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	Sandwich Camp Reels after Abuse Claims By George Brennan Cape Cod times April 8, 2011 http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110408/NEWS/104080329 The day after a longtime employee shot himself at Camp Good News, some people questioned whether camp owners had been so swayed by their affection for Charles R. Devita that they failed to protect the children in their care. Devita, 43, committed suicide Wednesday, in a wooded location at the religious camp, according to the police. Earlier this week, the state police launched an investigation into allegations Devita had abused a 10-year-old boy 26 years ago while a camp counselor or assistant director, said Mitchell Garabedian, the attorney representing the now-grown man. On Thursday, two more alleged victims — one man and one woman — contacted the attorney, although both said they had been abused by someone other than Devita, Garabedian said. The day before, three people had called his office — two of them naming Devita as an alleged abuser, he said. Garabedian would not elaborate further on other alleged abusers. He said Wednesday he will now turn to a civil suit against the camp, still owned by the Willard family who founded it in 1935. Despite Devita's death, the police will continue to investigate allegations of abuse at the camp, Cape and Islands District Attorney Michael O'Keefe and Sandwich Police Chief Peter Wack said in a joint statement Wednesday. O'Keefe did not return calls Thursday and Wack referred all calls to the DA. Sandra Devita, Chuck Devita's mother, said from her Florida home she had warned camp officials that she believed her son was a pedophile. "I had suspicion," Sandra Devita said. "I couldn't put my finger on anything in particular, but it was the whole general pattern of behavior. I talked to the camp director, Faith (Willard). They kind of just blew it off." In a statement released Thursday by a spokeswoman, Willard said she only had one phone conversation with Sandra Devita and that was to have her son call home. "At no time was the issue of abuse raised by Mrs. Devita to Ms. Willard," the statement reads. In an email, the spokeswoman declined to answer questions about new allegations. The comments by Devita's mother are an indication that camp supervisors turned a blind eye toward abuse allegations, Garabedian said Thursday. "It's becoming apparent that supervisors knew of problems involving Chuck Devita yet may not have informed campers and their parents," he said. Chip Lewis, a former camp counselor, said he went to then camp director Faith Willard before going to the police with allegations that Devita had child pornography in 2002. Willard confronted Devita but left it to Lewis to ask about the pornography, he said. Instead of reprimanding Devita, Willard suggested they all pray, Lewis said. Devita was not charged in the pornography investigation but Sandwich school officials found the allegations credible enough that he was fired from a part-time job at the Sandwich Community School, a former school official told the Times. Earlier this week, Jane Brooks, the camp's current director, insisted Devita had been in possession of adult pornography and he "made a complete turnaround." In another newspaper, she referred to Lewis as "the devil." The "devil" comment speaks volumes about the character of camp leaders, Lewis said Thursday. "When they called me the devil, I thought it was a classic example of their logic and their inability to deal with things." The possibility that abuse allegations were covered up by camp officials is disturbing to Marie Newton of Weymouth, whose two children each went to the camp for nine years. Initially, she was upset for the staff at Camp Good News, but as allegations have emerged that camp directors ignored warning signs, her mood changed. "That infuriates me," said Newton, who contacted the Times on Thursday. Friends of Devita, who said he was a gifted cook and handyman, continued to stick by him Thursday. "The shock hasn't worn off," said the Rev. Robert Condon of Gateway Christian Center in Mashpee. "The Chuck we knew was above reproach and a servant." Denial is a common theme for people close to someone accused of molestation, David Clohessy, executive director of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, said Thursday. The Chicago-based group offers support across the country for victims of sexual abuse. "In the case of priests, almost without exception, when a priest is accused or suspected or suspended, we hear, 'It couldn't be Fr. Mike, he's so caring, so giving, so good with the kids,'" he said. People want to believe that their own judgments are solid, so they ignore warning signs, he said. "To rob a bank you need a gun and ski mask, to molest kids you need to be charming, charismatic, warm and loving," Clohessy said. "The very attributes that make us like and trust an adult are the attributes that enable adults to molest a child." Sandra Devita, who said she worked as a sexual abuse counselor in New York, said she was concerned her son had those attributes. "I'm talking about this because I'm hoping other people will learn from this and not try to cover things up," she said. Devita said she raised her son as a single mother in Flushing, N.Y.. He was sent to Camp Good News when he was 9 because camp leaders agreed to cut her a break on the fee, she said. He graduated from State University of New York-Plattsburgh with a degree in education and taught at a military school in New York for a couple of years before moving to the Cape to work at the camp, she said. The mother and son had a falling out 19 years ago, she said, and had had no contact since. His father, John, also lives in Florida. A woman who answered the phone at a number listed under his name hung up when a reporter identified himself. During the 1990s, Chuck Devita worked for six years as an activities coordinator at Riverview School in East Sandwich, a private school for students with language and learning disabilities. A spokeswoman for the school said Devita left on his own and there were never any allegations of sexual abuse. This week's events made some camp veterans rethink their experience. "It's hard to reconcile that this place that was idyllic for me could be a nightmare for others," said Mark Emery, a former camper and camp counselor at Camp Good News. "When you learn that people you trusted may have hurt children, it's disturbing." Emery, 36, who now lives in Atlanta, attended the camp from 1985 to 1991 and returned in 1994 as a counselor. He also contacted the Times on Thursday. He described Devita as a kind, friendly man. "He was a boating instructor when I was there and I helped teach sailing with him," Emery said. "I never thought anything untoward was happening." Contact: gbrennan@capecodonline.com
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