Another Blast from the Past

Very interesting newspaper story published by the Akron Beacon Journal on 3/11/1992. This story shows a pattern of abuse and then hiding it that continues to this day. Reader of this blog will see similarities between this 1992 case and the ones that have been occurring at Victory Forge. Now don't you think that if this abusive and manipulative behaviour has been allegedly occurring for 17+ years, there has to be some truth in it?


Akron Beacon Journal (OH)
March 11, 1992
Section: METRO
Edition: 2 STAR
Page: D1

BRINKHAVEN KEPT QUIET STARK YOUTH HOME DIDN'T REPORT 16-YEAR-OLD SUMMIT GIRL'S ALLEGATIONS IN `86, AS REQUIRED BY OHIO LAW, WHEN SHE CHARGED SHE HAD SEX WITH FOUNDER'S SON-IN-LAW
DAVID KNOX, Beacon Journal staff writer

Stark County officials were unaware of complaints of sexual abuse brought nearly six years ago by a 16-year-old Summit County girl living at the Brinkhaven Homes for Youth because the homes' officials failed to alert authorities. Such notification is required by Ohio law.

The allegations were investigated by local police in August 1986, about two months after the girl left Brinkhaven and her relatives complained to Summit County Children Services, said Lawrence Township Police Chief Roy E. Mosely II.

The girl charged that she had sex with Alan Weierman, a Brinkhaven staff member, more than 30 times between August 1985 and June 1986, when she returned home, according to Lawrence Township police reports. Weierman is the son-in-law of Brinkhaven's founder, the Rev. William Brink, who is being investigated by a county grand jury because of allegations that he sexually abused two former residents. Weierman denied the allegations during the 1986 investigation. He could not be reached to comment Tuesday, in Fort Pierce, Fla., where he is director of Brinkhaven's home for unwanted children.

Mosely said his investigation found `sufficient probable cause' to prosecute Weierman, including a polygraph test given the girl and a calendar she kept of the alleged sexual encounters. However, no charges were filed because Massillon chief city prosecutor John Simpson indicated there was not enough evidence to corroborate the girl's allegations.

William Brink told police the charges were groundless, saying the girl admitted to fantasizing about Weierman in March, when she was questioned after talking to other residents, Mosely said. Brink also produced letters from residents stating the girl `had made the incident up.'

But another difficulty the investigation encountered was `the length of time that had elapsed' between the girl's departure from Brinkhaven and when police were called in, Mosely said in an Oct. 7, 1986, letter explaining to Summit County Children Services officials why the prosecutor was not filing charges.

That time gap would not have existed, according to Stark County Human Services officials, if Brinkhaven officials, instead of her family, had reported the allegations to authorities.

Judee Genetin, chief legal counsel for the department, said Ohio law requires all child care facilities to report `any suspicions' of abuse or neglect immediately. Genetin also questioned why Brinkhaven officials had questioned the girl and other residents about the allegations. `They're not supposed to investigate the allegations,' she said. `We do that.' Program director Ronald Lewis said the county would have been very interested in learning about the allegations in 1986 because officials already were very concerned about the number of complaints of excessive discipline and other problems at Brinkhaven during the mid-1980s.

Jon Weierman Part 2

We have talked about Jon Weierman before. He is one of the son's of Al Weierman and is an instructor at VF. Allegedly, most of the former students we have interviewed have claimed that Jon was the source of a lot of the abuse going on in the school. He supposedly has a very violent disposition and since his Dear Dad runs the school, Jon abuses his status over there. A few former employees also had the same thing to say about this disturbed man. In psychological terms, Jon is very insecure and is on a power trip. Also, it has come to our attention (and this needs to be further investigated), but Jon was also a burnout and a former drug addict. If that behavior is still going on, that would be cause to remove him from the services of VF. We are looking into these allegations and will update as we get more information. Anybody with additional information on this man, get back to us.

Jon, we are watching you.

United States Commerce Association

We have been meaning to debunk another of Weierman's untruths for a long time, but did not get around to it. Well here it is now - better later than never.



Victory Forge and their 3 boosters (yes that is all they have) have been going around and telling the world that VF has received an award from the United States Commerce Association (USCA). Before we jump to discuss what this award really means, here is what the USCA does.

This is an organization which is supported by its members. So VF pays dues to the USCA. In return, USCA promotes its members with public relations, advertising and marketing. They then give out these "Best of Local Business" awards to showcase their members. These awards are given to their members and are basically nothing but marketing ploys. Also, the USCA is a for-profit organization. So good people, do not buy this other lie and gimmick that these folks at VF are selling.

What does this award really mean? It means that VF paid their dues to the USCA who in turn is fulfilling their mission to promote their business. They do this by using the term award, which means absolutely nothing.

Try again Weierman.

VF is hurting

We would imagine that folks have finally caught on to the untruths perpetuated by the Weiermans. Victory Forge, the “teenage prison” which they run been rightly accused of child abuse and other charges. There is so much more they are hiding and continue to hide, but this blog and questions from other potential parents have finally taken a toll on them and Victory Forge.

Now to compensate for this loss, they are opening up their so called program to day students. These are the same types of kids who are in the boarding program, but the difference is that the day kids leave the facilities to go back home at the end of the day.

This opens up a whole new bunch of questions.

- VF has stated that the kids enrolled in the program are “bad” and need to be “locked” up. So the day students would be just as “bad” but they do not need to be locked up? Smells like another money grubbing ploy.
- Why would parents send their kids to this program, which provides no education? Would a recognized high school / junior high not do a better job of educating their kids?
- So when a day student returns home, they are free to do whatever they want, right? So what is the value proposition being offered here?

Parents – beware. This is just another approach by these hucksters to convince you that your child is bad and needs their help. When you are your weakest, they will rip you off by offering you false hope and promises. Do your bank account and your child a favor – stay far away from these child molesters.

Help out a cadet trapped at VF

We have received several emails from concerned individuals about one particular teen who is trapped at VF. Apparently, foster parents get reimbursed by the states for sending their foster kids to this school. From our understanding, these foster parents make money by sending the kids to this place. Reeks of perverse incentive, does it not. The foster parents see a money making idea; enroll their kids at VF in the guise that they are bad kids; make cash; repeat cycle.

So there is one student at VF who has been put in there by his mom in spite of the fact that there is nothing wrong with him. His relatives, friends, and other families have pleaded with the mom to reconsider what she is doing, but the financial rewards are too great for her that she is willing to sell her child to this evil place.

We have approached a parent who has helped us get advice from a few good attorneys. We have asked him to help us get this kid out of Victory Forge. The parent has offered to pass on the information to an attorney who will investigate the law and see what can be done about this kid.

We will provide more details as we receive them. In the interim, I hope more people are realizing this place is more than meets the eye. They are in it for a buck and will take some good kids and instead of stating that these kids do not need their help, will embark on this awful journey with them. These are kids for crying out loud - hell has a place reserved for people like the Weirmans and those who will send their kids to this hell hole for monetary gains.

More to follow....

So it continues....

We are still on vacation and will be getting back to this blog on a regular basis starting next month.

Until then, just wanted to inform you that the Colonel and his "people" have embarked on another misinformation project. They are now telling ever body who cares to listen that this blog is being managed by someone who wanted money from the school. They even state that our child needed this place (when in fact we never had a child enrolled in this prison for teens) and we were being bad parents by getting them out.

So now beings the next phase. Thanks to all for continuing to provide us with tid-bits of information. Even though we cannot corroborate all the information, we will get to it in due time. So let the emails come and together we can get the word out that Victory Forge is not a place where parents should send their kids - especially not when an accused child molester and former drug addict is minding the house. Some role model 'eh?

School is not accredited

So, while most others may be enjoying a nice and relaxing summer, ours is really hectic and we have been spending less time on the blog than we would like to. For all those who are sending us emails and comments, please continue to do so. Once the summer ends, we will have more time to dedicate to this blog and will continue exposing Victory Forge for the fraud it is.

In the meantime, all parents who believe that they children are getting an education at this place, realize that according to the Florida Department of Education, this school is not accredited. What this really means is that if your child happens to finish the 12th grade here, he would have completed high school from VF. Then if he were to go to college, he would have to provide transcripts and diplomas proving that he finished high school. A lot of colleges will not accept diplomas or transcripts from schools which are not accredited. The colleges do this because they are a lot of scams out there (no, really??) where people will state that they have completed high school in a place like VF, which is not really a high school. So in other words, since VF does not educate children according to an approved curriculum, the college will assume that you child did not complete high school.

If you children are not planning on going to college, this is still important as most jobs ask where they graduated from (including the armed forces). If the high school shows up as not accredited, the employer has the right to ask for more information or assume that the person applying for the job did not finish high school.

Something to think about especially if you think your $28K (tuition fees paid to Victory Forge) is tuition which includes a high school education.

Still Here

Received some pretty mean email from someone from VF. Basically telling us that they outlasted us and that we would never win. They thought we had disappeared and would not return. Basically, they tried to brow-beat us.

News alert, we are still here (had to attend some family matters) and we will not go away until Victory Forge changes the way it conducts business or is shut down. They are run by a bunch of carnival bakers (and that is an insult to carnival bakers).

Once we settle in, we will post some additional emails from our readers.

Also, we heard back from the Dr. Phil show. At the current time, they are not looking to do a story on teens and discipline. They will run a follow-up to their stories on the Aspen Ranch and at that point, they may contact us to possibly get some information from us. So all is not lost.

Stay tuned for another exciting summer.

Guest Author: A Former student

I don't want to dive into the ugly details of what happened at that place. I thank you for telling the world about the evil that is Victory Forge. Molly and the Colonel are two of the most deceitful people on the face of this earth. My 7 months there were hell on earth. I was physically abused and emotionally destroyed. I can tell you that this place caused more harm to me than I caused to society or anybody else. For this privilege, my parents had to pay these crooks $28,000. I can tell you of one incident where my face was hit many times, against a wall until I was bleeding. I was then told to shut up or I would feel more pain. I can tell you other such abuse against me and others over there. Again, I will be happy to discuss this matter with you or your parents. This place is a sham and is guilty of everything they have been accused of.

Blog owner comments: This post was edited for typos and grammar. The content was not changed.

Guest Author: Parent of a Former Student

I remember getting the call from Florida DCF stating that my child was in grave danger and that his life maybe at risk. I was told that the DCF was investigating child abuse charges at Victory Forge and they suggested that we remove our child from there. We called up Molly to ask her what to do, and she advised us to follow DCF directives and remove our child from there. That was all she said to me and it made me wonder if she was hiding something from me. I could not get any other information from her. So I drove to Port St. Lucie the same day and picked up my child. The greeting at the Victory Forge office from Molly was less than cordial and the Colonel was no where to be seen. I waited for my son who was brought to me and I left the place. While waiting there, I did not get any words of comfort from Molly. I would imagine, the Colonel had not instructed her what to say at that point so she was a “deer in the headlights”. I brought my child to the safety of our home and followed the news where the Colonel went on a rampage against anybody who questioned what he did. At this point I realized that they shackled children, hit them, made them eat their own vomit, mentally abused them, scared them, made them do menial work. This was not what was communicated to me and this was not what I paid these people a lot of money to do. They should be ashamed of themselves and I want to warn every parent who even considers them, to stay far away from this prison for children. My son was very shaken up for month after his experience there and has nothing positive to say about it. He has finally opened up and started telling me more about the hell hole know as Victory Forge. I will share more of his experience with you and the other parents.

The letter above is our new series of reports and letters written to us by parents, students, former students, and anybody else who wants to provide stories or facts to us. All names will be protected and will never be released.

About 1 year....

In a few weeks, it will be the 1 year anniversary of Victory Forge being shut down for child abuse. Of course, they subsequently opened and have started their shenanigans all over again. What is impressive is that a lot of parents and even more well wishers have continued to support our intent and our blog. For that, we are truly grateful.

It has come to our attention that Weierman had stated that this blog will be like many other complaints and annoyances that he has experienced over the past 20 years. He was convinced, that he would be able to last longer than the blog and all this will soon be forgotten. Well, we have news for you Alan - we will never forget the abuse our children went through at Victory Forge. We will never forget the lies and untruths that you propagated and sold like some snake oil salesman. We will never forget the scars and the bitter taste you left in our mouths. And we will make sure that future generations who even think about sending their kids to Victory Forge, will know what kind of place that truly is.

We are also going to start a guest post column. This will enable all parties and sides to honestly and fairly express their thoughts about the situation. Please be sure that the statements are indeed factual and not made up. We will then publish the guest blog with or without the guests name (that will be up to the writer to decide). We hope that you take part in this exercise to continue populating this blog.

Blast from the Past

Remember this editorial from the Palm Beach Post?

The points discussed here are still valid and still need to be addressed by Victory Forge. It is because of some of these loopholes, Weierman and his minions can get way with abuse. Yes, it is abuse when kids are beaten, food is withheld, and cover-ups happen. Yes, someone of the kids may be bad, but they should not be treated like animals, even though parents may have signed away the kid's rights.

Still waiting from the State legislator to act to regulate these prisons for teens.

Recap:

1. In April, a 16-year-old boy ran away from Victory Forge Academy, a private, boot camp-style military school in Port St. Lucie. The teen had been shackled for several days, and even had been confined overnight.

And what will the system wind up doing about that? Nothing.

2. A DCF spokesman said the agency has serious concerns about student safety at Victory Forge, but because the school is private, the agency has no authority to regulate it.

3. Parents, who pay more than $28,000 a year for a child to attend the school, sign agreements that they accept the various forms of discipline the school uses, including the shackling of runaways.

4. So, who protects students from the abuse at unregulated schools? Apparently, no one.

Dr. Phil and teen issues

Love him or hate him but Dr. Phil McGraw is a psychologist. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology, a master's degree in experimental psychology and a Ph.D in clinical psychology. He is also a TV personality who says it like he sees it.

One of our parents happen to sit on a flight next to a producer of the Dr. Phil show. While talking, the parent happened to mention the unregulated boot camps for teens that are prevalent in the US and brought up the one in St. Lucie which claims to be blessed by the military. The producer stated that they had done shows on troubled teens (links of the shows were provided to the parent and we will refer to them in other posts) and that what he heard from the parent, sounded very disturbing to him. He was intrigued by the idea to talk to children who have gone through these programs to see how they did once they left and if these unregulated boot camps had any lasting psychological damage on them. Empirically speaking, he stated that he would believe the answer was yes these boot camps cause more damage than they do good.

If this becomes an idea for a show, parents who sent their children to Victory Forge, please let us know if you and your children would like to talk to the Dr. Phil show. The way it works is that once a show idea is approved, the show will interview parents and students. A selected few would then appear on the show. The parent is in contact with the producer and will offer up names once the show is a go.

As an aside, some of you may have known that a parent had contacted the O'Reilly Factor last year, to inform them about the abuse taking place at Victory Forge. The hope was to get the Factor to investigate. Unfortunately, with the election being such a big story, our story was drowned out. The parent had asked if he should try again. We think, YES. If you think otherwise, let us hear your comments.

Port St. Lucie Unemployment

Unemployment rate in Port St. Lucie recently passed 10%. In a relative sense, this is not all that surprising because of the immense stresses our economy is going through. But taken within context, this is bad for the city.

There are about 192,000 civilians working in the city. Of this, over 19,000 has no jobs. Forbes magazine predicts that this spring, the outlook for the city will worsen to the tune of another 14% because "Like so many areas in Florida, Port St. Lucie was hit by the one-two punch of drops in both the hospitality industry and construction."

So why is this important to what we are trying to accomplish? For one, we don't want Port St. Lucie's unemployment rate to balloon by 2 Weiermans and how ever many of their progeny they have employed there. But this should be another wake up call for the otherwise dormant Al, that all is not well in the world and that he needs to change with changing circumstances. The populist tide is against him; the legal tide is against him; and now the economic tide is turning against him.

Remember Al, we all have to account for our sins. Are you ready?

John Chapter 5, verses 26-30

"For just as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted also to the Son to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to do judging, because Son of man he is. Do not marvel at this, because the hour is coming in which all those in the memorial tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who did good things to a resurrection of life, those who practiced vile things to a resurrection of judgment. I cannot do a single thing of my own initiative; just as I hear, I judge; and the judgment that I render is righteous, because I seek, not my own will, but the will of him that sent me.”

Victory Forge Truth Website

Recall, that we had been working with a web developer to create and publish a website exposing Victory Forge and those running the establishment. We had interviews and stories from former students, employees, and residents of Port St. Lucie. We even managed to find some people from Brinkhaven who gave us some pretty lurid details on Alan Weierman. Towards the end of last year, our web developer became really busy and the website development slowed (we are not exactly a well paying client for him). We have now completed most of the website and were ready to release it to the world.

One parent suggested to us that the contents be reviewed by his attorney prior to release. We complied with the request and the attorney has suggested that we refrain from posting the details at this time due to potential legal issues that may be raised. We have two options:

1. Let Alan Weierman and Victory Forge review what we have and provide us with any statements or evidence to whatever they disagree with or think is untrue. We will then either remove the content (if we have it wrong) or display the content (if we think Weierman is trying to lie to us).

2. Publish the website and expose the truth behind this jail for teens.

Ok reader, here is your chance to tell us what to do. We know most of you will select option 2, but please try and keep emotions out of this. Remember, our goal is to expose these deviants no matter how long it takes.

Another Option for Troubled Teens

We continue with providing parents with alternatives to the hellish place known as Victory Forge. We received another letter from a former student who was there in 2002 - he repeats the same allegations that all others have about this place. We cannot caution parents enough about VF.

From official statements: Teen Challenge is one of the oldest, largest and most successful programs of its kind in the world. Established in 1958 by David Wilkerson, Teen Challenge has grown to more than 170 centers in the United States. Teen Challenge is structured to allow flexibility in meeting the needs of those whose lives have been shattered by addictions. Where residential care is needed, Teen Challenge offers a well-developed, multi-phased discipleship training program. Teen Challenge also provides extensive non-residential assistance through personal and group sessions. Prevention programs are provided to thousands each year through public school assemblies and church meetings.

It is our guess that the Weierman's have tried to copy the religious aspects of Teen Challenge to offer legitimacy to their prison for teens. Teen Challenge, according to our research and interviews is more cost effective and promotes confidence in teens rather than destroying them. Moreover, there are Teen Challenges' in just about every state, and there may be one right by you. Click here for locations.

Spin Master Weirman (no not the machine you use in the gym!)

Happy New Year to all our readers.

A while ago, a parent contacted us and stated that he had hired some private investigators to perform a background check on VF and those running the program. The parent did not want to share that information with us on advice of his attorney. Now, the parent has been permitted to share some information on the findings of the PI with us. This story has been corroborated by prior employees.

Recall that Alan Weierman is married to Molly whose father, Rev. William Brink, was a convicted child molester who went to prison. Also recall, that Alan Weierman himself had many run-ins with the law and has known violent tendencies. Details can be found in older posts and elsewhere on the web.

Alan and Molly’s son, Jonathan was also a troubled child who had issues with drug and drug abuse. Alan and Molly had tried to cover this up and even went so far as to lie to their staff that their son was in drug rehab when in reality he was at his child molesting grandfather’s house. At this time, we do not have additional details as that information was not sent to us by the parent.

Knowing that a child is in custody of a violent man who is known for his bad temperament should cause a parent to pause. Add that to the fact that the institution was started by a convicted child molester who had a shady history and the fact that the Weierman’s could not discipline their own children, let alone someone else’s. How could someone of good conscience place their children in such a place run by such people? I guess forgiveness is divine, but if someone has 3 or more strikes against them, caution is needed not forgiveness.

We will try and get more information on the Weierman’s for you. They are, and let us quote a former employee “spin masters” so facts are what will matter. The facts are in front of you – the Weirman’s are a messed up family who are trying to teach kids the straight and narrow. Hypocrisy, is one of the words that comes to mind.