Jfk Victims: Religious Figure 'Could Do No Wrong'
The Wytv
[with video] It took the two former student-athletes at John F. Kennedy High School in Warren years to cope with trauma caused by their baseball coach, sports trainer and religion teacher who sexually abused them and nearly a dozen other students during the late 1980s.
It cost one his marriage and nearly cost the other his family. But the two men, who will not be identified because they are victims of sexual assault, said the culture surrounding religious institutions and authority figures led their parents to largely ignore their claims of abuse by the friar, Brother Stephen Baker, who taught at JFK from 1986-1991.
They, and nine others, reached a settlement with JFK, the Youngstown Diocese and T.O.R. Franciscans that totaled in the high-five figures for facing sexual abuse during their time at JFK. Criminal charges can only be filed in one case because the statute of limitations has passed in the 10 other cases.
Both men, who played baseball and football at JFK, said they treated the molestation at the time by joking with each other about Baker.
“Even our parents joked about it back then,” Victim No. 1 said. “Maybe our parents didn’t probe into it so much because the culture at the time was that it didn’t really happen to the extent (we) said or things were really that bad.”
“If we would have said this is what really happened, instead of joking, I think they would have probed further,” Victim No. 2 said.
Both men attended JFK from 1986 to 1990 and said they decided to talk about the abuse because they wanted to help anyone else who may have been abused by Baker, the head varsity baseball coach.
The men described Baker as an imposing man, who openly grabbed students’ buttocks in the hallway and in his classroom. The attorney for the men said he assaulted other students on trips to Virginia and Columbus.
As athletes, they would be called into his training room with no windows for massages that Baker claimed would either prevent or help heal sports injuries.
“No matter what happened to you, he would take you in a closed training room, where no one could see in and put you in a whirlpool and watch you or massage different areas, private areas,” Victim No. 1 said. “Everything originated from the groin. All injuries must originate from the groin.”
Some victims he fondled with therapeutic oils and others he digitally penetrated. After a while, Victim No. 2 said, some athletes learned to never report injuries. Victim No. 2 said they never explicitly told teachers or administrators.
“He had the tools of being a good manipulator,” Victim No. 1 said, “so I’m sure it would’ve worked out to where I was at fault.”
Victim No. 2 said he believed teachers overheard the students joking about Baker, but never took them seriously.
He said he never feared being kicked off sports teams if he reported being molested but felt he would be ostracized if he did.
“The culture at the time was that they could do no wrong,” Victim No. 1 said. “It was, here take our children and we know you’ll take care of them. I was certainly taught to respect them without saying much.”
The victims said it took time to understand how they felt about the situation. They said after being molested they felt embarrassment, anger and resentfulness. Later they felt they were at fault for being abused and weak for failing to stop the molestation.
Years later, Victim No. 1 said he contacted a local attorney about the abuse. He said the attorney declined to take on the case.
During the years both victims said they suffered from a variety of issues, including addiction, because they were unable to deal with the assaults.
Both said they eventually sought out counseling.
“Some people don’t realize how affected they are from this situation,” Victim No. 1 said. “I know it took me a long time to realize some of my behaviors were a direct result of dealing with this situation.”
Victim No. 1 said he remained Catholic throughout his life and continues to attend mass. He said he still believes in the concepts of the religion and blames the attacks entirely on Baker.
He said he would like a chance to talk to Baker.
“I just hope,” Victim No. 1 said, “some good comes of this, where someone says they’ll go get professional assistance and talk through their problems.”
|
.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.