***Sam, thank you for your hard work, selfless service, dedication to protect our children. I don’t know if this counts but I believe my bishop could have stopped the sexual abuse I endured from a brother and two cousins. My abuse was the span of age 4-10. My baptism interview is where I thought I…
Dear Mr. Young, March 22, 2018 I only recently discovered your work yesterday—your website, and stories of LDS children abused by ecclesiastical interviews. I glanced briefly at the headers for some of the stories on your web site, and knew I had to submit a story. I apologize for the length of the narrative, but…
I am a very active member of the LDS church. I served as a young women’s leader. During the time I served, a couple of the young women I had stewardship over, had messed up but went into Bishop ______ to clear up their mistakes. These beautiful young women went in willingly and sought forgiveness.…
My father physically/sexually abused, neglected, and abandoned his children, with no remorse. When this was brought to the attention of multiple bishops and stake presidents, his vehement denial was all they needed to brush us off. He continued to go to the temple with his recommend and hold callings in his ward… now he is…
I was molested by my stepdad in 1988 when I was 8 years old, told my family to get help with no avail. The abuse began to occur again in 1994-95 which included watching me bathe and change my clothes by holes drilled into the walls, doors and showers. I reported all of the abuse…
I went to my bishop as a teenager for help navigating trauma from childhood physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. He connected me to some resources and was an empathetic and curious listener– too curious, sometimes. We met a couple times a month for about year. He was always physically affectionate with me giving full body…
Beginning when I was 9 years old, I had an older brother that repeatedly tried to coerce me into playing sexual games with my 7 year old sister. I was too young to understand what was happening then, but many years later I learned that he had begun raping her. When I wouldn’t go as…
This is very difficult so I’ll make it short. I was damaged quite badly by the shame I felt for so called sins and transgressions. I feel like I was conditioned to talk about things of a sexual nature to older men which I feel made it easier for a predator to sink his teeth…
I was fortunate to have the leaders that I did, they always treated me with respect. However, I did suffer from self-loathing and unnecessary shame due to the culture of normal sexual exploration being seen as a sin second to murder. I hated myself for years even though I was a pretty “pure” teenager, and…
I was molested at a very young age by a family friend. Then, I was molested again by another family friend from the time I was 11 to around 15 years old. He would touch me everywhere and spy on me when I changed or bathed. He stripped me down one night while I was…