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	Clergy Abuse Victims Put Ad in Milwaukee Newspaper Reminding Others of Restitution Deadline The Republic December 28, 2011 http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/66492683e1344e94aadfb8cf34043c9f/WI--Milwaukee-Archdiocese-Bankruptcy/ MILWAUKEE — Victims of clergy sex abuse and a group of priests are urging other Milwaukee area victims through a newspaper ad to file for restitution in federal bankruptcy court before a Feb. 1 deadline. The full-page ad in Tuesday's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel said the alliance of victims and priests declared their "unqualified support to every victim/survivor." "We hold ourselves and our institution fully accountable for any action or inaction that may have allowed these crimes to occur, the offender to go unpunished, and other children to be harmed. We are truly sorry that this happened to you," they said. The Archdiocese of Milwaukee filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January and said it has less than $10 million available to pay claims. As of late November, about 100 people had filed claims. Julie Wolf, communications director for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, said the archdiocese is starting the second round of a national advertising campaign aimed at reminding people who have been abused by clergy in the archdiocese to come forward. The campaign includes print advertisements that ran a few months ago in national publications such as the New York Times and USA Today. Four priests have been meeting quietly for about a year with victims, independent of the archdiocese. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports (http://bit.ly/tfOlf0 ) the meetings started after Father James Connell approached Peter Isely, the Midwest director for the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, after a news conference. Isely said the idea for the alliance was inspired by the Gospel. "In the Christian story, which I believe in and have faith in, the truth may seem buried and dead, but there's always a way the truth will come back to life," he said at a news conference Tuesday. "I've always had a deep conviction that survivors and priests of integrity can turn the corner on the sexual abuse crisis. It's not going to be the bishops who do it." Connell said that as the priests and victims listened to one another what emerged was "a sense of hope. ... This hope is something to be kept alive." Wolf said it's a good thing that the priests are reaching out to victims. "But it's also important to note that priests throughout the archdiocese have been doing this for a very long time through their own ministries and their own parishes," she said. Wolf added that Archbishop Jerome Listecki "has been very visible in reaching out to victims."
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