A church in Marysville has crossed the line from volunteering at
local public schools to recruiting kids into a “cult,” says the mother
of one of the students. The Turning Point Church sends roughly a dozen
adult “youth leaders” to six schools north of Everett, including Totem
Middle School in Marysville, once a week, where they hang out during
lunch hours, chat with students, and join in sports games.
“We can be someone in their life to say everything is going to be
okay and God is still good,” says Emily Masten, one of the youth staff
leaders and a receptionist for the church.
The youth leaders from Turning Point Church, which proposed the
lunchtime visits, were allowed on campus to “increase adult presence at
lunchtime” in the wake of chronic classroom disruptions,
says Gail Miller, assistant superintendent of the Marysville School District.
The Washington State constitution prohibits “sectarian control or
influence” in public schools.
But it’s unclear whether the church’s actions cross that line. Doug
Honig, a spokesman for the ACLU of Washington, says the intersection of
religion and government must be taken on a case-by-case basis. However,
he notes, “public schools cannot sponsor or promote religious
activities. People who are invited onto school grounds by school
officials are not permitted to proselytize students.”
In Marysville, problems arose in late February when an adult female
church delegate sent a MySpace message to Totem parent Rianne Olver’s
11-year-daughter, inviting her to an evening church meeting. The church
maintains a youth group called 180 and a subset group called 628 (for
kids from sixth through eighth grades).
“Hey, 628 tonight!
“6 o clock, free espresso for visitors. Super rad games and
activities.
“Hang out with cool people. Plus you are really cool so it would
just make it that much cooler.
“Are you going to be there? If you need a ride, I can hook it up
:)”
“She even offered to come to my house and pick up my daughter
without me knowing about it,” Olver says. “I wonder how many other kids
got this message and were so excited that an older person thinks
they’re cool and wants to buy them espresso.”
The nondenominational church, which holds Sunday services at Totem
Middle School, is unusual in other ways, too. In one sermon, available
on the church’s website, Pastor Mike Villamor says “Christians should
be sex-perts.” In YouTube videos, Villamor refers to elders in the
congregation as “saints” and churchgoers refer to him as an “apostle.”
Villamor did not return repeated calls for comment.
Rick Ross, a court witness on “destructive religious groups,” runs a
national online forum on organizations engaged in cultlike behavior.
The forum has a rich thread dedicated to the Turning Point Church,
where former members and others express concern that the church is
targeting children without telling their parents.
“In my experience, that leads to a breakdown in the family—a
conflict between a child enthralled with the church organization and a
parent who says, ‘That is not my belief,'” says Ross. “The idea that
any church would try to circumvent parents without notifying [them] in
advance is shocking to me because the right of parents to decide the
religious affiliation of their children is sacrosanct.”
Masten, the youth staff leader, dismisses the charge that the church
is a “cult”. “If people don’t understand something, there are two
reactions: You make fun of it or you get scared of it,” she says.
Masten confirms that youth leaders discuss the church and God with
students on school property, but she says they do so only when asked.
However, she acknowledges that if students provide contact information,
youth leaders invite them to evening meetings.
“Most youth leaders will do bulk texting to students they have met
once or twice,” says Masten. “It’s just like, ‘Hey do you want to come
over and hang out at my house?'” says Masten. (Basically, adults
directly soliciting social engagements from 11-year-old children.)
Youth leaders may neglect to contact parents because it is “something
that they are not really mindful of yet,” she says.
It’s something they will become mindful of soon.
After hearing Olver’s complaints, the Marysville School District
called Turning Point Church to tell them they must cease lunchtime
visits to Totem Middle School. Miller, the assistant superintendent, says, “They can’t proselytize and they
cannot solicit individual students’ contact information.” She adds: “We
are doing an investigation because, if [Olver] is correct in that this
is what is happening, that is inappropriate. If students ask them
questions, they can answer matter-of-factly, but they cannot seek them
out.”
Students’ issues with the Turning Point Church aren’t new. More than
four years ago, church delegates were on public school campuses during
school hours, says one former student.
“People of various ages, [in their] 20s and older, were going around
handing out these Bibles and saying that we should all go to Turning
Point Church because it’s a cool place to be,” says Nick Poling, 18,
who attended Totem Middle School a few years ago. The school has
open-air hallways, and the youth leaders would hang out between the
buildings. “They were out there waiting for us when we came out for the
buses.”
“There were teachers around and it’s not like they tried to stop
them,” he says. “Back then, I just was kind of confused as to why the
administration would let them do that.”
Although Turning Point Church has been barred from lunches at the
middle school, outreach workers continue to communicate with students
at five other schools, including Marysville Pilchuck High School and
Marysville Middle School. 
News intern Aaron Pickus contributed to this story.
Wow, once again /journalism fail brought to you by Domenic “IF IT’S NOT QUEER KILL IT!” Holden.
As a former MPHS student and growing up in the hole that Marysville, I saw Turning Point people out on campus every week. The adults who came on campus were fine and did not proselytize. The douchebag, hypocrite kids were different, however. I would have been fine if we kept the adults and got rid of the kids.
What gets me, Dom, is it’s almost as if you just “discovered” this has been going on when in reality this has been happening for ages. “ZOMG CHURCHEZ ARE TALKING TO MEH PPLZ!!1!” Give me a break.
As for the mom in this story, this is even more /fail. They weren’t inviting her kid to a clan rally. I can think of worse places a kid could be – such as the Stranger Newsroom.
It’s pretty sad that The Stranger has to mine tired, old news and mindfuck people who are actually trying to do something positive in the community rather than focus on the Seattle problems – such as the criminal brutality of its law enforcement.
I don’t know how much cock you had to suck to get this piece of crap published, but I hope it was worth the $20 in Chapstick.
Help stop this crap.
Join the Freedom From Religion Foundation.
http://ffrf.org/
I didn’t regularly attend Turning Point but I’ve been there lots of times, and the majority of my friends in HS either went to my youth group or Turning Point.
I grew up in a non Christian home, and when I got invited to youth group (not Turning Point) when I was 15..I desperately wanted to go, but knew my parents wouldn’t allow it. A youth leader was nice enough to give me a ride to youth group. I remember many times not telling my parents that I was going to church because I knew that they, as non church goers wouldn’t allow me to go. Once they did find out, that’s exactly what happened..I wasn’t allowed to go to church.
I have since graduated from high school, gone to a private Christian university and still go to church. I’d say that those adults at the church saved my life.
That story told..Parents don’t ALWAYS know what’s right for their children. What harm is it for a teenager to WANT to be a Christian? What kind of parent DOESN’T allow their child to go to church if they want to? There are 65468798754 worse things their child could be out doing.
Turning point might be a little aggressive in their inviting, but they’ve done nothing wrong.
Maybe the kid was like me, and didn’t ask their parents permission to go like Katie asked them to. That’s not turning point’s fault.
As a Marysville resident, I have long been concerned about the motives that Turning Point has (money) and the targets they actively pursue (children and teens). They come across as giving but really are takers. The pastor is often seen at Starbucks surrounded by teens. creepy.
FYI – the website for this church is http://turningpointchurch.com …
Grooming? Bribery? Paranoia? In a school more noted for disruptive students, low performance, gang warfare, drugs, and violence, what’s to object to having your kid invited to a church meeting? I feel sad for the Marysville School District…here’s a school that desperately needs positive role models, with teachers who feel overwhelmed (unsafe?), with a shrinking budget, who have positive volunteers pulled from the school because they ran an email over the line. Talk about having your fingers in the dike and having someone tell you that the others holding up the wall have just been pulled out because they may have been trying too hard. Grooming or befriending? Bribery? Come on…try bribing a 6th grader with $2.50 espresso. That’s not a bribe anymore than the nickel I got in the mail from a charity! Maybe enthusiasm, maybe even generosity. Maybe trying to offer kids a safe alternative to gangs, drugs, and garbage out there in the hallways, streets, and family rooms of parents overwhelmed with trying to keep food on the table, raise other kids, and steer their tweens and teens safely into life. High marks to Rianne Oliver for checking her daughter’s myspace mail. However, she seems to have missed the real danger here. Maybe she could have asked for a face-to-face meeting with the dangerous 19 year-old to see what she was really like? And, as to Turning Point being a dangerous cult…they are also well known as the lead sponsor of free giveaways in the August back to school extravaganza that they and 13 other Marysville churches sponsor every year…oh, excuse me, the back to school “bribery” that the churches in Marysville sponsor. I hope that Ms. Oliver will volunteer to step in at lunch time and help the school district out. Maybe it will be safe for her to go into the water there.
Marysville Citizen
Marysville Citizen: And Hezbollah is not just a terrorist organization, they are also known as a charitable community organization. When they arent beheading people they are building schools to teach their dogma.
Jesus was a recruiting pedophile
Turning point came to my school when I was in 9th grade more then four years ago, and THANK GOD THEY DID! They are not a cult. They are christain people that love jesus, and want to share how it feels to know jesus and see what jesus can do in your life. I to with many other will pray for all of our eminmes.
Hmmm…
This sounds like a form of grooming; that could eventually lead to sex, as the students reach the age of consent.
The school board should rethink their policies and procedures about this matter.
These zealots should not be on any campus.
I go to Turning Point in Marysville, and I’ve got to say, I really don’t get these bad “vibes” that you guys are talking about. The people there are friendly, but not “too” friendly. And WHY NOT talk to kids about God? Who else is going to?
It’s not up to the parents to decide what faith their children will have, and if someone’s there to tell them about how much God loves them and invite them to church to see how they like it, that should be socially acceptable.
Although, I do agree that if a child younger than 15 or 16 is going to church, that their parents should be notified for safety reasons, and that if they do come to church, that they come with someone they know and trust, not just a grown-up that goes to the church.
Children are very impressionable, this is a good thing and a bad thing. It’s good because it makes it easy for them to learn some very important things early on in life, and it’s a bad thing because it makes them vulnerable to negative influence. But I guarentee that at Turning Point there IS NO negative influence.
All they want is to spread the joy that comes with the Word. I see nothing wrong with that, but maybe they should adjust their tactics a bit.
Hey 2cool2BCupboard…do you know why one of their Elders resigned recently? Wasn’t it because of the goofy teachings taking place at Turning Point? Teachings like “spiritual parenting” where members are encouraged to disown their parents and submit to the authority of their new “spiritual parents” from the church. If that doesnt sound “david koresh” to me I dont know what does.
This one incident is just the scab covering a huge wound underneith. For those of you younger church members who think everything is cool. It is from your level, sure. But I dare you to ask Mike Villamoor about the following;
What scripture validates his authority as a new age Apostle.
What is his relationship to Tony Cunningham and why is Cunningham’s church listed in cult watch as being dangerous.
Why did he accept “Spiritual Perenting” as a valid teaching.
Then ask to see his account records.
The thing is that he has so much control over you, you wouldn’t dare ask these questions of him. Even if you did he would’nt give you an answer.
Someone needs to look into the so called leaders of this so called church. I can tell you the person who sent the my space is a good kid, who made a naive, immature choice thinking it was right. This so called leader, “aka” the pastor has them believing they need to save the world. Youth, homeless,the vulnerable. Who next do these young people feel they need to HAVE to SAVE. That is a lot to put upon them when they believe so strongly that what they are doing is so right. The young people at this so called church need to be saved from the pastors (Mike and Jeff). Yes these kids are young adults, but most are college age students and college age kids do not always make the best choices. College brings its own bad choices, this church brings a different set of bad choices. I worry for them. This person who sent the my space note and those who are volunteering at the middle school were brought to the church the same way. Sadly they think they are doing the right thing by joining “a church”. These kids who join think they are saving people. Lets help lead them the right way. Lets check into these leaders and see why they choose the youth ministers. We wouldn’t allow this to go on with young adults in college, it shouldn’t be going on under the disguise of a church. Also these young adults are taking classes on campus. These classes count for nothing in the real world only in this pastors world. Once again these young adults need to have this pastor and the adults in charge checked out.
Religion is nothing but a business. That’s why they pass the collection plate.
church members representing YouthLife and some other churches are always present at lunch at my school Lake Stevens High School. So many have approached me about going to a sermon. I haven’t mustered up the guts to say “Sorry I’m sacrificing a goat that night…”
to all the negative response. learn all the facts before you give advice to others.
I was invited to a 180 youth group once… I went, since it was my friend’s birthday and she ~insisted~ that I go. When I get there, someone shoves a goody bag filled with doritos, mountain dew, and candy in my hands and tells me to fill out this info card.
So I filled out the card, listened to the most pretentious, contradictory sermon I have ever heard in my 19 years of going to church, and then was asked to accept Christ into my heart whilst getting stared down by about 50 people including my friend and the pastor. Being as I already considered myself a Christian, I thought that was good enough, but apparently I needed to be a Turning Point Christian. Sorry.
A few days later, someone dropped off a personal pizza at my house. Too bad I was allergic to the toppings. The attempted bribery, while appreciated, was not successful.
I lived in Marysville for 8 years and knew people who attended this “church.” I also knew kids in my class who were recruited. Turning point Church targets vulnerable people. Not only kids, but young single mothers, drug addicts, ex criminals, and the poor. The bigger your group, the more money you make. The more vulnerable, the more devout. Plus, vulnerable people have vulnerable friends, and if you recruit them, your church continues to grow and those at the top reap the financial benefits.
New religious movements and non denominational church groups are synonymous with the word cult. Not all are bad, but undoubtedly not all are good. Do you know how easy it is to start a church? It’s just like opening up a store. You can simply start a church, “recruit” members and tell them/make them believe anything you wish. Anyone ever googled “how to start a church?” how about, “how to become a minister?” you might be surprised.
Yet another reason for parents to pay attention to what there kids are doing. There are orginizations, religious or not, that are doing everything they can to brainwash kids. From Nickelodeon to the Turning Point Church, parents need not assume that safe places exist. I was permanently scarred by a middle school teacher that convinced me that I was ignorant and would never amount to anything. Does that mean we need to kick teachers out of schools?
We have attended Turning Point and agree that they go a little over the top in their showy services and giveaways; however, their intentions are only to spread their excitement for Jesus which is what Christians are called to do. They do have a lot of money, but they give a lot not only to this community (who desparately need not only financial help, but spiritual as well) and they are nothing but a positive influence in Marysville. My son attends MPHS and I’m more concerned about the drug dealers that offer him drugs everyday than I am someone inviting him to church! I can’t believe all the negative comments about this…many people quick to call these people a cult after reading a very one sided story. These people provide a fun and safe place for kids to hang out once a week…they aren’t having sex with them and giving them drugs! People are so quick to judge others that are willing to go above and beyond what’s considered “normal” and naively label them as creepy and slimy!
hey m’ville mom-have they started teaching your son about “spiritual parenting” and how he should listen to his “spiritual parents” above and beyond his biological parents? If you really love your son you better do a little more homework on Turning Point and what they really believe.
ok I am Rianne Olver’s daughter my name is Aja Olver (you pronounce the first name aw-sh-uh) the chick that came to our school and always talked to ME and my friends was named Katie she is a red head and when i first met her i was thinking “oh ok this chick is nice me and her might be good friends” then she started like getting into my conversations with my friends. Like one day we were talking about past boyfriends and shes all like “I think people should only date to get married” and other time she is talking to one of my friends and she just like almost out of nowhere says stuff like “God is our lord a savior” and stuff like that and now i was thinking “wtf is wrong with this chick? i dont like her now shes annoying” so at this point me and my best friend were getting so annoyed by her we started to avoid her like going to the movie room because if we sat at a different table, oops i mean if I sat at a different table, she followed ME and started talking more to ME about god. By this time i hated her because she was soooo annoying. then one day she asked me and my friends for our myspace info. And i didnt want to argue with her and stuff so i just gave it to her and so did two other of my friends. And just like the article says i got a myspace comment like 3 or 4 days after i gave my myspace info to her
this is what it said
“Hey, 628 tonight!
6 o clock, free espresso for visitors. Super rad games and activities. Hang out with cool people. Plus you are really cool so it would just make it that much cooler.
Are you going to be there?”
then she sent one that said
“If you need a ride, I can hook it up 🙂 “
this is what i replied
“im sorry i cant its my grandmas birthday and i have to go to her house tonight sorry”
but what Katie doesn’t know is that i made that up. If you want to add her on your myspace here is the code thingy that was in the white bar thingy.http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewProfile&friendID=7580848
add her and send her your complaints =]. And if that code doesn’t work search her. Her display name is K-T-O
To Rianne and Aja I am a concerned person who does not agree with the contact to Aja on My Space or the things discussed at school by Katie. I am also not in favor of the Turning Point Church. A place I would not consider a place to worship. Maybe a place to fill the pockets of the pastors. But I did some checking to see if Katie mentioned to Aja about asking her Mom’s permission. When Aja said she needed to ask her mom, Katie said yes totally do that. A slight reference, but its there. Once again I do not condone what Katie did, but please mention all that was said on the My Space. Not alot, albeit, still not a good choice on her part. But make sure you both include all that was said. I also don’t agree with how the attack on Katie is turning, how fortunate for the elders of Turning Point. Draw attention to the young adults and away from how they have trained them. Giving out her My Space address is vengence. Turn that anger at how Turning Point trains them. Lets shut them down. And to you Rianne I would shut down your daughters My Space, which she is not old enough to have in the first place. She list an age that she is not. That is also not safe. Aja, your Mom was right to check on it, and she is right to be upset and angry about what happened, but there should be something taught about internet safety and ALL that goes with it. So to all parents keep an eye on your kids at school, at church, at the mall, and on the internet. Yes we want to build trust and give them their privacy, but they earn that as they learn and grow. Simple, yes, naive, yes but we parents need to be informed at all levels of our kids lives. Yes things happen, but in this fast moving world all we might have is to stay aware. This has made me want to do some more checking on Turning Point. Which I will continue to do. And to the parents of the Turning Point recruiters you need to see what they have gotten themselves into. Some of you may not care, or might not know but maybe because of this contact on My Space the people and parnets of Marysville and the surrounding communities can open their eyes and check on what the so called Pastors of Turning Point are doing to these young adults. Their tactics are what I believe to be constant repitition of the same teachings. This is all they are hearing at their so called school (SOMA). Hear it enough and you believe it. And by believe it, I mean, how these young adults truly believe they need to save young people, homeless, the vulnerable. Thier safety should be of concern too. Who they are talking to on the street and who is teaching them. What are their credentials and accreditation? How do you think this pastor got his recruiters? He preyed upon their vulnerabilities and their desires to find Jesus. (Notice PREY, not PRAY, think about who the predator is. These pastor and elders use these kids to do their recruiting and look what its got him, cheap labor and an expensive home(s),and many properties. Check the Snohomish County Assesors web site. Slave labor is not allowed in foreign countries. Don’t allow it in Marysville. Don’t let these pastors donate to your schools or whatever they may want to donate to and then in return you feel obligated to them. Its like bribery. And is Pastor Mike or Pastor Jeff going to come to Katie’s defense and talk about the good, kind person she is, and this is what they are teaching her and the other young adults to do at SOMA (Turning Points College, Ha ha, but not funny at all) under the disguise of a school. I admire Katie has found Jesus I just wish she wouldn’t have found him through Turning Point’s way of manipulation. If she wakes up and sees the light I hope there is a church and a pastor who provide her the right direction. Actually maybe she will fall asleep in with your endless chatter (tactics) at your so called school and the break in repition will make all of those young adults take a stand or should I say take a hike as far away from Turning Point as they can get.
Also when you gave a link to the My Space page it gives a link to all that have contacted that person at her My Space page. It opens up a new set of problems. Please be careful.
Hmm, so all NAMBLA would have to do to get permission to send representatives into the schools at lunch hour, and pass out propaganda, is purport to be providing adult supervision. If they rented space from the school system they’d be untouchable.
Nice.
teenagers are out of control, disrespectful to say the least, and teachers do not have authority to “control” the students. I am thankful that when I send my child to school I know that there are extra eyes watching over them. Take time off of your work schedule to go watch for the lunch hour, cause I can’t do it every day.
Wonderful article, I’m really glad you did the work to bring this up.
Scary thing cults. My partner’s sister is in one in California and it’s destroying their family. I don’t understand the laws surrounding them, but they ought to be illegal.
It’s brainwashing.
As a mother of a member of the church, but not a member myself there are a couple of things I’d like to state.
One: yup – there’s a lot worse things your kids could be doing. Accept the fact that someone is trying to reach out and help those kids that don’t have parents involved in a healthy way in their lives.
Two: nothing should go un-monitored. I personally have issue’s with Turning Point. In the past I have seen where the church has made it apparent that the ‘church’ is more important than your immediate family. Sure every situation has it’s own story to it, but my advise is;
Three: keep involved with your kids that attend. Don’t let them drop away from your family to have a church that can at times promote almost a ‘cult’ attitude. You’re a bad person if you smoke, drink, swear…… any and all churches should accept people for who they are….not how many times they repeat ‘I love Jesus’ just to feel accepted into a group. Too many churches/cults put stigmatisms on stating something just to feel accepted.
So i have to say i am quiet curious as to why everyone always turns this back to money and sex. . . is that because you have neither?
I know Turning Point and the people that go there and they are some of the most generous people i know, and its not to be cultish its part of spreading the love of Christ, which any Christian should do, maybe you should try reading the bible and see what it says there, and why are you all so quick to judge people you don’t know? Try getting to know someone from there, see what you think, get to know a few of them. . . oh wait thats right your all too big a pussys to do something like that that might actually make some sense.
My advice to all of you. . . get a life. . . and be more concerned about the people out there that a actually doing bad things (drugs, murder, rape, violence. . .) and leave the people who are trying to do something good alone. please, your all just wasting everyones time.
Justwondering: you admonish for “judging” and then you turn around and do just that! That, in my JUDGMENT, makes you a hypocrite.
Justwondering: you admonish for “judging” and then you turn around and do just that! That, in my JUDGMENT, makes you a hypocrite.
actually thats a little think i like to call sarcasm. . .get used to it. . . learn to love it. . . cuz everyone does it. . .
No doubt Jesus was a sarcasm king
Kip Schoning,
You have a very confused view of churches, gay people, and pedophilia.
Churches don’t like gay people because they think being gay is a “choice” and a sin (it’s neither). Not all churches think gay people are bad, just the fundie wacko ones.
Gay people are too smart to get involved in something like a cult anyway (the vast majority anyway). And besides, why would any gay person want to be involved in something that is going to tell them how terrible they are or try to “convert” them into heterosexuals?
Pedophilia is like a third sexual orientation. Pedophiles desire to have sex with children, regardless of their sex. Most pedophiles have a preference towards either boys or girls, but their attraction is towards CHILDREN. Most pedophiles are heterosexual too, both in percentage and total number. Pedophilia is slimy, homosexuality is perfectly normal.
Now, doesn’t it feel better to be educated?
ppreston…calling one sexual orientation normal while calling another sexual orientation slimy is like the pot calling the kettle black.
They should treat those Holy Rollers just like sex predators, bag em and tag em!!
Our 21 year old daughter, Jinx Hayes, has been recruited by a CULT operating in the Seattle, Bothell and/or Kirkland area. It happened pretty fast. Within 9 months of her first contact.If you know which guru/cult she has joined let us know.
Good for you Rianne for bringing this to everyone’s attention. It is absolutely horrible that adults, male OR female, are soliciting underage children on MySpace without the consent of their parents. If this Turning Point church was legitimate, this would NOT be going on.
If these kids want to learn about your sickness, perversion, religion, whatever you wanna call it, they’ll seek you out. Quit preying on our children.
I am so tired of seeing what is supposed to be a comment on something, in this case a “fake news article written by Strangler” into a blog site.
Comment sites turned into blogs–not good.