by moman 26 Replies latest jw friends
Another one of God's wonderous creatures has taken her life, another J.W. sucide, how sad!
There will be those (mostly JW's) that say the Borg had nothing to do with it & they may be right, but I doubt it.
Her name, Leah Turnbull, formaly Leah Malik, of Omaha Nebraska, anyone know her?
Hey-
I live west of Lincoln, NE in Seward. I never knew Leah. If you would like to talk some more just email me at [email protected]
Simon, this is for you too, since at the end I make a suggestion to you.
Mulan posted a Washington state JW suicide about a week ago. Now Nebraska. And for each that we learn about how many do we not learn of? 1 other, 10 others, 100 others???
The suicides rate among JWs is either climbing dramatically this year or else being reported far more as we are becoming more open about the ongoing tragedy. It needs talked about or it'll only get worse. The WTS is really pressuring the rank-and-file JWs, thinking this will bring on Armageddon and paradise. Thou must attend every painfully long meeting and then more. Wait on us as we allow the pedophiles to rape your kids and keep your mouth shut about it.
Instead of bringing on spiritual paradise it is bringing murder. They say, too bad, they can only blame themselves if they suicide. We must uphold Jehovah's standards. Jehovah Himself does not want this bloodshed, though. WTS, you are bloodguilty apostates.
Condolences to her surviving loved ones. I think we need to talk this serial tragedy some more and let the public and those still JWs know about it. Maybe I can draw together some information on it and post it here. But then it would be lost as new threads were added. Maybe Simon needs to establish a new lasting side-board for listing suicides and giving information on how to keep it from happening, helping the survivors and the like.
What do you say, readers? Simon??
nance, the hard-driving publishing Co. run by the Borg will keep taking its toll on the minds of their atomatons.
I agree, lets get this going before more die on their,"altar of maddness"!
STARING AT THE REAL TRUTH
ABOUT SUICIDE AMONG
JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES:
We can not say being a JW is absolutely why these people died but we definitely can and do say that they are JW-related suicides. See what you think!
If preferred, in any follow-up emails with additional information on this subject, simply put "JW SUICIDE" in the heading and, if the name needs to be withheld, say something like "name withheld" or "male JW about 25 and was ministerial servant." There is no desire to cause further pain for surviving family members but to take kindly action to slow if not fully counter the suicides among JWs and those the JW leaders have persecuted into exiting. What follow are only a few of the suicides but if you will email ones that are missing ([email protected]), I or a friend will put them in too. Besides these, many of us would include the countless JWs who suicided by not taking emergency transfusions of blood.
This has no suicide listed for outside the USA, Australia and Canada although there must be many. If you know of some, please inform us. States here are ARIZONA, CALIFORNIA, FLORIDA, KANSAS, MICHIGAN, MISSOURI, NEW YORK, NORTH CAROLINA, OREGON, RHODE ISLAND, TEXAS. If Simon, the board moderator here, feels actual names should not be given here then I okay it for him to put *** marks in their places, otherwise we can suppose he doesn't mind either. I know that this list does not have the one Mulan wrote of but will put it in later.
ARIZONA:
"I know personaly of three suicides.1) Douglas Grimm, (1995 approx), put a charcoal grill in hiz car in some lonely parking lot in Arizona, found hiz body a few daz later.Left a wife & children." (moman)
CALIFORNIA:
"In Whittier, California. A brother in his 20's named John. Took an overdose of something-or-other and died. Was found by his fiance. This was last year. Was very depressed prior to this and on anti-depressants. Congregation coverd it up but it leaked out." (bluesapphire http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/forum/thread.asp?id=15151&page=2&site=3)
"Also a DF'd woman in CA. About 1 yr ago. I know her brother." (SixOfNine http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/forum/thread.asp?id=15151&page=2&site=3)
FLORIDA:
" John Hopkins---around 1989 Boynton Beach Fla. Recently had left Bethel and returned home with a uncurable disease. bone cancer or lukemia. Stopped to visit his estranged non witness dad at his shop. "Somehow" managed to "fall" under the trailer tires of a passing Semi- as he stepped off into the street. The windage was right cause he fell in the righ spot. Both axles on the trailer rolled square over him. Locals' did not want to discuss the event openly, however the "S" word did pop up more than once. Florida has a "sunshine law". The coroners' records should be available.Thats in Palm Beach County"(hillbilly http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/forum/thread.asp?id=15151&page=2&site=3)
KANSAS:
"And the second JW to kill himself happened at Paola, Kansas, July or August 2001, on a Sunday. His wife called the police when he walked out of the house with a gun. They used a helocopter to search for him. The moment the police located him, they got there just as he was blowing his head off. But he was not dead just yet, so they rushed him off to the hospital. He died at the hospital shortly after getting there. He left behind a wife and a daughter." (tammie)
MICHIGAN:
Detroit: Emailed With Name Withheld As Asked) "I know of quite a few suicides. Some may not be directly related to WT, but all of these folks were JW's. All of these occurred in Michigan (the Detroit area) 1) Young Brother (22 yrs old) adopted by JW's committed suicide by hanging himself. 2) Brother approximatley 50 years old (was DF'd at the time) killed himself. He and his wife had divorced. They had one adult daughter. 3) Middle aged woman walked out into the water and drowned. It was said she could not take it any longer as her last child had been DF'd and could no longer talk to her. 4) Middle aged man (murder/suicide) killed wife, kids, then himself. I believe he had been recently DF'd when it happened."
Emailed (Name Withheld As Asked) "I was raised as a witness and was disfellowshipped in 1991 when I was 21 years old. In retrospect I remember the suicide of 3 people in the different congregations that I attended. I used to work with a man that is still a witness. 3 years ago he walked into his apartment to find his roommate had committed suicide. It was later revealed that his roommate was to be disfellowshipped the following Thursday.. The is a strong correlation between suicide and being DFed. When I was disfellowshipped I was suicidal. Although I never attempted any harm to myself I did struggle with the feelings and thoughts."
MISSOURI:
Camdenton. Suicide by unnamed man in 2001 who lay on railroad track.
Independence. Noland Congregation suicide of Vonda (Hayes) James wife of Richard James who was disfellowshipped possibly because too vocal in condemning the elders' interference as it was noted she had been spoken to by the elders shortly before the suicide. Word was later put out that she had accidentally self medicated and so it wasn't really a suicide. What do you think?
Joplin:
"I knew of 2 different JW's that committed suicide. I can't remeber the names right off. The first one was 6 years ago this comming March. This one happen in Joplin Missouri. We was having our circuit assembly. The JW that did it waited till after his 6 year old son had his part on the program. Told his son good by, and left. Later that day his wife came home to discover her husband had hung himself in the garage. He was about 35 at the time, left behind a wife and 2 young children. Oh yes he was an elder." (tammie)
NEBRASKA:
"Another one of God's wonderous creatures has taken her life, another J.W. sucide, how sad! There will be those (mostly JW's) that say the Borg had nothing to do with it & they may be right, but I doubt it. Her name, Leah Turnbull, formaly Leah Malik, of Omaha Nebraska, anyone know her?" (July 7, 2002; jehovahs-witness.com)
"Jim Medici,(1975 approx), lived in Omaha, drove to Colorado,sat in motel room, tub full of water, cut hiz wrists & lit charcoal grill, man did he want to die! He left a wife & 2 small children." (moman)
NEW YORK:
A note from "Shelby" says this. About 9:30 on Friday Oct. 31 1973, at the Bethel complex of building housing the Watchtower Bible & Tract Society of Jehovah's Witneses recovered the body of Bethelite James Olsen who had suicided: http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/forum/thread.asp?id=23826&site=3
Randy Watters of freeminds.org has noted that Richard Wheelock lept to his death at Bethel, Thomas Hagen suicided not long after leaving Bethel, and more that a few others have suicided there or immediately after leaving there.
Some at Bethel have reported seeing what may be an electonic visual projection made to resemble "a demon" and among various cults usage is made of such projections, FM transmitted sounds and voices, audial survelliance via infinity mikes and hook switch by-pass of telephones even when hung on receivers http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/forum/thread.asp?id=24274&site=3#306249
NORTH CAROLINA:
Wadsworth:
Devon Brannan in his early 30's died 1986 by suicide after being disfellowshipped.
OREGON:
Brookings: Elsie Wilson (61) died 1992 by suicide after being disfellowshipped for tobacco use.
Keizer:
Ernie Miranda in his early 30s died in 1989 or 1990 of suicide with gunshot wound to head.
McMinnville:
March 2002 multiple murder/suicide of the whole Robert Bryant family after JW Elders in California had disfellowshipped Robert for dissenting on Bible views; special note: Rick Ross (rickross.com) provides details on cooperation between area cult groups including Scientologists and Fundamentalists.
Redmond:
Judy Kohler who was in her 40s died, to the best of recollection, sometime during 1983-88 from suicide. Special note: Mcminnville has also had cooperation between Scientologists and Fundamentalists (rickross.com)
RHODE ISLAND:
"I know of one JW who committed suicide. His name was Spiro Pipper and it was back in....1975 or 1976. I belive he was living in Florida at the time. He had closed his carpet cleaning business here in Rhode Island and moved. He left behind a wife and one daughter. Someone out here on the board perhaps knew him after he moved from Rhode Island and possibly can give you more info. peace, somebody"
TEXAS:
Boerne:
"Oops. More came to mind. I remember a sister in Boerne, Texas, who doused herself with gasoline and set herself on fire. Sorry no names or dates." (MegaDude)
Dallas:
"I'm aware of a 40ish brother in the Dallas TX area who commited suicide 5 yrs ago or so. I can come up with a name, but probably not to many other specifics. Let me know if you need me to try for more info." (SixOfNine http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/forum/thread.asp?id=15151&page=2&site=3)
Grapevine
"Charter Hospital in Grapevine, Texas (close to Ft. Worth) had an in-patient psychiatric facility program exclusively for JWs. I know of at least one female JW, young, kids, married, who hung herself while staying there. There was a lawsuit over it." (MegaDude)
San Antonio:
"An elderly sister at Castle Hills Congregation in San Antonio, Texas, who carbon minoxided herself with a running car in a closed garage. Trudy was her first name. She was German, and had survived the concentration camps as a young girl. She killed herself about 12 years ago approximately." (MegaDude)
"Baker, (1998 approx.) Ft. worth, Tx., elder, blew hiz brains out!" (moman)
WASHINGTON (STATE)"I'm not sure of the date, though sometime between November 1998 and April 1999. A young girl, Jessica, of the Lake Forest Park Congregation in Washington State(Lynnwood, Brier, Mountlake Terrace, not sure what city she lived in), committed suicide. I believe she was 16, though can't gaurantee the age. Although I hadn't attended meetings in years, I went to her funeral as she was one of the few people who befriended me while others ignored." (Saltiest http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/forum/thread.asp?id=15151&page=2&site=3)
Woodinville:
A former JW Ministerial Servant and pioneer wrapped a rope around his neck, then two light posts in the kingdom hall parking lot, go in his, accelerated and his body was yanked out of the car with him lying strangled. This was verified by Nathan Natas who spoke with the Snohomish County police department although it was not in newspapers. Sabine wrote that he had been disfellowshipped several years before and was depressed that no one would talk to him because of it. She says he stood as unusually kind and humble in the kingdom which was otherwise filled with arrogant Elders and Ministerial Servants, and "as some of you may know, this is the same kingdom hall we attended before our daughter committed suicide four years ago." http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/forum/thread.asp?id=30238&site=3
AUSTRALIA
"hmmm. didnt read page one but do I gather you are interested in data about Witness suicides? I got two for ya from my own congregation. Linton Mewburn in 1976, 19 years old,ex pioneer. Quit meetings, fell into drink,blew his brains out. Bayswater cong, Melbourne. Lawrence Purkiss, this was after I had left the org, about 30 at the time, former pioneer,unmarried. Blew his brains out in his car listening to Black Sabbath music.Ferntree gully cong, Melbourne. 2 out of 20 young men in the cong. not a bad rate huh?" http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/forum/post.asp?id=415579&method=edit&site=3
CANADA
Toronto:
Unnamed JW male who probably had a family suicided in Toronto according to a post by Moxy on July 7, 2002.
Guelph, ONTARIO
Tim Jemen or Yemen an elder in Central Congregation, in Guelph, Ontario, Canada commited suicide around 1995.
http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/forum/post.asp?id=415579&method=edit&site=3
DO YOU KNOW MORE? A major source beside those noted above is ajwrb.org.
FEEL FREE TO MAKE, MAIL, EMAIL AND LEAVE COPIES OF THIS TO HELP SAVE LIVES!
Edited by - nancee park on 7 July 2002 20:42:34
I would think, knowing Simon,...he would want more information regarding a JW suicide than has been provided here. I know that JW suicides happen...but to "highlight" a JW suicide (on Simon's point of view) (I am assuming here, would be a dangerous thing if the "suicide" was not backed up by a "note" that states it was because of being a JW)
I agree that we need to "advertise, advertise, advertise" when it is right...but we cannot advertise when we do not know the "background" of why it happened.
All sorts of people, yes JW's included, suicide for very personal reasons. Just because a person is a JW, does not mean that being a JW is the reason why they suicided.
Judy Kohler in her 40s died during 1983-88 from suicide
HUH?
I can't help but think that if these Witness found places like JW.com some would be alive today. Yes, there is a lot of bickering and some of us are shunned even here, but there is more compassion and understanding here then can be found in any hall.
To the people who held up JW.com or silent lamb signs at the conventions, thank you, you may have saved a life.
Nobody says being a JW was the only cause. We said these are JW-related suicides. But go ahead and post more if you have something actually constructive to say.
Cassaline, the person did not recall the exact year when Judy Kohler died but that it was sometime during that time span.
