From: Richard Gasser <email redacted>
Date: 6/15/23
Subject: REVISED KS NE EMAIL
Dear KS NE Friends,
As we had said before, we had planned to send an email after our Scottsbluff Convention; Which we believe everyone who was there would agree, was very special and very timely! A very special soft spirit was there, and so much encouragement to raise our vision to Jesus the Rock, the One that will not be shaken. We heard what Jesus told Peter, “Satan hath desired to have you that he may sift you as Wheat.” The Combine does a lot of shaking to separate the chaff from the wheat. The kernel is saved: That’s where the life is. Maybe sometimes it’s pride that has to be shaken out; Maybe some of our own agenda has to be shaken out; or self righteousness; or self pity. He has prayed for us that our faith wouldn’t fail during the process. He wants us to make it through! Job said, “But He knoweth the way that I take; When he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.”
Since Marge Major’s passing, we are now short of 2 sister workers, with no one yet to fill the need; so it looks like we now will be combining some of the fields. It seems best that Lincoln will now be a part of the Omaha field; Kearney and Broken Bow will be a part of the York – Grand Island field; and McCook and North Platte will be a part of the Kimball Bird City Field. Columbus will go back to the Valentine – Norfolk field Marleah will be with Julie in the Kimball North Platte, Bird City field, and Sarah with Darla in SE KS.
Sarah and Marleah are helping out at Elizabeth CO preps this week and will then be there for the first convention. Jon, Dale, Martha and Heidi are in Riverton this week; Julie, Christina and Lara are at Chugwater; Roy, Lyle Dena & Tanya will be at Hermosa for Conv. next week.
In July, Andy and Darla are to go to some of the conventions in Canada. Dale is going back to NM to help with the preps and Conv at Mountainair NM, so Jon will be with Richard during that time while Andy is gone.
Our whole staff did attend a child abuse seminar held in the Western Nebraska Community College and were made aware of some of the laws and services that are provided. We have appreciated the professional help from those who are familiar with, and deal with these matters everyday. Some of those resources will be printed below if any would like to look into them.
We also would suggest that elders, (or anyone else) would also take the online Ministry safe course. There are a lot of helpful tips there that can make us aware of how to deal with this problem. This is the same course we workers have been taking for the past 10 years or more.
Here is a link to that:
https://ministrysafe.com/training-saat/
We all have a fear of creating more policies to deal with these things; I believe we all know these actions are so wrong already. There are plenty of Bible verses written that can say it far better. For example: 1 Thessalonians 4:3 “For this is the Will of God, even your sanctification, that ye abstain from fornication.” In plain English, fornication is anything sexual outside of marriage. And then in 1 Thessalonians 5:22 “Abstain from all appearance of evil.” I believe we all just need integrity, integrity, integrity.
Romans 8:13-14 “For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.”
We do believe there should be no tolerance for CSA (Child Sexual Abuse) or Sexual assault in this Fellowship. Matthew 18:6 “But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.” To me that use of ‘offend’ means to do something that would destroy their faith. I can understand totally if someone you trust to be a servant of God, would do something of that nature, it can easily destroy faith. If we don’t believe that verse we really shouldn’t be in this ministry. And Romans 12:19 “Vengeance is mine, I will repay sayeth the Lord.” It should be enough to make anyone behave.
We are very sorry that in the past, too often the victims were not believed and things were not taken care of as they should have been, I feel there a is different environment now and victims are being heard. We are glad laws are in place for all of this sort of thing in our country’s government. In Nebraska everyone is a mandatory reporter for abuse to a minor. In Kansas not everyone is mandatory, but anybody can. We want to comply with the law in every way we can. We have been told, and we know, we are not investigators; So please just take it to the Law.
1 Timothy 1:9 “But we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully; Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, for whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine…”
Now, if it is just a boundary issue and not criminal, Matthew 18:15 is the answer. “Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican.”
Even if it is a worker, we should not be above taking correction from anyone; we are guests in your homes. Now some people have different boundaries than others; Please always feel very free to share them to anyone who is a guest at your house. It doesn’t matter who!
There are a number of you who have said you do not want to receive the emails that contain some of the recent allegations, however, some who have been victims do. I don’t have a list of who wants to know and who doesn’t. I will just add this link to a page that contains them. If you wish to, you can click on it and it should take you to it; Or else you can just delete it. THANKS.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/11_9EKjX-FJZA_XvrQRXu5VQlgbddOFTYShcr1ogdmxE/edit?usp=sharing
Sincerely and with care
The KS NE Staff
Nebraska Child Abuse/Neglect / Elder Abuse Hotline: 800-652-1999
Nebraska Family Helpline: 888-866-8660
Kansas Child Abuse/Neglect / Elder Abuse Hotline 800-922-5330
Kansas guide to reporting: http://www.dcf.ks.gov/services/pps/documents/guidetoreportingabuseandneglect.pdf
RAINN (Rape, Abuse, Incest National Network) Hotline: 800-656-4673
National Domestic Violence Hotline: 800-799-7233
NetSmartz: resource developed by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to support healthy and safe boundaries and behavior with electronics/the internet https://www.missingkids.org/netsmartz/home
Culture Reframed Parents’ Program: building resilience and resistance to hypersexualized media and pornography http://www.parents.culturereframed.org/tech-guide
Circle of Security parenting education and support http://www.circleofsecurityinternational.com
Contact information:
Shelley Thomas, Forensic Interviewer/MDT Coordinator at CAPstone Child Advocacy Center, Gering, Nebraska ptinterviewer@capstonenebraska.com
Detective Brandi Brunz bbrunz@scottsbluff.org
Children and Family Services Supervisor Caroline Teeple Caroline.Teeple@nebraska.gov
A resource from Darkness2Light: https://www.d2l.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/FINAL_D2L_5-STEPS-BOOKLET.pdf
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What exactly is covered by “just a boundary issue, not criminal”?! Plenty of abuse has been covered by this assumption, and many an indiscretion. I don’t think the workers are able to discern what is “Just” an issue or not, and the overseers certainly aren’t the ones to approach with any sort of problem. The police and/or Advocates for the Truth, however, seem a good place to start.
He is not talking about things that are illegal. Here is his sentence. “Now, if it is just a boundary issue and not criminal,”
Are you going to report to the police if a brother worker puts his hand on an adult woman’s thigh while sitting next to her? No! But you should definitely tell him to get his hands off, and you should tell the overseer.
If it is criminal, call the police!
What he wrote is extremely clear!
Which overseer would that be? Seems like overseers have been a big part of the problem. As for an unwanted thigh touch from a worker, please see the definition of battery. I am really not sure why you have responded as you have, when there are many accounts now of both sister workers and friends being touched inappropriately (or not criminally by your standards it seems) by workers. And in most cases, their pleas for help have been laughed off by, that’s right, overseers.
If a brother worker put his hand on my or my childs thigh, he would have to answer to my husband and he would wish he was answering to the law instead!!
Look, I just gave that example, but what I am saying is that these things need to be nipped in the bud! Don’t let him invade your boundaries without speaking up! If he just leans close and complements you or texts you or any number of things that on first report you would’t take to the police, but they are still a violation of boundaries. You decide that, not the overseers. You decide to report that brother to the overseer. If they don’t do anything, then you speak to others. Let your husband, father, brother, elder, friend know. Don’t let that brother push boundaries. And if he keeps doing it, then you go to the police.
The young brother in MT that was texting inappropriately should have been stopped with his first inappropriate text.
These things might not be illegal, but like Richard said, they are pushing boundaries and need reported within us, if they are things that the police aren’t going to deem illegal
Kim, two things. 1. If it was your child, he should answer to the law. 2. Yes, telling your husband is probably the very first step! And maybe the last one needed!
Gasser states that “I believe we all just need integrity, integrity, integrity” and “to me that use of ‘offend’ means to do something that would destroy their faith” and “if someone you trust to be a servant of God, would do something of that nature, it can easily destroy faith and if we don’t believe that verse we really shouldn’t be in this ministry”. Someone in Nebraska or Kansas needs to tell Gasser to read the account of Micheala Kleeb Hellevang that was just posted on Expressions by Ex 2x2s regarding Jeff Thayer, Jim Price and Barry Barkley. Gasser then needs to walk these two snakes out. If not, he needs to step down and go back to his mother’s place in Wisconsin. After all, it sounds like this Nebraska family was greatly offended by a “servant of God” (Barkley and Price).
Max. How to topple people like Barkley, Price, Hoffman, and Shultz, that is the question. Richard can’t do it himself, so he is working on his sphere of influence. It wouldn’t help his staff or those states for him to try to do that on his own, but maybe some of these sensible brothers can eventually get together, but they are trying to do something where they are. Why bash him for that? Have patience. Things are happening. The other will happen, too. But not by one brother and not overnight.
You don’t tell someone that is helping feed the homeless in their town that if they don’t feed all of the hungry in Africa, then what they are doing locally doesn’t matter. Yes, it matters!
Where is this Expressions thing?
The Expressions site is at ex2x2.info. The Micheala Kleeb Hellevang account is listed on the left side of the page. Very reputable site and well vetted.
We received an email yesterday from Greg , to the mid-Atlantic states saying we needed to reply YES if we wanted to continue receiving CSA/SA information from the workers. Just like this letter you can opt out. So elders can opt out I’m guessing ??!!
Those that keep their head in the sand are no help and enablers. Ray Hoffman and other “big guys “ where are you? The last communication I saw was dated from April but published on Wings in June. Business as usual, I suppose, hoping this all blows over and folks just opt out of communications about CSA/SA.
Sounds and reads very clearly to me. Very well said, Richard.
I hope all read it carefully, understand it and implement. Thanks