roloff homes. you tell them who you are and when you were there and they let you in. this group is a carefree and lighter type group its
fun reminising about the place
good or bad. you may even remember some of them.

[Anonymous]

I have a friend that was in the home when it was in Louisiana.  It was in the former new bethany home.  She says it was horrible.

[Anonymous]

Hi Laicey.

Were you there in 2004?  I have a relative that went there in May 2004 and is still there and I'm dying to know how she is doing.

Please e-mail

[email protected]

[Laiceey]

No, I believe I left in 2002 or 2003 but.. whats her name?

[Anonymous]

E*a*a C**o*e*, she was 16 when she went in, adopted from Russia several years before.  She was a pretty girl, tall, brown hair & eyes.  She is in New Beginnings, but I heard they sometimes do things with VCA.

[Anonymous]

Unfortunately.. she doesn't sound familiar.. there was a girl who was adopted.. and from russia- but i dont remember her name being evana. why dont u just call the home? i have the number if youd like it..

[Anonymous]

Thanks, I've actually tried calling, even had a DCF person try on my behalf...her (and my) mother put the school on strict orders not to release any information to me about her.