What people are saying:

• Secular Education Association: We do not make excuses for adults who harm children.

  And we are not going to tolerate “but public school teachers…” as a deflection.

  Yes, teachers who abuse students should be investigated, prosecuted, and removed from any position involving children.

  But SEA focuses on outside religious programs being given access to public school students during the school day. That is the issue here.

  And let’s not start comparing institutions unless you really want to talk about clergy abuse.

  As always, we reserve the right to hide or delete any comment for any reason.

  But please, keep commenting.

  It helps our reach.

  • Facebook User: Secular Education Association so what needs to be done to prevent this from happening again and again? With out eliminating the program? What could have prevented this are they not being vetted the same as school teachers? My children have never participated in this program so I have no information about the program.
  • Secular Education Association: Facebook User the program needs to be eliminated. It has no business in public schools period. It is a safety risk all around. They are NOT vetted the same as public school teachers and employees. There’s no fingerprinting. No BCI/FBI check. No rap back system. No layers of protections that we spend billions on a year as a country,
  • Facebook User: Facebook User I agree with SEA this program should be eliminated. All that aside, If they insist on having it available the VERY least they can do is have ALL the same State and local Vetting process, fingerprints, etc. That our School officials do.
  • Facebook User: Facebook User thank you that’s what I was looking for. I find it odd that this isn’t mandated. You can’t even go on field trips with students with out fingerprints at the minimum. I also could go down a rabbit hole with this and all areas that don’t require back/fbi checks. Youth sports is huge employers who employee children who employee sex offenders on the registry just absolutely won’t.
  • Facebook User: Well, you could start by not letting men participate as teachers in those programs you could start with that!
• Facebook User: So do guys also call out public school teachers? You guys are being anti-religion because we all know that if they raised the standards for their background check that you guys would still attack them.
  • Secular Education Association: Facebook User for preying on school children to recruit to their religion? Yes. We would still call that out. Public school teachers aren’t our focus. But keep commenting. It helps our reach.
• Facebook User: This is the reason Lifewise is not appropriate during public school day. I WOULD NEVER LET MY CHILD BE TAKEN OFFSITE FOR INDOCTRINATION. Just saying. I have never supported this creepy organization. Guess whom promoted them and is heavily involved? Our very own Dave Yost. And let’s not forget Jim Tressel on the board
  • Secular Education Association: Facebook User YEP. 👏🏻 let’s not forget!
  • Facebook User: Facebook User if I’m not mistaken the founder is a former Tressel player. Joel Penton.
  • Secular Education Association: Facebook User correct ✅
• Facebook User: What is this number 3 in this last year in this state alone??
• Facebook User: Nobody wants to hear it but these “religious” organizations and ppl are the absolute worst! Time and time again this happens. Of course the worst of the worst seek these kinds of places out- to prey on the trusting and vulnerable. And as a society everyones brow beat and berated for daring to even question or mention that a “Christian” or whatever might not actually be a good freaking person. Lots of covering up and excuses made – “were all sinners” “just pray for them” and on and on.
  • Secular Education Association: Facebook User YES. All of this.
  • Facebook User: Secular Education Association have you seen the Caleb Flynn murder case? He was affiliated with and part of the staff at CLC (church in Vandalia Ohio) and his wife (whom he murdered) was a teacher at Lifewise?
• Facebook User: Facebook User
  • Facebook User: Facebook User yikes! 😳
• Facebook User: program seems very weird!! They want to take your kids out of the school buildings walk to a church near by for bible study No
• Facebook User: This is exactly why we told our son no to this
• Facebook User: Lifewise needs shut down. Period.
• Facebook User: Thank goodness you didn’t trust Lifewise Facebook User and send one of the kids. 🤮
• Facebook User: So now we’re up to 3 people who has molested children and the 1 dude who killed his wife and all through a church…. ok ill put all my peices together
• Facebook User: Holy crap another one
• Facebook User: Christian propaganda programs have no business being associated in any way with public schools. No release time, no their so called “teachers” in the schools buildings, or allowing students to leave with their staff.
• Facebook User: I was sitting in the pickup line at a school in Miami County and watched a few kids come out and get in the van. It blew my mind that they were allowed to leave campus!!!
• Facebook User: Why are the local news stations not mentioning the Lifewise Academy connection? They say he worked in positions (plural) where he had authority over children, but then only mention Dayton Children’s.
  • Secular Education Association: Facebook User for the same reason that many of the local news stations ignored us or cherry picked our quotes for YEARS when Lifewise was reported on in any capacity.

    Entanglement. Money. Editor connections. Having no integrity. Take your pick. 🤷‍♀️

  • Facebook User: Facebook User it wasn’t obvious he worked there. His linked in mentions working with kids but not Lifewise.
• Facebook User: His page- I worry about all those kids in his pictures!
  • Facebook User: Facebook Userhis family was also very involved at Medway church :/
• Facebook User: Facebook User you see this?! 🤮😡
  • Facebook User: OMFG.
• Facebook User: I should’ve known you guys would be all over this as I just tagged you in a local post — thank you for continuing to highlight these issues.
• Facebook User: I think that’s 3 from that Lifewise
  • Facebook User: Facebook User 4
• Facebook User: This is getting to be too common.
• Facebook User: This right here is all the reason i would not let my children leave public school on a life wise bus with some of these nuts in the association!
  • Facebook User: Facebook User it can happen in public schools as well!! It has happened in public schools!! If he did not have a history or public record of abuse before now then how was lifewise supposed to know? Or Dayton children’s? Or anywhere else he worked? The blame is solely on him!! Until there is harsher punishments for abuse of children these sickos will keep doing it!!
  • Facebook User: Facebook User abuse like this happens behind the guise of “good Christian values” because too many people are actually Christian nationalists cosplaying as Christians.

    Abuse can happen anywhere. Thats true. But for some reason religious institutions continue to give abusers, pedophiles, rapists and the like unfettered access to children….and that’s the issue being discussed here.

  • Facebook User: Facebook User I think that’s a false statement. Every church I’ve been involved with does background checks on teachers just like other schools. And most larger churches make it a point to have at least two adults in a room. Can something still happen? Sadly, yes. However the same is true anywhere. To say that churches give “unfettered access to children” is a gross libelous misstatement.
  • Facebook User: Facebook User it isn’t a false statement. Maybe bother to do some research before purporting your feelings as facts.

    Lifewise doesn’t do FBI nor BCI checks. MAJOR RED FLAG!!!! Many religious orgs, churches/church programs, etc don’t have the same requirements as other programs, nor are extensive background checks often mandated as they should be. They simply allow many of the folks they deem as people with “good Christian values” to have unfettered access to children, as I said.

    Too many people manipulate the blind trust of Christians (or in many instances Christian nationalists) to engage in insidious behavior and often times cause irreversible trauma in the children they hurt. You refusing to acknowledge what actually is happening is a personal choice. But being willfully ignorant is exactly how innocent children are harmed.

  • Facebook User: Facebook User maybe re-read my post. I don’t refuse to acknowledge anything. What I said is that the churches I’ve been involved in do background checks, and larger churches try to keep multiple adults in the room. Those are facts. I don’t know what Lifewise does, nor did I claim they do anything specific.
  • Facebook User: Facebook User The difference is We HAVE to send our Children to school We don’t HAVE to have an Entity that has NO State vetting or oversight. Yes sometimes unfortunately people slip through the Cracks even with State vetting and Oversight but do we have to invite an entity in that doesn’t even adhere to the same vetting policies, transparency and laws our own School officials are expected to adhere to?
  • Facebook User: Facebook User there are other options to sending your children to a physical school if that is something you are able to do. We absolutely do not have to invite those entities into our schools but, if they are, they should 100% have to adhere to the same standards as the school itself. I never said they shouldn’t.
• Facebook User: Another one? Is this two in one week?
  • Secular Education Association: Facebook User yes, it’s two in one week.
  • Facebook User: That is what I was thinking. But wasn’t sure.
  • Facebook User: Facebook UserI think it may be three
  • Facebook User: Secular Education Association two? Where was the other one?
  • Secular Education Association: Facebook User https://www.facebook.com/share/v/18sMZxS8bW/?mibextid=wwXIfr
  • Facebook User: Facebook User Wait where was the other one?
  • Facebook User: Facebook User yes in Muskingum county
• Facebook User: Holycross was previously employed in positions in which he would have had authority over minors,” said Sheriff Dave Duchak. “Detectives suspect there may be other victims and are requesting the public’s assistance.”

  Additional details about Holycross’ previous employment were not immediately available.

  Anyone with information should contact Detective Sgt. Todd Cooper at 937-440-3986 or tcooper@miamicountyohio.gov.

  People can leave tips anonymously at http://www.miamicountyohio.gov/sheriff.

  • Facebook User: Facebook User GROSS🤢🤬
• Facebook User: Facebook User 🙃