Project Hope Podcast
Jennifer French
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Ep. 31: Deb Donner (P3) on Growing Up in The Wesleyan Community Led By Lou Hillendahl.
In 1974, at twelve years old, Deb Donner’s mother joined what she thought was loving, trusting, close-knit Christian Fellowship, committed to helping anyone in need called, The Ingleside United Methodist Church. They called themselves The Fellowship, and they were pastored by a man named Lou Hillendahl who touted an ‘inner healing ministry’ that 'helped hundreds of people with all kinds of problems'. TW: adult & child abuse & sexual abuse Lou infused his version of biblical teachings with pseudo-psycho beliefs, constantly creating new “therapies” to “deal with the personal, family and sexual” problems he identified within his parishioners. In 1976, Lou began teaching that “sex is a myth in our culture” and developed bizarre therapies to prove his theory. At 14, against Deb’s will, she was involved in several of the therapies. Knowing she wasn’t supposed to talk about what she had experienced, she also knew it wasn’t right, and told someone. The media got hold of the information and started bombarding Lou for interviews. When the church found out, they decided to take action and hold him accountable. On March 21, 1977, Lou submitted his resignation to the Methodist church to avoid a heresy trial. Lou and several of his devoted followers decided to create their own community, and eventually purchased a 58-acre plot of land on Vashon Island in Washington State where they lived in big green army tents for years while the community built homes, and a couple buildings. They called themselves The Wesleyan Community, officially called, The Wesleyan Christian Community Church and Retreat Center. Deb shares the story of her time in Ingleside and on Vashon Island until she eventually escaped in February of 1981, when she was 19 years old. Follow Deb on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/letstalkcults/ To find out more about #igotout, please visit: https://www.igotout.org/ Jennifer is a mental health counselor located in the Los Angeles area, using Internal Family Systems (IFS) as the primary modality of psychotherapy that she uses with clients. Jennifer will graduate with her second Masters degree in 2021 in the Psychology of Coercive Control. She works both across the US and internationally with those seeking insight and healing. For more information, please visit her website, Jennifer-French.com. Follow Jennifer on social media at: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jennifermonica.holcomb Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jennifer.french.jfh/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCr6Ufd0I7My6dumbTpQwn8A/playlists If you would like to be on the Project Hope Podcast or have any inquiries regarding the show, please email, projecthopepodcast@jennifer-french.com.
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