Fornits
Treatment Abuse, Behavior Modification, Thought Reform => Lighthouse of northwest florida (fka VCA )/ Rebekah / Roloff ) => Topic started by: Chai on June 17, 2006, 10:45:00 PM
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For the last few weeks I have spent days online in search of current information on New Beginnings Girls Academy in Pace, Florida. The last week of May friends of mine took their 16-year old daughter (who has Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder) there. I have found info about the Camerons in Texas and Faye not being allowed to be with juveniles there. I found the curtain rod story. I saw the newsletter from the GA church that included the missionary page with New Beginings. I have read about other faith-based schools, deaths, allegations, etc. I gave the parents some of the info that I had found and they were not pleased with me. They believe that their daughter is in a safe place. I understand that William McNamara is the name most used for current parents who are desperate for help. Is there anything more recent than these pieces that I found? What is happening there now? :???:
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Today I received a short hand printed letter from the girl who was taken to New Beginnings Girls Academy in Pace, FL, on Memorial Day weekend. I had mailed her a letter on Friday June 9 not knowing if she would be allowed to read it. Good news! Not only did she read it but she replied. This says to me that they aren't as strict as they once were. Maybe there have been some positive changes going on at New Beginnings? Does anybody really know?
Chai
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I came back from that school a year ago. It is a horrible place. They abuse the girls and are under investigation right now. Plesdr do not consider sending anyone there.
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This is what I've heard about that place. They are now less strict in some areas because of previous lawsuits, but they are very careful about what they have the parents sign, so that no other lawsuits can come from it.
I would not believe a letter she wrote, because, if it is like it was back when I was in the homes, they read your letters and will not let any negativity come out in them. Also, what you should know about this place is that there is a degree of brainwashing. I know that sounds almost far-fetched, but it's like they make you feel that if you are not utterly happy in that lifestyle, then there is something wrong with you and you aren't a good christian.
Remember this is a young, impressionable girl. The "abuse" is not so much physical as the realization that they messed with your head many years later.
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Is this place affiliated with Mike Palmer?
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The place has improved for the positive since Rebekah, as far as I know. I heard that they had better staff there now.
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So when was the last time you where there? How long was your stay & who was over you? Debi
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It is closed!
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I think that they have moved to Missouri because this state does not have "no child left behind" laws and they therefore are able to use their useless christian education without anyone caring. See which facilities, who also uses this state. It does not look good.
http://www.fornits.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Missouri (http://www.fornits.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Missouri)
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I was at New Beginnings for 4.5 years. (2001-2005.) I was in Rebekah, when it was still known as that, and I was there for the last three years in Florida, when they became known as New Beginnings. I'm being interviewed for a website about such homes, and it should cover all of the information you guys want to know. Everyone is so confused about this place. My story is long, but it will set the record straight. I'll post the link as soon as it's posted.
Briefly:
They are not affiliated with Mike Palmer.
Bill McNamara is a smooth-talking con-man. Believe the survivor accounts. They are TRUE. The parents are being lied to. They think their daughters are safe, but they have no clue what's happening. They can't know unless they spend a significant amount of time THERE, and that's never been allowed. If you're a parent, you should bring your daughter home immediately, because no matter what the McNamaras or even your daughter tells you (while admitted in the program) she is NOT safe.
The letters and phone calls are still monitored.
It doesn't matter if the staff or regulations have improved, as long as the McNamaras (and people who they've trained to operate things how they do) are still around.
The Florida chapter is still open, but different people are the named administrators on their website. The website doesn't claim that they are affiliated with the McNamaras, but that doesn't mean that they aren't affiliated. All the information received from these places is very well-planned, so don't be fooled.
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Ok, I went to New Beginnings in Oct. of '04 and just recently left a while ago, I completely disagree with all the bad things everyone is saying about New Beginnings. In the four years that I lived there, ofcourse I got in some trouble because of mistakes that I made every once in a while, but the McNamaras loved and cared for me even in the bad situations. And I have never regretted the time that I spent there with the people who I loved and considered a part of my family away from home.
The McNamaras are very kind, loving, honest people who just want to see teenagers get the same help that they got as adults in the year of '95 when they went to the Roloff Homes. Bro. Mac went to the "City of Refuge" home for men, Mrs.Mac went to the "Jubilee" home for women, and their three daughters went to the "Cleft of the Rock" home for children who's parents were in the home. Both Bro. and Mrs. Mac have been in the boys and girls shoes, and know what that lifestyle of being a student is all about. The only difference between them and the boys and girls they have in their home now, is that the McNamaras made the choice to get their lives straightened out on their own and the teenagers that are brought by their parents/ legal gardians are brought because their family wants them to get the help that they need but the teenagers themselves dont want the help (but hopefully that changes after a while).
Yes, the rules are strict and you are watched very closely your first couple of months. But if you keep your rotten attitude of "I hate this place, these rules, and my parents for sending me here!" you wont go home a happy, changed (for the good)person. Lots of girls who bad-mouth NBGA (New Beginnings Girls Academy), do it because they never forgave their parents for sending them there to get help(I have seen a countless amount of mothers and fathers absolutely heartbroken that they have to be without their baby for an entire year because they know that this is their last hope to help their little girl get out of the trouble she's in). Maybe they have never accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Savior or have just despised the fact that Christ was the most important part of New Beginnings. Eventually they might veiw NBGA as a waisted amount of time lost that they spent there and probably miss those months or years that they almost dont have included in their life. But so many dont think to consider that the time spent there was an opertunity to get away from everyone and everything to focus on themselves and their relationship with Jesus Christ.
For a while, I wondered if those four years of being away from my family, not being able to make my own descisions, and not having average teenage responsibilities would be a big hinderence on my life. And yes, I do feel a little less experienced than other 18 year olds, considering I dont have a deploma, job, car, or drivers liscence and it's sometimes kinda hard to relate to other teenagers, but I look back and I have gained so much more than I have missed. Those four years were filled with nothing but growing and learning experiences, after a year I decided that I need to step up to the plate and be a good example. I was a helper for about 2 years, I got the oppertunity to work outside and learn the value of hard work (which I enjoyed more than anything), and help out in many different ways. But I will always appreciate and never forget the time I spent at New Beginnings Girls Academy.
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Can you tell us a little more about Cleft of the Rock?
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Oh, and honey, your pACE education is showing.
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Um, all I know is that the children who's parents were in the home went there if their parents wanted them close by. they could recieve phonecalls, letters, and a visit every six months with their family. as far as I know if siblings lived in the house together they could remain close. the rules from what I understand were kind of like the rules in the homes but a little less strict considering they weren't there because they had gotten into trouble. but that's all I know from what I've heard from the McNamaras daughters themselves. but if you'd like, I can look up some more information. sorry but I've never been much of a speller but that's why they invented spell check
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My point is darlin' that spell check corrects your spelling, not your usage. Your pACE education shows you haven't a clue about usage. Not your fault, it's the slipshod education you received. Try going to college on that diploma, you'll understand what I mean.
I've BEEN in Jubilee. I've lived on the farm. I've witnessed Faye Cameron slap girls in the face. I never heard of a "Cleft of the Rock" program. I'd LOVE to know more, please do share. I have friends whose parents were workers, and THEY never were in a "Cleft of the Rock" program. All your info is hearsay, mine is firsthand.
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You're Brittany, aren't you?
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No, I'm not. Barkin' up the wrong tree love.
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love tree? I'm not trying to hook up w/ anyone. I was just thinking I knew you but when I saw the Jubilee I knew you couldn't be her. I'll see what I can do about the information on cleft of the rock
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uhhh.... I re-read that and sometimes see things backwards. so i saw love tree instead of tree love. i do that sometimes. sorry
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Um, I know this sounds retarded but I cant find any information on the Cleft of the Rock, sorry about that but I'm sure it should be out there somewhere.(the reason I thought you were Brittany Cambell is because I saw another thing called " New Beginnings Survival Story Part 1" or somthing like that and I dont know if that's your story or someones that you put up for her, but if she left in 2005, I would know who she is and that whole story checks out to be none other than Brittany, unless I'm mistaken)
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I did an interview with Brittany. You are accurate on that point, however, I am not her. Would you like to do an interview as well?
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You want her to say yes to an interview after you offend her on grammer usage? Give the poor girl a break.
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Cleft of the Rock did indeed exist. When I was in Jubilee I was friends with a gal who had her children there. My friend was in Jubilee, her husband in COR and the 3 kids in the Cleft. She was actually able to see her children regularly. Not whenever she wanted to, but she sat with her husband and kids in church services and they were able to eat together for meals on Sundays. I think that home was only for the children of adults enrolled in the program.
I am currently trying to reach her again. I think she worked on the farm for awhile after Jubilee.
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Hi, Big Bad Brittany here.
Actual information for Hurrikayne (it's not much, because the place was nothing really to speak of): "Cleft of The Rock" was not really an elaborately organized home or anything. It was a rather new development. People who had nowhere to put their kids while enrolled in the adult homes put their kids in Cleft of the Rock. When the McNamaras had their kids there, there were just the McNamaras' three girls - Heather, Cassie, and Sarah - and a couple of other girls who had families somewhere on the farm. I know all about it, because I know the Macs and their daughters really well.
I'm not here to either defend myself or argue with anyone, because I don't need to do either. It's all pretty simple for me: I know the facts about New Beginnings. Some people don't think it's such a bad place because a.) their experience was more limited to an outside perspective - maybe even intentionally, because Brother Mac used to make sure that certain girls didn't see certain things, b.) due to the nature of their personal behavior or their more-involved parents they weren't physically assaulted, or c.) they're still in denial about bad stuff they did see or experience. Everyone's experience was different, and there were a lot of girls who weren't taken to the back of a church, thrown down on a dirty floor and beaten with curtain rods. There were a lot of girls who didn't have my experience of hearing Brother Mac call girls "niggers" and see him degrade one girl while treating the one next to her - the one with rich parents - like gold. Some girls didn't see him tackle girls in scuffles or tell girls they should gang beat a girl if she acted up so her actions didn't affect everyone. Some girls didn't actually SEE IT when one girl wanted to leave so badly that she jammed half a pencil in another girl's ear so that she could be sent to jail instead of having to endure the home. Some of you weren't around when girls were forced to pick up rocks in the lap-yard all night long, or when we had to bathe with a garden hose, or when it was so much torture just to be there that girls were trying to run away every other day. During that time, my best friend succeeded. She and another girl disappeared for two days until they found them hanging around several towns away. They were drugged up, sexually assaulted, and covered cuts and scrapes and insect stings. When they brought them back, one had half her head shaved and she didn't know why or who did it. The other had an ankle swollen like a balloon and couldn't really walk. The two girls weren't CRIMINALS before the home. They just didn't want to be made to feel like dirt every day.
I could go on and on, because I was there for so long. There are other girls who saw different things than even I did. My point is, different girls had different experiences. The home goes through phases. It's been as tame as just mental abuse everyday and as rough as the things I've described. I've seen all of these phases. The McNamaras are still there though. Good people don't do these things. They took part in all of this. Mental abuse is bad enough, and the physical can escalate at any time. I've heard Brother Mac say, "we're not going to get involved with any of the corporal punishment anymore. If we keep it up, they'll close us down." And one week later having girls held down again and Mrs. Mac hitting them with mini-blind rods.
These are not the traits of good, honest, loving Christians by any means.
People can say what they want, but I honestly probably know the facts better than almost anyone else. I know the McNamaras in a way that non-staff/junior staff girl could. I had the keys to dorms, the code to the safe, worked the numbers in the books in the office, made the bank deposits, hung out (even slept, several times) in their family's home, did stuff with their daughters, sat in staff meetings, handled private records and files.
I respect your opinion, whoever you are, (though from your tone regarding me I doubt that you respect mine) because you may have had a tame experience. But don't discredit the opinions of other people just because you didn't see the things that we did or know the Macs as personally as we did.
The opinion that New Beginnings is corrupt is widespread and spreading further all the time, because bad stuff still happens. As I've said, I'm still in contact with at least fifty former students who share my opinion. Not because it's MY opinion, but because of what THEY experienced.
I have nothing to gain from any of this. I wasn't some rebellious nutjob who left the home in a convertible full of lesbian lovers, blowing coke off their hipbones and bound for a rendezvous with demons in Sin City or something like that; I left after four and a half years of honest effort to help other girls and to be right with God, after two and a half years of Bible college, because I knew in my heart that the place was wrong. I knew that the Macs weren't good people. I left as quietly as possible, so that you girls wouldn't be subjected to more tumultuous garbage, and so that the Macs couldn't distort the truth. I'm sure they did, anyway.
I have nothing to gain from trying to stop the home. I'm only standing up for myself, for past and current detainees, and for the girls who may be missing out on obtaining real help, love, and care.
Whatever you've heard of me personally after my leaving may not be true at all. Consider that or believe whatever you want. I don't need anyone to like me. It won't stop my efforts.
I was around for a lot of fabricated rumors, designed to keep us girls afraid of our real selves and the outside world.
I hold nothing against you, because I understand that things were different for different girls, but bear in mind that you may cause a lot of emotionally charged reactions if you try to downplay other people. Feel free to try to derive positivity from your experience if you can, but don't spit on other people's accounts or call them liars. You just might not know the entire truth. And don't forget to be true to yourself. You don't want to be dying inside twenty years from now dealing with repressed issues.
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Thanks Brittany on the info re: Cleft of the Rock.
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[size=150]HONEY ! MAYBE YOU WERE JUST ONE THAT THEY COULD TRAIN...I CAN SEE WHERE IF A GIRL HAS IT REALLY BAD AT HOME AND BEING SENT HERE SHE MIGHT THINK THAT ITS REALLY NOT THAT BAD...SOME GIRLS THAT A LOT MORE STRONG WILLED MOST LIKELY SEE THINGS DIFFERENTLY...THEY ARE NOT GOING TO BE PUSH AROUND AND TALKED DOWN TO BECAUSE THEY HAVE NEVER HAD TO PUT UP WITH THAT TYPE OF TREATMENT.......NEVERTHELESS, IT IS WRONG TO MENTALLY OR PHYSICALY ABUSE ANYONE. TELLING GIRLS WHAT TO SAY TO THEIR PARENTS DURING A PHONE CALL OR WHAT TO WRITE IN A LETTER IS MENTAL ABUSE. EVERYONE IS ENTITLED TO THEIR OWN FEELINGS AND FREEDON OF SPEECH. NOONE DESERVES TO BE DICTATED TOO. AND WHO IN THE HELL CARES WHAT THOSE PEOPLES LIFES WERE MADE UP OF. THEY ARE FREAKS ! NOT CERTIFIED FREAKS , JUST PLAIN FREAKS. THEY ARE THE LAST PEOPLE THAT NEED TO BE TRYING TO CORRECT ANYONES CHILD.....GOD HELP THEM[/size][/color]innings changed my life"]Ok, I went to New Beginnings in Oct. of '04 and just recently left a while ago, I completely disagree with all the bad things everyone is saying about New Beginnings. In the four years that I lived there, ofcourse I got in some trouble because of mistakes that I made every once in a while, but the McNamaras loved and cared for me even in the bad situations. And I have never regretted the time that I spent there with the people who I loved and considered a part of my family away from home.
The McNamaras are very kind, loving, honest people who just want to see teenagers get the same help that they got as adults in the year of '95 when they went to the Roloff Homes. Bro. Mac went to the "City of Refuge" home for men, Mrs.Mac went to the "Jubilee" home for women, and their three daughters went to the "Cleft of the Rock" home for children who's parents were in the home. Both Bro. and Mrs. Mac have been in the boys and girls shoes, and know what that lifestyle of being a student is all about. The only difference between them and the boys and girls they have in their home now, is that the McNamaras made the choice to get their lives straightened out on their own and the teenagers that are brought by their parents/ legal gardians are brought because their family wants them to get the help that they need but the teenagers themselves dont want the help (but hopefully that changes after a while).
Yes, the rules are strict and you are watched very closely your first couple of months. But if you keep your rotten attitude of "I hate this place, these rules, and my parents for sending me here!" you wont go home a happy, changed (for the good)person. Lots of girls who bad-mouth NBGA (New Beginnings Girls Academy), do it because they never forgave their parents for sending them there to get help(I have seen a countless amount of mothers and fathers absolutely heartbroken that they have to be without their baby for an entire year because they know that this is their last hope to help their little girl get out of the trouble she's in). Maybe they have never accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Savior or have just despised the fact that Christ was the most important part of New Beginnings. Eventually they might veiw NBGA as a waisted amount of time lost that they spent there and probably miss those months or years that they almost dont have included in their life. But so many dont think to consider that the time spent there was an opertunity to get away from everyone and everything to focus on themselves and their relationship with Jesus Christ.
For a while, I wondered if those four years of being away from my family, not being able to make my own descisions, and not having average teenage responsibilities would be a big hinderence on my life. And yes, I do feel a little less experienced than other 18 year olds, considering I dont have a deploma, job, car, or drivers liscence and it's sometimes kinda hard to relate to other teenagers, but I look back and I have gained so much more than I have missed. Those four years were filled with nothing but growing and learning experiences, after a year I decided that I need to step up to the plate and be a good example. I was a helper for about 2 years, I got the oppertunity to work outside and learn the value of hard work (which I enjoyed more than anything), and help out in many different ways. But I will always appreciate and never forget the time I spent at New Beginnings Girls Academy.
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I am glad you thought the world of your dormparents, but not all of us had the Macs. I had different dorm parents at Rebekah that were abusive. So I guess its all about who was over us. Also, did they really love you? By not insisting on a diploma for you? What kind of people dont provide that? DIdnt they care enough ? Its now 2009 and people with diplomas have it hard finding jobs right now , you might ought to think about getting one because with out a diploma your not going as far. The one I recieved from Rebekah got me no where.
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I came back from that school a year ago. It is a horrible place. They abuse the girls and are under investigation right now. Plesdr do not consider sending anyone there.
Quit lying and get right with God!
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get right with god? what home were you in. i was in anchortraz from 82-85. staff members abused boys and 1 even did it sexually! ALL IN THE NAME OF GOD! how did that verse go? the truth shall set you free?
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Bro. Cameron passed away being taken off life support on Christmas Day 2009. Due to an accident where he was severely burned.
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My point is darlin' that spell check corrects your spelling, not your usage. Your pACE education shows you haven't a clue about usage. Not your fault, it's the slipshod education you received. Try going to college on that diploma, you'll understand what I mean.
I've BEEN in Jubilee. I've lived on the farm. I've witnessed Faye Cameron slap girls in the face. I never heard of a "Cleft of the Rock" program. I'd LOVE to know more, please do share. I have friends whose parents were workers, and THEY never were in a "Cleft of the Rock" program. All your info is hearsay, mine is firsthand.
I'd put a ACE Christian Educated Child up against any public school educated child any time. Do some research.
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My point is darlin' that spell check corrects your spelling, not your usage. Your pACE education shows you haven't a clue about usage. Not your fault, it's the slipshod education you received. Try going to college on that diploma, you'll understand what I mean.
I've BEEN in Jubilee. I've lived on the farm. I've witnessed Faye Cameron slap girls in the face. I never heard of a "Cleft of the Rock" program. I'd LOVE to know more, please do share. I have friends whose parents were workers, and THEY never were in a "Cleft of the Rock" program. All your info is hearsay, mine is firsthand.
I'd put a ACE Christian Educated Child up against any public school educated child any time. Do some research.
Tim it is obvious from your own use of grammar that you MUST be ACE educated.......
Another personal attack from you? Well, you're wrong. I didn't go to an ACE school.
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Ok that's fine hearing from everyone.In last weekend I visited to my village.It was amazing to visit here.My mind cheered up with natural beauty.It was really great visiting here.