XFamily - Children of God - User contributions [en]

Sara Kelley

2018-04-14T03:42:35Z

Jprobillard: Seeds of Hope web page explanation about Sara

{{stub}}

'''Sara Stevenson Kelley''' (American; born 1950-05-14) is a former leader of [[The Family International]] and a nanny of [[Ricky Rodriguez|Ricky "Davidito" Rodriguez]] (see [[Story of Davidito|The Story of Davidito]]). She is wife to [[Alfred Strickland Kelley]] and mother of [[Davida Kelley]], [[Mary Dear]], and three other children.

Pseudonyms she has used include: '''Prisca Kelley''', '''Sara Davidito''', '''Sara Stevens''', '''Sara Stevenson''' and '''Sharon'''

Sara Kelley was the primary author of ‘[[The Story of Davidito]]’ book, a compilation of letters in which she recorded the early development of the cult leaders’ heir [[Ricky Rodriguez]], a.k.a. '''Davidito'''. This book was published with the intention that it be used as a childcare manual, setting the example on how to raise a child. It was sent to communes across the cult, worldwide.
In ‘[[The Story of Davidito]]’, Sara Kelley published instructions on how to look after children including the detailed, explicit sexual grooming that she and others subjected [[Ricky Rodriguez]] to from birth. This book had a direct impact on the widespread sexual abuse that followed within the cult for a number of years.
Sara was also involved in the sustained physical and psychological abuse of [[Merry Jolene Berg]], a.k.a '''Mene'''.

Sara Kelley has lived under many pseudonyms in the past decades. She was most recently exposed, on 7th April 2018, as living incognito in Esterillos Oeste, Costa Rica under the pseudonyms '''Sara Stevens''' and '''Sara Stevenson'''. At the time of exposure she was working with vulnerable women and children, in the role of National Director for charity organization ‘Seeds of Hope - Costa Rica’. [https://www.seedsofhopecr.com/ Seeds of Hope] denies all knowledge of Sara’s real identity and past, and we have no evidence to suggest otherwise.
Sara Kelley fled Costa Rica on 8th April 2018. Local authorities have opened an investigation.

<gallery mode="packed-hover">
Image:Alf_n_Sara_Kelley-001.jpg|Sara & [[Alfred Kelley]]
Image:Alf_n_Sara_Kelley-002.jpg|Sara & [[Alfred Kelley]]
Image:Sara_Kelley_2018_1.jpg|Sara Kelley
Image:Sara_Kelley_2018_2.jpg|Sara Kelley
</gallery>

[https://www.seedsofhopecr.com/ Seeds of Hope] web page released the following information in regards to Sara Stevenson.

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">
''Important Message From the Board of Seeds of Hope: April 12, 2018''

"As you may know, it was brought to our attention this weekend that one of our staff members, Sara Stevenson has a background that is against the mission and beliefs of Seeds of Hope. We have taken down our Facebook/Instagram pages until directed by government officials to put them back up.
We would like to thank those who took the steps in bringing this information to our attention. Seeds of Hope has taken affirmative action and requested the immediate resignation from Sara Stevenson. Her ties with Seeds of Hope are severed.

Sara did not give us full disclosure of her past. A professional background check, her application and passport information under the name of Sara Stevenson does not connect her to an impropriety or questionable history. A few years ago Seeds was voted in to become members of CONATT which is the National Committee under Immigration’s Department of Human Trafficking. They did an investigation of Seeds including our staff and this did not come up. We are seeking advice as how to better vet our volunteers.
We want to be clear that there have been no allegations against Sara's work here at Seeds of Hope. We are in the process this week of meeting with several top authorities in San Jose including The Department of Human Trafficking, Immigration, OIJ (FBI) and PANI (Child Protective Services) . They will perform investigations and take the proper steps. There are many rumors going around. The authorities will determine what is true and what actions need to take place.

This has been a shock to us and we would covet your prayers. Fortunately this has no impact on our clubhouses. We will continue on with our work!

Thank you,

The Board of Seeds of Hope."
</div>

[[Category:Current and Former Members]]
[[Category:Leaders]]
[[Category:Abusers]]

Sara Kelley

2018-04-14T03:22:24Z

Jprobillard: Current information contributed by N.T. (current pictures included)

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2018-04-14T01:50:10Z

Jprobillard:

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2018-04-14T01:49:25Z

Jprobillard:

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2018-04-09T02:58:59Z

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2018-04-09T02:56:34Z

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Merry Jolene Berg

2018-04-07T17:51:22Z

Jprobillard: Eulogy by Andrew Stone added

{{caution child abuse}}

[[Image:Mene_cover.jpg|thumb|250px|Merry Berg on the cover of the November 1992 ''No Longer Children'' newsletter (see: ''[[Merry's Story]]'')]]
[[Image:Paul Aaron Berg and wife Shulamite 71.jpg|thumb|220px|Merry's parents, Paul Berg and Judy Helmstetler (1971)]]

'''Merry Jolene Berg''', known in [[The Family]] as '''Mene''', was the granddaughter of the [[cult|cult's]] founder, [[David Berg]]. She was born on 5 June 1972 to [[Paul Brandt Berg|Paul "Aaron" Berg]] and [[Judy Arlene Helmstetler|Judy "Shulamite" Helmstetler]]/Pendell. She died in her sleep on 16 December 2017.

Merry was invited to her grandfather's compound in December 1983 at age 11, where she stayed until August 1987. During this time, as well as while attending [[Victor Program]]s and [[Music with Meaning]], she underwent severe physical, sexual, and psychological abuse. Some of the abuse was documented and published for all cult members in the internal publications ''[[The Last State|The Last State?–The Dangers of Demonism!]]'' (ML 2306) and ''It's Up to You!–Mene's Farewell from the King's House!'' (ML 2524).

Merry left The Family for the [[United States]] in November 1990 when she was 18 years old. She lived in California, USA until her death.

==History==
===Life in The Family===
: ''Editor's Note: Much of the abuse described below is disputed by Family leaders, many of whom are either alleged or documented to have been directly involved. Merry's testimony, however, has been categorically supported by witnesses including [[Ricky Rodriguez]] and [[Davida Kelley]], as well as by [[Lord Justice Ward|Lord Justice Sir Alan Ward]], a British senior judiciary who presided over a three-year [[Judgment of Lord Justice Ward|custody trial]] involving The Family in which Merry served as a star witness.''

According to Family publications, from the age of eleven Merry was regularly invited by Family leaders at the group's Music with Meaning center in [[Greece]] to join them in alcohol consumption and watching pornographic videos. At this time she was also filmed performing stiptease dances along with other Family women and young girls, recorded for David Berg. She has testified that while in Greece she was sexually abused by multiple adult men, including [[Jeremy Spencer]] and [[Christopher Carruthers]].

After moving to her grandfather's compound in the [[Philippines]], where she reportedly slept in a walk-in closet adjacent to his bedroom, Berg repeatedly fondled her while [[Karen Zerby]] watched.

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">''"I find that Berg and [[Karen Zerby|Maria]] came down to her bedroom and whilst Maria and [[Sara Kelley|Sarah]] were talking, Berg got into her bed in their presence and fondled her. This happened on a number of occasions. She was called to his quarters. He was invariably impotent and they did not have sexual intercourse though he once tried to penetrate her, so there is no evidence of [[:Category:Incest|incest]] strictly defined. He did rupture her hymen with his finger. They had oral sex. That was oral sex by him on her … At one point they went through a mock celebration of marriage. Maria was fully aware of what was happening."''  — [[Judgment of Lord Justice Ward]], 1995</div>

In an [[Rolling Stone: The Life and Death of the Chosen One|interview with Rolling Stone magazine]] in 2005, Merry's brother [[Don Irwin]] stated, "Mene's first experience with full intercourse was with Ricky [Rodriguez] at the age of twelve. This was orchestrated by Berg, who wanted Ricky to get her pregnant. … Berg wanted to continue his family line though his granddaughter."

At age fourteen in 1987, after criticizing David Berg and confessing to seeing images of demons, Merry was subjected to extreme and protracted physical and psychological abuse, some of which was documented and published for Family members worldwide. Following are excerpts of one such publication, which constitutes a verbatim exchange between Merry and her grandfather:

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">
49. I have a rod here, will you please bring it to me.. You see this? Pass it to her, let her feel it. I want you to feel this, how heavy it is.

64. … If they have to use a rod to beat him [Satan] out of you, fine, you've got my permission. ([[Sara Kelley|Sara]]: Yes sir I'll do it!) If you've got to slap her to wake her up and get her out of that kind of spirit, slap her! Slap her good! Knock her around! Let her have it! …

74. Now get out, you damn devil, and leave her alone, or I'm going to whack the daylights out of her! (She cries.) Thank God that's the first time I think I've seen tears! Are you sorry? (MB: Yes sir!) But if you're not sorry, I'm going to make you sorry!…

81. You think you're going to make it up there (in [[The System|the system]]) somehow? The only way you could make it is to be a whore, that's all! You wouldn't even be an [[Flirty Fishing|FFer]], you wouldn't even be doing it for God, you'd just be doing it for a living. You'd probably end up on drugs — a drug demon possessed, alcoholic, diseased whore and soon dead! Now is that what you want? (MB: No sir!)…

114. The Lord took hold of her head … and yanked it around and back and forth and side ways to side ways by my hands until I was afraid I was going to yank her head off or break her neck! God was so angry... And then I hauled off and slapped her I don't know how many times tonight, hard, right? (MB: Yes sir!) And hit you....

145. … if it takes a good beating up to make you want to get rid of it, then we're going to beat you up!…

183. … if that doesn't work then what can we do? We can't kill you, that's God's business. We'll have to get rid of you.

185. Nobody want's to sleep with you, they're actually afraid of you because you've been under the control of the Devil…

189. I suggest you tie her to the bed.

190. Make sure she goes to the toilet the very last thing. I don't care if you wet the bed, dear, your hands are going to be tied to the sides of that bed at night

194. If beating doesn't get the hell out of you, you're going to get the hell out of here: I want you to memorise that. (MB: If beating you doesn't get the hell out of you, you're going to get the hell out of here!)

199. She's not to be alone at any time from now on. Someone is to be with her at all times who is big and strong and spiritual enough that you just absolutely knock it out of her.

215. If you don't get rid of those demons … you may have to get whipped in bed caned in bed.

*Source: [[The Last State|The Last State?–The Dangers of Demonism!]], by The Family, 1987
</div>

Merry Berg later recounted this episode in court tesimony, as quoted from Justice Ward's Judgment:

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">''"I upset them when 13/14 because I began to realise grandfather was a hypocrite who made rules for people which were not necessary for him. He would write one thing one day the opposite the next because God was changing. He was very contradictory. He was a chronic alcoholic. It was very confusing. When he was sick he would drink and call different women in for sexual relations or sexual comfort. It was very difficult to respect this man when he was so drunk. I now look back at his writings as the ravings of a drunk madman. Another thing that upset me at 14 was that I was losing my faith in the group and in the prophet - all the things I believed in. I had violent pictures and images and they said that showed I was listening to Satan. They would say that Satan and demons were attacking me. I do not know if it was my imagination but I was seeing demons. In bed I would get out terrified because I thought the spirits would attack me sexually. I would try to cover myself up. I would confess to Sara, my stepfather, [[Faith Berg|Faithy]] and others because I was afraid of Satan and wanted to be right with God and wanted the group's approval. They would slap me. Later they gathered the leadership together, pulled my pants down and spanked me publicly which was humiliating because these people were important to me. Six months later when my grandfather was told, he commanded them to beat me with his rod whenever I had violent thoughts or saw monsters.... Many times they would beat me, they took my head and beat it against the wall and bruised me. I was helpless and knew nothing else. My stepfather spanked me with his hands. It all felt like torture and once I fainted, throwing up. They said I was throwing up demons. The [[exorcism|exorcising]] terrified me".''  — Merry Berg, court testimony</div>

Lord Justice Ward described it as follows:

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">''"Who could blame the girl for lacking respect for a man so revered by others when she knew from her personal knowledge that he was foul mouthed, drank too much and sexually abused her. For this she was brutally punished. Her crime was to have yielded to Satan. That led to a time of two months when she had five major exorcisms performed over her. She was subjected to total immersion in the [[Word]], full-time, with top leadership "reading aloud along with her to keep her mind and mouth and eyes and ears occupied and for a constant infilling of the [[Holy Spirit]]." They prayed over her, even fifty times a day. She was 14 years old!"''  — Judgment of Lord Justice Ward, 1995</div>

About a year later Merry was sent to a Family [[Detention Camp]] in [[Macau]], where after further abuse including being locked in her room for six months, she suffered a complete mental breakdown. She did not at first receive appropriate psychiatric care, but after it was eventually provided she was sent to the United States to live with her grandmother [[Jane Miller Berg]].

[[Image:Deborah_davis_with_mene.jpg|thumb|220px|Merry with her aunt [[Deborah Davis]], who has also both spoken against and been the subject of vilification by the group (November 1992)]]
[[Image:Merry_(mene)_berg.jpg|thumb|220px|[[Héctor Walter Navarro]] with Merry (November 1992)]]

===Outside The Family===
After moving to the States, Merry began attending a Bible college, but soon broke down again and underwent further psychiatric treatment. Upon recovery, Merry refused to live with her grandmother and instead moved in with [[Deborah Davis]], her aunt.

She went on to give evidence of her experience in The Family during a groundbreaking [[Legal Case U.K., 1992|child-custody case]] in the [[U.K.]] involving The Family, as well as speaking on American televison about the same.

===Vilification===
Merry Berg has been vilified by Family leadership to the point that many Family members consider her insane and possessed by demons or Satan himself.

Though the cult had long since been publishing internal documents demonizing and humiliating Merry, when she began speaking out publicly about abuse she endured from and under the care of Family leaders (see ''[[Merry's Story]]''), [[Karen Zerby]], [[Sara Kelley]] and others stepped up the offensive.

Among other such documents is ''{{Pubs|2820|False Accusers in the Last Days!}}'' (ML 2820), written by Zerby in 1992. Following is an excerpt of its content:

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">
'''The Choice: To Believe Dad [David Berg] or Mene!'''

78. … Some of the things our enemies bring up can be quite difficult to try to explain or defend, so it's not always the best tack to try to analyse & explain every little accusation detail by detail. Sometimes it's better just to say, "Okay, who are you going to believe? Whose version are you going to believe? Are you going to believe what Dad & we have said about the situation? Or are you going to believe what Mene said about the situation?"

79. Why would anyone in the Family ever believe Mene above the Prophet? Dad is the man who changed your life & who has faithfully given you the Words of the Lord all these years, whose prophecies you have seen fulfilled & whose words you have seen work! -- And whose fruit has been wonderful, beautiful, and far-reaching! So why would you believe this girl who very obviously went completely insane? -- Whom we know was completely taken over by the Devil, & whose life was one long fantasy, starting from when she was a tiny child playing in her backyard, & then through the years has lived in a world of fantasy & daydreams.-- A girl whose fantasies eventually became so real to her that she could not distinguish the imaginary from the real. -- Not to mention the fact that she was given over to the Enemy that she was heaping curses on people merely because they corrected her. From the time she was a little girl she was obsessed with spirits of exaltation & power, obviously not the Lord's Spirit.

80. She had those devilish spirits before she ever came to be with us. She's purposely yielded herself to those things & as sweet & as beautiful as she looked, & as meek & docile as she seemed to be, she was like a roaring lion going about seeking whom she could devour. ([http://www.xfamily.org/xscripts/bible/?book=1%20Peter&chapter=5&verse=8 1Pet.5:8].) But the Lord allowed her true condition to remain hidden from us, so that we would invite her to come to live with us, so He could give her a chance to be delivered from those demonic spirits that were plaguing her & those terrible attitudes that were hindering her. We did all we could to rescue her, but she chose not to be rescued. We did all we could & gave her all the love & care & honour as Dad's granddaughter, much more than she even deserved, to try to help compensate in some way for losing her parents, & all those years she hadn't been able to see her grandfather, etc.

81. So I believe that the bottom line for everyone who hears Mene's "atrocity tales" is that they have to make a choice. And for people in the Family, that choice would be easy, because why would anyone in the Family accept the word of this crazy girl, who completely yielded herself to the Devil, over Dad's account of what happened? Of course, the reason there's a strong temptation to believe Mene's tale is because she's really got her story down pat, she goes into all kinds of vivid details with every person & what they supposedly did.

89. … She was fucking the Devil & throwing horrible violent curses on everyone around her, describing these in vivid, gruesome detail!

*Source: ''{{Pubs|2820|False Accusers in the Last Days!}}'' (ML 2820), by Karen Zerby, 1992
</div>

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">''"And I got the most gruesome picture of Mene with her mouth all red & dripping, drooling with blood like a vampire! Of course, she’s just a little ignorant nobody, but it shows you how the Devil is using her. Even Deborah is just being used"''  — David Berg, 1992:3</div>

===Life on the Streets===
In June [[2005]], ''[[:Category:Press:Rolling Stone|Rolling Stone]]'' magazine [[Rolling Stone: The Life and Death of the Chosen One|reported]] that "Merry is addicted to methamphetamine, turning tricks on Southern California beaches and struggling to stay alive.<ref>[[Rolling Stone: The Life and Death of the Chosen One]], Summer Double Issue 977/978, June 30-July 14, 2005, 122.</ref> Her mother has claimed that "She's just given up on life." <ref>Ibid, 122</ref> During this period friends and family frequently attempted to reach out to her and this eventually proved successful and Merry was able to quit drugs and get off the streets.

===Late Years===

In late 2006, friends and relatives reported that Merry was doing much better, had a good job, and was no longer using methamphetamine.<ref>[http://www.newdaynews.com/fun/index.cgi/read/2387 posting] on a [[NewDayNews.com]] forum by "Anneke" stating in part "Just a note to anyone interested in Merry (Mene's) progress....I see her a few times a week and she is doing FANTASTIC and realized the 'curse' was a LIE. She is clean and sober and has a home to live in and a good job and has turned her life around.", 2006-12-24 and correspondence from another source to an xFamily.org editor, 2007-01.</ref>

In her last years her family reported she was determined not to be defined by her suffering, becoming clean of drugs and reconnecting with her mother and family. She had a boyfriend and work that she loved and by all accounts of those close to her had found a degree of happiness that had long eluded her. <ref>Correspondence from family members to an xFamily.org editor, 2017-12.</ref>

===Death===

On December 16th, 2017 Merry Berg passed away in her sleep due to respiratory failure.

==Memorial and Eulogies==

Second generation members ([[SGA]]) expressed their support across the internet groups and [https://youtu.be/aN04Wo9so_k a memorial for her was held on 3/10/2018].

The following eulogy was given at the memorial.

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">'' "I am honored to have this opportunity to put Merry’s life experiences into context from the perspective of someone who never met her but was nevertheless deeply impacted by the events of her life.''

''In the spring of 1987 I was an 11 year old child living away from my parents in Guadalajara in one of the hundreds of compounds that were then run by the criminal religious organization that Merry and I shared the misfortune of being born into. As many of us here remember, in these compounds there were mandatory daily readings of the latest missives from that cult’s leader. One day these readings described the violent torture of a child at the hands of the cult’s leader, who lived in hiding. Merry was that child.''

''It is an unfortunate fact of human life that on occasion we must face evils so horrific that the only rational moral choice is to fight these evils at all costs. When faced with these evils we must choose between resigning ourselves to them or fighting them with everything we have got. Merry helped me make that choice on the day that I learned of her existence. She taught me in crystal clear terms that this life is only worth living if its beauty and innocence and potential are fought for and protected. In my outrage at the way she was being devalued I found my own value. In this horrific assault on her humanity I found my own humanity. I made a conscious choice that day to be on Merry’s side and to fight against the criminal cult in which we were both trapped through no choice or action of our own. Now, in my 5th decade walking this planet I continue this fight. Fighting this fight as a child made me feel a bond with Merry: a camaraderie of the kind that arises any time that two human being share a struggle.''

''Merry was a canary in a coal mine of horrific abuse, and her suffering alerted myself and thousands of other children to the dangers of the environment that we were born into. Merry was also much more than that. She was a child with a bright smile and an angelic voice. She was a daughter and a sister. She was a beloved friend to many of us here. She was a rebel against a system that abused and exploited her. Like any rebel with a righteous cause she should not be defined by the horrors that she rebelled against, but rather by the courage and tenacity with which she fought against them.''

''In the years since I claimed my freedom from that evil cult Merry has been with me. Every time I have had the privilege of helping a victim of violence or abuse I am applying the same basic love for humanity that I found in myself when I learned that a child was being tortured on the other side of the world. When I face overwhelming odds that seem to be stacked against me I think of that wee child defying her tormentors. They tried to break her, but her spirit did not break. They did their level best to destroy her, but her life force persevered. As I fought my own fight against that evil organization I found hope in the knowledge that on the other side of the world another child was facing greater horrors than I was facing, but she did not break. Consequently, I did not break. Thank you, Merry." ''  — By Andrew Stone, March 2018 </div>

==More Information==
* [[Merry's Story]] — By Merry Berg, November 1992
* [[Life with Grandpa - the Mene Story]] — By [[Ricky Rodriguez]], June 2002
* [[No Regrets|No Regrets - Why I left The Family]] — By former high-level member [[James Penn]], February 2000. Includes discussion of Merry Berg under the heading "''[[No_Regrets#MENE.2C_MENE.2C_TEKEL_UPHARSIN|Mene, Mene, Tekel Upharsin]]''"
* [[The Last State|The Last State?-The Dangers of Demonism!]] (DO 2306, August 1987) — Verbatim account of one exchange between Merry Berg and her grandfather David Berg
* [[Kathy Farrell]]

==Multimedia==

<gflash>320 240 https://media.xfamily.org/video/tv/flash/flvplayer.swf?autoStart=false&file=flv/nbc93-xSGA-testimony.flv</gflash>
* [[Image:icon_video.gif|Video]][https://media.xfamily.org/video/misc/NBC93_xSGA_testimony.wmv Merry Berg and other second generation ex-members speak about their experiences in The Family] (4:17, 7.7MB) — From [[NBC Now with Tom Brokaw and Katie Couric|NBC Now]], 1993-09-08
* [[Image:icon_video.gif|Video]][https://media.xfamily.org/video/misc/merry_berg.wmv Steven Kelly talks about the exorcisms of Merry Berg] (1:08, 2.9MB) — From "[[The Love Prophet and the Children of God]]" documentary.

==See also==
* [[Heaven's Girl]]
* [[Joyanne Treadwell Berg]]

==References==
<references />

[[Category:Second generation]][[Category:Physical Abuse]][[Category:Psychological Abuse]][[Category:Sexual Abuse]][[Category:Child Abuse]]
[[Category:Spotlight]]

Talk:Merry Berg

2018-04-07T01:53:50Z

Jprobillard: Jprobillard moved page Talk:Merry Berg to Talk:Merry Jolene Berg: Middle name inserted. Most pages across the web carry her middle name. Easier to find.

#REDIRECT [[Talk:Merry Jolene Berg]]

Talk:Merry Jolene Berg

2018-04-07T01:53:50Z

Jprobillard: Jprobillard moved page Talk:Merry Berg to Talk:Merry Jolene Berg: Middle name inserted. Most pages across the web carry her middle name. Easier to find.

This forum is for the discussion of recent events in Merry's life.
*'''Exister''': I propose we move this discussion to the Researchers Forum. — [[User:Thorwald|Thorwald]] 16:27, 2 May 2005 (CDT)

Merry Berg

2018-04-07T01:53:50Z

Jprobillard: Jprobillard moved page Merry Berg to Merry Jolene Berg: Middle name inserted. Most pages across the web carry her middle name. Easier to find.

#REDIRECT [[Merry Jolene Berg]]

Merry Jolene Berg

2018-04-07T01:53:50Z

Jprobillard: Jprobillard moved page Merry Berg to Merry Jolene Berg: Middle name inserted. Most pages across the web carry her middle name. Easier to find.

{{caution child abuse}}

[[Image:Mene_cover.jpg|thumb|250px|Merry Berg on the cover of the November 1992 ''No Longer Children'' newsletter (see: ''[[Merry's Story]]'')]]
[[Image:Paul Aaron Berg and wife Shulamite 71.jpg|thumb|220px|Merry's parents, Paul Berg and Judy Helmstetler (1971)]]

'''Merry Jolene Berg''', known in [[The Family]] as '''Mene''', was the granddaughter of the [[cult|cult's]] founder, [[David Berg]]. She was born on 5 June 1972 to [[Paul Brandt Berg|Paul "Aaron" Berg]] and [[Judy Arlene Helmstetler|Judy "Shulamite" Helmstetler]]/Pendell. She died in her sleep on 16 December 2017.

Merry was invited to her grandfather's compound in December 1983 at age 11, where she stayed until August 1987. During this time, as well as while attending [[Victor Program]]s and [[Music with Meaning]], she underwent severe physical, sexual, and psychological abuse. Some of the abuse was documented and published for all cult members in the internal publications ''[[The Last State|The Last State?–The Dangers of Demonism!]]'' (ML 2306) and ''It's Up to You!–Mene's Farewell from the King's House!'' (ML 2524).

Merry left The Family for the [[United States]] in November 1990 when she was 18 years old. She lived in California, USA until her death.

==History==
===Life in The Family===
: ''Editor's Note: Much of the abuse described below is disputed by Family leaders, many of whom are either alleged or documented to have been directly involved. Merry's testimony, however, has been categorically supported by witnesses including [[Ricky Rodriguez]] and [[Davida Kelley]], as well as by [[Lord Justice Ward|Lord Justice Sir Alan Ward]], a British senior judiciary who presided over a three-year [[Judgment of Lord Justice Ward|custody trial]] involving The Family in which Merry served as a star witness.''

According to Family publications, from the age of eleven Merry was regularly invited by Family leaders at the group's Music with Meaning center in [[Greece]] to join them in alcohol consumption and watching pornographic videos. At this time she was also filmed performing stiptease dances along with other Family women and young girls, recorded for David Berg. She has testified that while in Greece she was sexually abused by multiple adult men, including [[Jeremy Spencer]] and [[Christopher Carruthers]].

After moving to her grandfather's compound in the [[Philippines]], where she reportedly slept in a walk-in closet adjacent to his bedroom, Berg repeatedly fondled her while [[Karen Zerby]] watched.

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">''"I find that Berg and [[Karen Zerby|Maria]] came down to her bedroom and whilst Maria and [[Sara Kelley|Sarah]] were talking, Berg got into her bed in their presence and fondled her. This happened on a number of occasions. She was called to his quarters. He was invariably impotent and they did not have sexual intercourse though he once tried to penetrate her, so there is no evidence of [[:Category:Incest|incest]] strictly defined. He did rupture her hymen with his finger. They had oral sex. That was oral sex by him on her … At one point they went through a mock celebration of marriage. Maria was fully aware of what was happening."''  — [[Judgment of Lord Justice Ward]], 1995</div>

In an [[Rolling Stone: The Life and Death of the Chosen One|interview with Rolling Stone magazine]] in 2005, Merry's brother [[Don Irwin]] stated, "Mene's first experience with full intercourse was with Ricky [Rodriguez] at the age of twelve. This was orchestrated by Berg, who wanted Ricky to get her pregnant. … Berg wanted to continue his family line though his granddaughter."

At age fourteen in 1987, after criticizing David Berg and confessing to seeing images of demons, Merry was subjected to extreme and protracted physical and psychological abuse, some of which was documented and published for Family members worldwide. Following are excerpts of one such publication, which constitutes a verbatim exchange between Merry and her grandfather:

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">
49. I have a rod here, will you please bring it to me.. You see this? Pass it to her, let her feel it. I want you to feel this, how heavy it is.

64. … If they have to use a rod to beat him [Satan] out of you, fine, you've got my permission. ([[Sara Kelley|Sara]]: Yes sir I'll do it!) If you've got to slap her to wake her up and get her out of that kind of spirit, slap her! Slap her good! Knock her around! Let her have it! …

74. Now get out, you damn devil, and leave her alone, or I'm going to whack the daylights out of her! (She cries.) Thank God that's the first time I think I've seen tears! Are you sorry? (MB: Yes sir!) But if you're not sorry, I'm going to make you sorry!…

81. You think you're going to make it up there (in [[The System|the system]]) somehow? The only way you could make it is to be a whore, that's all! You wouldn't even be an [[Flirty Fishing|FFer]], you wouldn't even be doing it for God, you'd just be doing it for a living. You'd probably end up on drugs — a drug demon possessed, alcoholic, diseased whore and soon dead! Now is that what you want? (MB: No sir!)…

114. The Lord took hold of her head … and yanked it around and back and forth and side ways to side ways by my hands until I was afraid I was going to yank her head off or break her neck! God was so angry... And then I hauled off and slapped her I don't know how many times tonight, hard, right? (MB: Yes sir!) And hit you....

145. … if it takes a good beating up to make you want to get rid of it, then we're going to beat you up!…

183. … if that doesn't work then what can we do? We can't kill you, that's God's business. We'll have to get rid of you.

185. Nobody want's to sleep with you, they're actually afraid of you because you've been under the control of the Devil…

189. I suggest you tie her to the bed.

190. Make sure she goes to the toilet the very last thing. I don't care if you wet the bed, dear, your hands are going to be tied to the sides of that bed at night

194. If beating doesn't get the hell out of you, you're going to get the hell out of here: I want you to memorise that. (MB: If beating you doesn't get the hell out of you, you're going to get the hell out of here!)

199. She's not to be alone at any time from now on. Someone is to be with her at all times who is big and strong and spiritual enough that you just absolutely knock it out of her.

215. If you don't get rid of those demons … you may have to get whipped in bed caned in bed.

*Source: [[The Last State|The Last State?–The Dangers of Demonism!]], by The Family, 1987
</div>

Merry Berg later recounted this episode in court tesimony, as quoted from Justice Ward's Judgment:

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">''"I upset them when 13/14 because I began to realise grandfather was a hypocrite who made rules for people which were not necessary for him. He would write one thing one day the opposite the next because God was changing. He was very contradictory. He was a chronic alcoholic. It was very confusing. When he was sick he would drink and call different women in for sexual relations or sexual comfort. It was very difficult to respect this man when he was so drunk. I now look back at his writings as the ravings of a drunk madman. Another thing that upset me at 14 was that I was losing my faith in the group and in the prophet - all the things I believed in. I had violent pictures and images and they said that showed I was listening to Satan. They would say that Satan and demons were attacking me. I do not know if it was my imagination but I was seeing demons. In bed I would get out terrified because I thought the spirits would attack me sexually. I would try to cover myself up. I would confess to Sara, my stepfather, [[Faith Berg|Faithy]] and others because I was afraid of Satan and wanted to be right with God and wanted the group's approval. They would slap me. Later they gathered the leadership together, pulled my pants down and spanked me publicly which was humiliating because these people were important to me. Six months later when my grandfather was told, he commanded them to beat me with his rod whenever I had violent thoughts or saw monsters.... Many times they would beat me, they took my head and beat it against the wall and bruised me. I was helpless and knew nothing else. My stepfather spanked me with his hands. It all felt like torture and once I fainted, throwing up. They said I was throwing up demons. The [[exorcism|exorcising]] terrified me".''  — Merry Berg, court testimony</div>

Lord Justice Ward described it as follows:

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">''"Who could blame the girl for lacking respect for a man so revered by others when she knew from her personal knowledge that he was foul mouthed, drank too much and sexually abused her. For this she was brutally punished. Her crime was to have yielded to Satan. That led to a time of two months when she had five major exorcisms performed over her. She was subjected to total immersion in the [[Word]], full-time, with top leadership "reading aloud along with her to keep her mind and mouth and eyes and ears occupied and for a constant infilling of the [[Holy Spirit]]." They prayed over her, even fifty times a day. She was 14 years old!"''  — Judgment of Lord Justice Ward, 1995</div>

About a year later Merry was sent to a Family [[Detention Camp]] in [[Macau]], where after further abuse including being locked in her room for six months, she suffered a complete mental breakdown. She did not at first receive appropriate psychiatric care, but after it was eventually provided she was sent to the United States to live with her grandmother [[Jane Miller Berg]].

[[Image:Deborah_davis_with_mene.jpg|thumb|220px|Merry with her aunt [[Deborah Davis]], who has also both spoken against and been the subject of vilification by the group (November 1992)]]
[[Image:Merry_(mene)_berg.jpg|thumb|220px|[[Héctor Walter Navarro]] with Merry (November 1992)]]

===Outside The Family===
After moving to the States, Merry began attending a Bible college, but soon broke down again and underwent further psychiatric treatment. Upon recovery, Merry refused to live with her grandmother and instead moved in with [[Deborah Davis]], her aunt.

She went on to give evidence of her experience in The Family during a groundbreaking [[Legal Case U.K., 1992|child-custody case]] in the [[U.K.]] involving The Family, as well as speaking on American televison about the same.

===Vilification===
Merry Berg has been vilified by Family leadership to the point that many Family members consider her insane and possessed by demons or Satan himself.

Though the cult had long since been publishing internal documents demonizing and humiliating Merry, when she began speaking out publicly about abuse she endured from and under the care of Family leaders (see ''[[Merry's Story]]''), [[Karen Zerby]], [[Sara Kelley]] and others stepped up the offensive.

Among other such documents is ''{{Pubs|2820|False Accusers in the Last Days!}}'' (ML 2820), written by Zerby in 1992. Following is an excerpt of its content:

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">
'''The Choice: To Believe Dad [David Berg] or Mene!'''

78. … Some of the things our enemies bring up can be quite difficult to try to explain or defend, so it's not always the best tack to try to analyse & explain every little accusation detail by detail. Sometimes it's better just to say, "Okay, who are you going to believe? Whose version are you going to believe? Are you going to believe what Dad & we have said about the situation? Or are you going to believe what Mene said about the situation?"

79. Why would anyone in the Family ever believe Mene above the Prophet? Dad is the man who changed your life & who has faithfully given you the Words of the Lord all these years, whose prophecies you have seen fulfilled & whose words you have seen work! -- And whose fruit has been wonderful, beautiful, and far-reaching! So why would you believe this girl who very obviously went completely insane? -- Whom we know was completely taken over by the Devil, & whose life was one long fantasy, starting from when she was a tiny child playing in her backyard, & then through the years has lived in a world of fantasy & daydreams.-- A girl whose fantasies eventually became so real to her that she could not distinguish the imaginary from the real. -- Not to mention the fact that she was given over to the Enemy that she was heaping curses on people merely because they corrected her. From the time she was a little girl she was obsessed with spirits of exaltation & power, obviously not the Lord's Spirit.

80. She had those devilish spirits before she ever came to be with us. She's purposely yielded herself to those things & as sweet & as beautiful as she looked, & as meek & docile as she seemed to be, she was like a roaring lion going about seeking whom she could devour. ([http://www.xfamily.org/xscripts/bible/?book=1%20Peter&chapter=5&verse=8 1Pet.5:8].) But the Lord allowed her true condition to remain hidden from us, so that we would invite her to come to live with us, so He could give her a chance to be delivered from those demonic spirits that were plaguing her & those terrible attitudes that were hindering her. We did all we could to rescue her, but she chose not to be rescued. We did all we could & gave her all the love & care & honour as Dad's granddaughter, much more than she even deserved, to try to help compensate in some way for losing her parents, & all those years she hadn't been able to see her grandfather, etc.

81. So I believe that the bottom line for everyone who hears Mene's "atrocity tales" is that they have to make a choice. And for people in the Family, that choice would be easy, because why would anyone in the Family accept the word of this crazy girl, who completely yielded herself to the Devil, over Dad's account of what happened? Of course, the reason there's a strong temptation to believe Mene's tale is because she's really got her story down pat, she goes into all kinds of vivid details with every person & what they supposedly did.

89. … She was fucking the Devil & throwing horrible violent curses on everyone around her, describing these in vivid, gruesome detail!

*Source: ''{{Pubs|2820|False Accusers in the Last Days!}}'' (ML 2820), by Karen Zerby, 1992
</div>

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">''"And I got the most gruesome picture of Mene with her mouth all red & dripping, drooling with blood like a vampire! Of course, she’s just a little ignorant nobody, but it shows you how the Devil is using her. Even Deborah is just being used"''  — David Berg, 1992:3</div>

===Life on the Streets===
In June [[2005]], ''[[:Category:Press:Rolling Stone|Rolling Stone]]'' magazine [[Rolling Stone: The Life and Death of the Chosen One|reported]] that "Merry is addicted to methamphetamine, turning tricks on Southern California beaches and struggling to stay alive.<ref>[[Rolling Stone: The Life and Death of the Chosen One]], Summer Double Issue 977/978, June 30-July 14, 2005, 122.</ref> Her mother has claimed that "She's just given up on life." <ref>Ibid, 122</ref> During this period friends and family frequently attempted to reach out to her and this eventually proved successful and Merry was able to quit drugs and get off the streets.

===Late Years===

In late 2006, friends and relatives reported that Merry was doing much better, had a good job, and was no longer using methamphetamine.<ref>[http://www.newdaynews.com/fun/index.cgi/read/2387 posting] on a [[NewDayNews.com]] forum by "Anneke" stating in part "Just a note to anyone interested in Merry (Mene's) progress....I see her a few times a week and she is doing FANTASTIC and realized the 'curse' was a LIE. She is clean and sober and has a home to live in and a good job and has turned her life around.", 2006-12-24 and correspondence from another source to an xFamily.org editor, 2007-01.</ref>

In her last years her family reported she was determined not to be defined by her suffering, becoming clean of drugs and reconnecting with her mother and family. She had a boyfriend and work that she loved and by all accounts of those close to her had found a degree of happiness that had long eluded her. <ref>Correspondence from family members to an xFamily.org editor, 2017-12.</ref>

===Death===

On December 16th, 2017 Merry Berg passed away in her sleep due to respiratory failure. Second generation members expressed their support across the internet groups and [https://youtu.be/aN04Wo9so_k a memorial for her was held on 3/10/2018].

==More Information==
* [[Merry's Story]] — By Merry Berg, November 1992
* [[Life with Grandpa - the Mene Story]] — By [[Ricky Rodriguez]], June 2002
* [[No Regrets|No Regrets - Why I left The Family]] — By former high-level member [[James Penn]], February 2000. Includes discussion of Merry Berg under the heading "''[[No_Regrets#MENE.2C_MENE.2C_TEKEL_UPHARSIN|Mene, Mene, Tekel Upharsin]]''"
* [[The Last State|The Last State?-The Dangers of Demonism!]] (DO 2306, August 1987) — Verbatim account of one exchange between Merry Berg and her grandfather David Berg
* [[Kathy Farrell]]

==Multimedia==

<gflash>320 240 https://media.xfamily.org/video/tv/flash/flvplayer.swf?autoStart=false&file=flv/nbc93-xSGA-testimony.flv</gflash>
* [[Image:icon_video.gif|Video]][https://media.xfamily.org/video/misc/NBC93_xSGA_testimony.wmv Merry Berg and other second generation ex-members speak about their experiences in The Family] (4:17, 7.7MB) — From [[NBC Now with Tom Brokaw and Katie Couric|NBC Now]], 1993-09-08
* [[Image:icon_video.gif|Video]][https://media.xfamily.org/video/misc/merry_berg.wmv Steven Kelly talks about the exorcisms of Merry Berg] (1:08, 2.9MB) — From "[[The Love Prophet and the Children of God]]" documentary.

==See also==
* [[Heaven's Girl]]
* [[Joyanne Treadwell Berg]]

==References==
<references />

[[Category:Second generation]][[Category:Physical Abuse]][[Category:Psychological Abuse]][[Category:Sexual Abuse]][[Category:Child Abuse]]
[[Category:Spotlight]]

Merry Jolene Berg

2018-04-07T01:41:29Z

Jprobillard: Added Jolene as middle name

{{caution child abuse}}

[[Image:Mene_cover.jpg|thumb|250px|Merry Berg on the cover of the November 1992 ''No Longer Children'' newsletter (see: ''[[Merry's Story]]'')]]
[[Image:Paul Aaron Berg and wife Shulamite 71.jpg|thumb|220px|Merry's parents, Paul Berg and Judy Helmstetler (1971)]]

'''Merry Jolene Berg''', known in [[The Family]] as '''Mene''', was the granddaughter of the [[cult|cult's]] founder, [[David Berg]]. She was born on 5 June 1972 to [[Paul Brandt Berg|Paul "Aaron" Berg]] and [[Judy Arlene Helmstetler|Judy "Shulamite" Helmstetler]]/Pendell. She died in her sleep on 16 December 2017.

Merry was invited to her grandfather's compound in December 1983 at age 11, where she stayed until August 1987. During this time, as well as while attending [[Victor Program]]s and [[Music with Meaning]], she underwent severe physical, sexual, and psychological abuse. Some of the abuse was documented and published for all cult members in the internal publications ''[[The Last State|The Last State?–The Dangers of Demonism!]]'' (ML 2306) and ''It's Up to You!–Mene's Farewell from the King's House!'' (ML 2524).

Merry left The Family for the [[United States]] in November 1990 when she was 18 years old. She lived in California, USA until her death.

==History==
===Life in The Family===
: ''Editor's Note: Much of the abuse described below is disputed by Family leaders, many of whom are either alleged or documented to have been directly involved. Merry's testimony, however, has been categorically supported by witnesses including [[Ricky Rodriguez]] and [[Davida Kelley]], as well as by [[Lord Justice Ward|Lord Justice Sir Alan Ward]], a British senior judiciary who presided over a three-year [[Judgment of Lord Justice Ward|custody trial]] involving The Family in which Merry served as a star witness.''

According to Family publications, from the age of eleven Merry was regularly invited by Family leaders at the group's Music with Meaning center in [[Greece]] to join them in alcohol consumption and watching pornographic videos. At this time she was also filmed performing stiptease dances along with other Family women and young girls, recorded for David Berg. She has testified that while in Greece she was sexually abused by multiple adult men, including [[Jeremy Spencer]] and [[Christopher Carruthers]].

After moving to her grandfather's compound in the [[Philippines]], where she reportedly slept in a walk-in closet adjacent to his bedroom, Berg repeatedly fondled her while [[Karen Zerby]] watched.

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">''"I find that Berg and [[Karen Zerby|Maria]] came down to her bedroom and whilst Maria and [[Sara Kelley|Sarah]] were talking, Berg got into her bed in their presence and fondled her. This happened on a number of occasions. She was called to his quarters. He was invariably impotent and they did not have sexual intercourse though he once tried to penetrate her, so there is no evidence of [[:Category:Incest|incest]] strictly defined. He did rupture her hymen with his finger. They had oral sex. That was oral sex by him on her … At one point they went through a mock celebration of marriage. Maria was fully aware of what was happening."''  — [[Judgment of Lord Justice Ward]], 1995</div>

In an [[Rolling Stone: The Life and Death of the Chosen One|interview with Rolling Stone magazine]] in 2005, Merry's brother [[Don Irwin]] stated, "Mene's first experience with full intercourse was with Ricky [Rodriguez] at the age of twelve. This was orchestrated by Berg, who wanted Ricky to get her pregnant. … Berg wanted to continue his family line though his granddaughter."

At age fourteen in 1987, after criticizing David Berg and confessing to seeing images of demons, Merry was subjected to extreme and protracted physical and psychological abuse, some of which was documented and published for Family members worldwide. Following are excerpts of one such publication, which constitutes a verbatim exchange between Merry and her grandfather:

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">
49. I have a rod here, will you please bring it to me.. You see this? Pass it to her, let her feel it. I want you to feel this, how heavy it is.

64. … If they have to use a rod to beat him [Satan] out of you, fine, you've got my permission. ([[Sara Kelley|Sara]]: Yes sir I'll do it!) If you've got to slap her to wake her up and get her out of that kind of spirit, slap her! Slap her good! Knock her around! Let her have it! …

74. Now get out, you damn devil, and leave her alone, or I'm going to whack the daylights out of her! (She cries.) Thank God that's the first time I think I've seen tears! Are you sorry? (MB: Yes sir!) But if you're not sorry, I'm going to make you sorry!…

81. You think you're going to make it up there (in [[The System|the system]]) somehow? The only way you could make it is to be a whore, that's all! You wouldn't even be an [[Flirty Fishing|FFer]], you wouldn't even be doing it for God, you'd just be doing it for a living. You'd probably end up on drugs — a drug demon possessed, alcoholic, diseased whore and soon dead! Now is that what you want? (MB: No sir!)…

114. The Lord took hold of her head … and yanked it around and back and forth and side ways to side ways by my hands until I was afraid I was going to yank her head off or break her neck! God was so angry... And then I hauled off and slapped her I don't know how many times tonight, hard, right? (MB: Yes sir!) And hit you....

145. … if it takes a good beating up to make you want to get rid of it, then we're going to beat you up!…

183. … if that doesn't work then what can we do? We can't kill you, that's God's business. We'll have to get rid of you.

185. Nobody want's to sleep with you, they're actually afraid of you because you've been under the control of the Devil…

189. I suggest you tie her to the bed.

190. Make sure she goes to the toilet the very last thing. I don't care if you wet the bed, dear, your hands are going to be tied to the sides of that bed at night

194. If beating doesn't get the hell out of you, you're going to get the hell out of here: I want you to memorise that. (MB: If beating you doesn't get the hell out of you, you're going to get the hell out of here!)

199. She's not to be alone at any time from now on. Someone is to be with her at all times who is big and strong and spiritual enough that you just absolutely knock it out of her.

215. If you don't get rid of those demons … you may have to get whipped in bed caned in bed.

*Source: [[The Last State|The Last State?–The Dangers of Demonism!]], by The Family, 1987
</div>

Merry Berg later recounted this episode in court tesimony, as quoted from Justice Ward's Judgment:

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">''"I upset them when 13/14 because I began to realise grandfather was a hypocrite who made rules for people which were not necessary for him. He would write one thing one day the opposite the next because God was changing. He was very contradictory. He was a chronic alcoholic. It was very confusing. When he was sick he would drink and call different women in for sexual relations or sexual comfort. It was very difficult to respect this man when he was so drunk. I now look back at his writings as the ravings of a drunk madman. Another thing that upset me at 14 was that I was losing my faith in the group and in the prophet - all the things I believed in. I had violent pictures and images and they said that showed I was listening to Satan. They would say that Satan and demons were attacking me. I do not know if it was my imagination but I was seeing demons. In bed I would get out terrified because I thought the spirits would attack me sexually. I would try to cover myself up. I would confess to Sara, my stepfather, [[Faith Berg|Faithy]] and others because I was afraid of Satan and wanted to be right with God and wanted the group's approval. They would slap me. Later they gathered the leadership together, pulled my pants down and spanked me publicly which was humiliating because these people were important to me. Six months later when my grandfather was told, he commanded them to beat me with his rod whenever I had violent thoughts or saw monsters.... Many times they would beat me, they took my head and beat it against the wall and bruised me. I was helpless and knew nothing else. My stepfather spanked me with his hands. It all felt like torture and once I fainted, throwing up. They said I was throwing up demons. The [[exorcism|exorcising]] terrified me".''  — Merry Berg, court testimony</div>

Lord Justice Ward described it as follows:

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">''"Who could blame the girl for lacking respect for a man so revered by others when she knew from her personal knowledge that he was foul mouthed, drank too much and sexually abused her. For this she was brutally punished. Her crime was to have yielded to Satan. That led to a time of two months when she had five major exorcisms performed over her. She was subjected to total immersion in the [[Word]], full-time, with top leadership "reading aloud along with her to keep her mind and mouth and eyes and ears occupied and for a constant infilling of the [[Holy Spirit]]." They prayed over her, even fifty times a day. She was 14 years old!"''  — Judgment of Lord Justice Ward, 1995</div>

About a year later Merry was sent to a Family [[Detention Camp]] in [[Macau]], where after further abuse including being locked in her room for six months, she suffered a complete mental breakdown. She did not at first receive appropriate psychiatric care, but after it was eventually provided she was sent to the United States to live with her grandmother [[Jane Miller Berg]].

[[Image:Deborah_davis_with_mene.jpg|thumb|220px|Merry with her aunt [[Deborah Davis]], who has also both spoken against and been the subject of vilification by the group (November 1992)]]
[[Image:Merry_(mene)_berg.jpg|thumb|220px|[[Héctor Walter Navarro]] with Merry (November 1992)]]

===Outside The Family===
After moving to the States, Merry began attending a Bible college, but soon broke down again and underwent further psychiatric treatment. Upon recovery, Merry refused to live with her grandmother and instead moved in with [[Deborah Davis]], her aunt.

She went on to give evidence of her experience in The Family during a groundbreaking [[Legal Case U.K., 1992|child-custody case]] in the [[U.K.]] involving The Family, as well as speaking on American televison about the same.

===Vilification===
Merry Berg has been vilified by Family leadership to the point that many Family members consider her insane and possessed by demons or Satan himself.

Though the cult had long since been publishing internal documents demonizing and humiliating Merry, when she began speaking out publicly about abuse she endured from and under the care of Family leaders (see ''[[Merry's Story]]''), [[Karen Zerby]], [[Sara Kelley]] and others stepped up the offensive.

Among other such documents is ''{{Pubs|2820|False Accusers in the Last Days!}}'' (ML 2820), written by Zerby in 1992. Following is an excerpt of its content:

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">
'''The Choice: To Believe Dad [David Berg] or Mene!'''

78. … Some of the things our enemies bring up can be quite difficult to try to explain or defend, so it's not always the best tack to try to analyse & explain every little accusation detail by detail. Sometimes it's better just to say, "Okay, who are you going to believe? Whose version are you going to believe? Are you going to believe what Dad & we have said about the situation? Or are you going to believe what Mene said about the situation?"

79. Why would anyone in the Family ever believe Mene above the Prophet? Dad is the man who changed your life & who has faithfully given you the Words of the Lord all these years, whose prophecies you have seen fulfilled & whose words you have seen work! -- And whose fruit has been wonderful, beautiful, and far-reaching! So why would you believe this girl who very obviously went completely insane? -- Whom we know was completely taken over by the Devil, & whose life was one long fantasy, starting from when she was a tiny child playing in her backyard, & then through the years has lived in a world of fantasy & daydreams.-- A girl whose fantasies eventually became so real to her that she could not distinguish the imaginary from the real. -- Not to mention the fact that she was given over to the Enemy that she was heaping curses on people merely because they corrected her. From the time she was a little girl she was obsessed with spirits of exaltation & power, obviously not the Lord's Spirit.

80. She had those devilish spirits before she ever came to be with us. She's purposely yielded herself to those things & as sweet & as beautiful as she looked, & as meek & docile as she seemed to be, she was like a roaring lion going about seeking whom she could devour. ([http://www.xfamily.org/xscripts/bible/?book=1%20Peter&chapter=5&verse=8 1Pet.5:8].) But the Lord allowed her true condition to remain hidden from us, so that we would invite her to come to live with us, so He could give her a chance to be delivered from those demonic spirits that were plaguing her & those terrible attitudes that were hindering her. We did all we could to rescue her, but she chose not to be rescued. We did all we could & gave her all the love & care & honour as Dad's granddaughter, much more than she even deserved, to try to help compensate in some way for losing her parents, & all those years she hadn't been able to see her grandfather, etc.

81. So I believe that the bottom line for everyone who hears Mene's "atrocity tales" is that they have to make a choice. And for people in the Family, that choice would be easy, because why would anyone in the Family accept the word of this crazy girl, who completely yielded herself to the Devil, over Dad's account of what happened? Of course, the reason there's a strong temptation to believe Mene's tale is because she's really got her story down pat, she goes into all kinds of vivid details with every person & what they supposedly did.

89. … She was fucking the Devil & throwing horrible violent curses on everyone around her, describing these in vivid, gruesome detail!

*Source: ''{{Pubs|2820|False Accusers in the Last Days!}}'' (ML 2820), by Karen Zerby, 1992
</div>

<div style="padding: 1em; margin: 10px; border: 2px dotted green;">''"And I got the most gruesome picture of Mene with her mouth all red & dripping, drooling with blood like a vampire! Of course, she’s just a little ignorant nobody, but it shows you how the Devil is using her. Even Deborah is just being used"''  — David Berg, 1992:3</div>

===Life on the Streets===
In June [[2005]], ''[[:Category:Press:Rolling Stone|Rolling Stone]]'' magazine [[Rolling Stone: The Life and Death of the Chosen One|reported]] that "Merry is addicted to methamphetamine, turning tricks on Southern California beaches and struggling to stay alive.<ref>[[Rolling Stone: The Life and Death of the Chosen One]], Summer Double Issue 977/978, June 30-July 14, 2005, 122.</ref> Her mother has claimed that "She's just given up on life." <ref>Ibid, 122</ref> During this period friends and family frequently attempted to reach out to her and this eventually proved successful and Merry was able to quit drugs and get off the streets.

===Late Years===

In late 2006, friends and relatives reported that Merry was doing much better, had a good job, and was no longer using methamphetamine.<ref>[http://www.newdaynews.com/fun/index.cgi/read/2387 posting] on a [[NewDayNews.com]] forum by "Anneke" stating in part "Just a note to anyone interested in Merry (Mene's) progress....I see her a few times a week and she is doing FANTASTIC and realized the 'curse' was a LIE. She is clean and sober and has a home to live in and a good job and has turned her life around.", 2006-12-24 and correspondence from another source to an xFamily.org editor, 2007-01.</ref>

In her last years her family reported she was determined not to be defined by her suffering, becoming clean of drugs and reconnecting with her mother and family. She had a boyfriend and work that she loved and by all accounts of those close to her had found a degree of happiness that had long eluded her. <ref>Correspondence from family members to an xFamily.org editor, 2017-12.</ref>

===Death===

On December 16th, 2017 Merry Berg passed away in her sleep due to respiratory failure. Second generation members expressed their support across the internet groups and [https://youtu.be/aN04Wo9so_k a memorial for her was held on 3/10/2018].

==More Information==
* [[Merry's Story]] — By Merry Berg, November 1992
* [[Life with Grandpa - the Mene Story]] — By [[Ricky Rodriguez]], June 2002
* [[No Regrets|No Regrets - Why I left The Family]] — By former high-level member [[James Penn]], February 2000. Includes discussion of Merry Berg under the heading "''[[No_Regrets#MENE.2C_MENE.2C_TEKEL_UPHARSIN|Mene, Mene, Tekel Upharsin]]''"
* [[The Last State|The Last State?-The Dangers of Demonism!]] (DO 2306, August 1987) — Verbatim account of one exchange between Merry Berg and her grandfather David Berg
* [[Kathy Farrell]]

==Multimedia==

<gflash>320 240 https://media.xfamily.org/video/tv/flash/flvplayer.swf?autoStart=false&file=flv/nbc93-xSGA-testimony.flv</gflash>
* [[Image:icon_video.gif|Video]][https://media.xfamily.org/video/misc/NBC93_xSGA_testimony.wmv Merry Berg and other second generation ex-members speak about their experiences in The Family] (4:17, 7.7MB) — From [[NBC Now with Tom Brokaw and Katie Couric|NBC Now]], 1993-09-08
* [[Image:icon_video.gif|Video]][https://media.xfamily.org/video/misc/merry_berg.wmv Steven Kelly talks about the exorcisms of Merry Berg] (1:08, 2.9MB) — From "[[The Love Prophet and the Children of God]]" documentary.

==See also==
* [[Heaven's Girl]]
* [[Joyanne Treadwell Berg]]

==References==
<references />

[[Category:Second generation]][[Category:Physical Abuse]][[Category:Psychological Abuse]][[Category:Sexual Abuse]][[Category:Child Abuse]]
[[Category:Spotlight]]

Category:Deaths

2018-04-07T01:38:57Z

Jprobillard:

The following is an ''incomplete'' list of people who were members or former members of The Family International and have since died. This list includes those who have taken their lives. When possible, the date and cause of death is listed in parentheses.
{|
|- style="vertical-align:top;"
|
*[[Abe Braaten]] (1977-09-26 – 2004-12-14; jumped from building)
*[[Robyn Ann Van Blarcom]] (died 1996-07-27; cancer)
*[[Andrew Parker]]
*[[Angela Marilyn Smith]] (1954 – 2005-01-08; stabbed to death)
*[[Ben Farnsworth]] (1992; jumped from building)
*[[Caleb David Shillander]] (1977-09-07 – 2006-11-21; suicide)
*[[Cherish Lloyd]] (1974-09-15 – 2003-07-26; kidney infection)
*Christina (1978 – 2012-01-28; suicide)
*[[Daniel Brinich]] (1981 – 2003; traffic accident)
*[[Daniel Frouman]] (1976-04-18 – 2009-07-08; suicide)
*[[Daniel Parker]]
*[[Denise Borowik]] (daughter of Grant Borowik & Ilda Rivera, a.k.a. Marcos & Maria, 1991-01-20 – 2012-02-23; suicide)
*[[Dona Kay Halling]] (aka Shulamite Fields, 1953 – 1980-01-30; stabbed to death)
*[[Eman]] (son of [[James and Sara]])
*[[Emmanuel David Frouman]] (1973-03-25 – 1994-02-08; bronchopneumonia)
*[[Emmanuel Sullivan]][http://groups.able2know.org/xfamily/topic/994-1]
*[[Gabriel Adam Redstone]] (1984 – 2004-05-24; motorcycle accident)
*[[Jario Pinzon]] (1955 – 2003-09-24; shot to death)
*[[James Sullivan]]
*[[Jean Paul Meurice]] (1955 – 1975)
*[[Jeremy Martin]]
*[[Johnny]] (son of [[Steven and Gina]])
*[[Jonathan M. Michael]] — ([[1979]]-07-01 – [[2000]]-02-16; suicide)
*[[Josh Lykins]] (1999-01-26; self-inflicted gunshot to head)
*Juan Pablo Brant (2013-01)
*[[Julia McNeil]] (c. 1974-11-24 – 2012-06-05; cancer)
*[[Katrina Angela Oehler]] (1981-05-04 – 1995-07-16; auto accident)
*[[Kristina Hope Noell]] (1978-08-26 – 1995-07-16; auto accident)
*[[Marina Helene Gruenhage|Marina Gruenhage]] (1951-08-17 – 2005-06-09; metastasized breast cancer)
*[[Megan]] (of [[Heaven and Joseph]]) (1981 – 2003-12-04)
|
*[[Merry Jolene Berg]] ([[1972]] 06-05 – [[2017]] 12-16; respiratory failure)
*[[Michel Piersotte]] (1955 – 1976)
*[[Michael Sweeney]] (1991; melanoma skin cancer)
*[[Nina Theresa Wickenheiser]] (1977-11-30 – 1995-07-16; auto accident)
*[[Paul Brandt Berg]] (Aaron) (1947-06 – 1973-04; apparent suicide)
*[[Piper Simmons]] (26), [[Rose Simmons]] (26), [[Sean Simmons]] (3) (2001-12-29; auto accident)
*[[Precious Heart Oehler]] (1980-02-07 – 1995-07-16; auto accident)
*[[Rachel Marie Meyer]] (1972-01-30 – 2008-09-22; complications of end-stage liver disease)
*[[Rick Dupuy]] (1951 – 1996-06-02; intentional drug overdose)
*[[Ricky Rodriguez]] (1975-01-25 – 2005-01-09; self-inflicted gunshot to head)
*[[River Phoenix]] (1970-08-23 – 1993-10-31; apparent drug-induced heart failure)
*[[Ruth Ann Redstone]] (1955 – 1987; AIDS-related pneumonia)
*[[Ruth Frouman]] (1953-09-30 – 1991-03-12; metastasized breast cancer)
*[[Simon Novotny]] (1979 – 2005, self-inflicted gunshot to head; son of Abner and Mary)
*[[Sharon/Joy]] (daughter of [[Byron and Mercy]])
*[[Shelley Bellavitti]] (1952 – 1980-03-16; cancer; aka Sheba Bear)
*[[Sho David]]
*[[Stephen Philippe Richard]] (1987-05-24 – 2003-08-19)
*[[Victoria Luz Korkames-Luevano]] (1980-09-13 – 1995-07-16; auto accident)
*[[Windy]] (daughter of [[Rufas and Dulce]]; overdose on Malaria pills)
*[[Zion Horwitz]] (1974 – 2003-01-01; stabbed to death)
|}

==External links==
*[http://memorial.riseinternationalcic.org/tfi/ Lost Children Memorial: The Family International/Children of God] — section on memorial site by [[RISE International]].
*[http://fly.to/familymemorial Family Memorial] — Created and maintained by Family members in remembrance of those lost
*[http://www.newdaynews.com/memorial/ NewDayNews: In Remembrance] — Memorial site by [[NewDayNews.com]] user Linda Tx
*[http://www.rickyrodriguez.org/ Ricky Rodriguez] — Memorial by friends and family
*[http://1hotweb.com/daniel/ Daniel Brinich Memorial] — Memorial Site for Daniel
*[http://www.danielfrouman.org/ Daniel Frouman Memorial] — memorial site for Daniel Frouman
*[http://www.pipersimmons.net/ Piper, Rose and Sean Simmons] — By Simmons family
*[http://www.angela-smith.org/ Angela Smith] — Created and maintained by The Family

[[Category:Current and Former Members]]

Valerie Farnsworth

2012-03-07T04:39:48Z

Jprobillard: added full legal name

'''Valerie Schwartz Farnsworth''' (Canadian; aka '''Sally Scribe''' or '''Salathiel''') was a long-time member of the [[Children of God]]/[[The Family International]]. She was [[David Berg]]'s personal secretary for many years and later part of [[Creations]]. She is the second wife of [[Tommy Farnsworth]].

{{Stub}}
[[Category:Current and Former Members]]

Category:Deaths

2012-02-25T06:43:55Z

Jprobillard:

The following is an ''incomplete'' list of people who were members or former members of The Family International and have since died. This list includes those who have taken their lives. When possible, the date and cause of death is listed in parentheses.
{|
|- style="vertical-align:top;"
|
*[[Abe Braaten]] (1977-09-26 – 2004-12-14, jumped from building)
*[[Robyn Ann Van Blarcom]] (died 1996-07-27, cancer)
*[[Andrew Parker]]
*[[Angela Marilyn Smith]] (1954 – 2005-01-08, stabbed to death)
*[[Ben Farnsworth]] (1992, jumped from building)
*[[Caleb David Shillander]] (1977-09-07 – 2006-11-21, suicide)
*[[Cherish Lloyd]] (1974-09-15 – 2003-07-26, kidney infection)
*[[Daniel Brinich]] (1981 – 2003, traffic accident)
*[[Daniel Frouman]] (1976-04-18 – 2009-07-08, suicide)
*[[Daniel Parker]]
*[[Denise Borowik]] (daughter of Grant Borowik & Ilda Rivera, a.k.a. Marcos & Maria, 1991-1-20 – 2012-2-23, suicide)
*[[Dona Kay Halling]] (aka Shulamite Fields, 1953 – 1980-01-30, stabbed to death)
*[[Eman]] (son of [[James and Sara]])
*[[Emmanuel David Frouman]] (1973-03-25 – 1994-02-08, bronchopneumonia)
*[[Emmanuel Sullivan]][http://xchildrenofgod.xfamily.org/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=6717]
*[[Gabriel Adam Redstone]] (1984 – 2004-05-24, motorcycle accident)
*[[Jario Pinzon]] (1955 – 2003-09-24, shot to death)
*[[James Sullivan]]
*[[Jean Paul Meurice]] (1955 – 1975)
*[[Jeremy Martin]]
*[[Johnny]] (son of [[Steven and Gina]])
*[[Jonathan M. Michael]] — ([[1979]]-07-01 – [[2000]]-02-16, suicide)
*[[Josh Lykins]] (1999-01-26, self-inflicted gunshot to head)
*[[Katrina Angela Oehler]] (1981-05-04 – 1995-07-16, auto accident)
*[[Kristina Hope Noell]] (1978-08-26 – 1995-07-16, auto accident)
*[[Marina Helene Gruenhage|Marina Gruenhage]] (1951-08-17 – 2005-06-09, metastasized breast cancer)
|
*[[Megan]] (of [[Heaven and Joseph]]) (1981 – 2003-12-04)
*[[Michel Piersotte]] (1955 – 1976)
*[[Michael Sweeney]] (1991, melanoma skin cancer)
*[[Nina Theresa Wickenheiser]] (1977-11-30 – 1995-07-16, auto accident)
*[[Paul Brandt Berg]] (Aaron) (1947-06 – 1973-04; apparent suicide)
*[[Piper Simmons]] (26), [[Rose Simmons]] (26), [[Sean Simmons]] (3) (2001-12-29, auto accident)
*[[Precious Heart Oehler]] (1980-02-07 – 1995-07-16, auto accident)
*[[Rachel Marie Meyer]] (1972-01-30 – 2008-09-22, complications of end-stage liver disease)
*[[Rick Dupuy]] (1951 – 1996-06-02, intentional drug overdose)
*[[Ricky Rodriguez]] (1975-01-25 – 2005-01-09, self-inflicted gunshot to head)
*[[River Phoenix]] (1970-08-23 – 1993-10-31, apparent drug-induced heart failure)
*[[Ruth Ann Redstone]] (1955 – 1987, AIDS-related pneumonia)
*[[Ruth Frouman]] (1953-09-30 – 1991-03-12, metastasized breast cancer)
*[[Simon Novotny]] (1979 – 2005, self-inflicted gunshot to head; son of Abner and Mary)
*[[Sharon/Joy]] (daughter of [[Byron and Mercy]])
*[[Shelley Bellavitti]] (1952 – 1980-03-16, cancer; aka Sheba Bear)
*[[Sho David]]
*[[Stephen Philippe Richard]] (1987-05-24 – 2003-08-19)
*[[Victoria Luz Korkames-Luevano]] (1980-09-13 – 1995-07-16, auto accident)
*Christina (1978 – 2012-01-28; suicide)
*[[Windy]] (daughter of [[Rufas and Dulce]], overdose on Malaria pills)
*[[Zion Horwitz]] (1974 – 2003-01-01, stabbed to death, apparent suicide)
|}
==External links==
*[http://memorial.riseinternationalcic.org/tfi/ Lost Children Memorial: The Family International/Children of God] — section on memorial site by [[RISE International]].
*[http://fly.to/familymemorial Family Memorial] — Created and maintained by Family members in remembrance of those lost
*[http://www.newdaynews.com/memorial/ NewDayNews: In Remembrance] — Memorial site by [[NewDayNews.com]] user Linda Tx
*[http://www.rickyrodriguez.org/ Ricky Rodriguez] — Memorial by friends and family
*[http://1hotweb.com/daniel/ Daniel Brinich Memorial] — Memorial Site for Daniel
*[http://www.danielfrouman.org/ Daniel Frouman Memorial] — memorial site for Daniel Frouman
*[http://www.pipersimmons.net/ Piper, Rose and Sean Simmons] — By Simmons family
*[http://www.angela-smith.org/ Angela Smith] — Created and maintained by The Family

[[Category:Current and Former Members]]

World Services

2012-01-18T05:35:48Z

Jprobillard: /* People */

{{stub}}

'''World Services''' (or '''WS''') was a collection of secretive, undercover [[home]]s or "units" primarily handling [[:Category:Finances|finances]], [[:Category:Family Publications|publications]], and special projects (e.g. [[Creations]]) in [[The Family International]].

WS operated under very surreptitious conditions, even from the rest of the group. Such units were often heavily subsidized or fully supported by funds allotted them formerly by [[David Berg]], and now [[Karen Zerby]] and [[Steven Kelly]]. Members of such units are taught they are the ''crème de la crème'', since they are specially selected for their talents, trusted with very sensitive information, and their units were or are directly answerable to Berg or Zerby.

Most WS members were required to clock a minimum of 48 hours of work per week (this number occasionally changes).

WS maintained many separate units globally prior to approximately 2003 or 2004 when all WS members relocated to 3 main locations in Albuquerque, New Mexico where Karen Zerby and Peter Kelly also lived and worked. After Ricky Rodreguez's [[Angela Smith's death|murder]]/[[Ricky Rodriguez's death|suicide]] of 2005, all WS relocated to [[wikipedia:Chapala, Jalisco|Chapala, Mexico]] where they took up the rent of 4 large properties (Karen Zerby and Steve Kelly also personally purchased a pair of condos at "Manzanilla" for vacationing purposes.

In late 2010, after the "[[Reboot Documents|Reboot]]" had been published to the rest of TFI, WS underwent the "WS restructuring" in which essentially most WS members (many of them older WS members with health problems and families with children) were "let go", the WS structure itself was downsized, one property was let go and another smaller one rented and nearly rebuilt to accommodate the many apartments that were needed, and many of the remaining WS members moved out to rent their own apartments with stipends paid for their work for WS.

At the same time as the "WS restructuring", the London "home" and separate warehouse and print office used for printing publications was closed down, the board structure that had been in place in TFI until that time was shut down and the various [[International Board]]s (aka "IB teams") that had been operating from within the WS units were shut down along with most of their initiatives.

Living in WS was an extremely cloistered existence, highly regulated, and with more rules and restrictions than regular TFI homes. The following are some of the rules and restrictions that WS members lived under:

'''WS RESTRICTIONS'''

* New mothers were required to give their baby to childcare workers and go back to work full-time when the baby was 6 months. Until that time, the mother could work part days but after that the baby was included the daily commute with the other children to a separate "school building" with admittedly committed and caring teachers. The school building was located on the largest property outside of Chapala, Mexico.
* WS workers were required to fill in daily time-sheets and keep office house, though all worked out of their bedroom/offices. The work environment was extremely intense and high pressured resulting in an unusually high occurrences of insomnia, serious allergies, and other illnesses.
* WS members could not maintain blogs, Facebook or Twitter accounts, or other social media.
* WS members could not phone members of their family without first obtaining permission from a "[[Home Shepherd]]" and praying with them to be careful about "security".
* Outgoing email had to be censored by WS "mail checkers". Photos to be sent to family members had to either not show the original scenery, not display short sleeves or any other identifying elements like red brick or tile. Photos could only be sent to personal family.
* Personal mailing lists and newsletters were disallowed.
* "Reli trips" (trips to visit relatives) were approved by a team of people a maximum of once every 3, later 4, years. They were paid for by a WS fund.
* Children of WS members could visit non-WS relatives before they learned to talk and after the age of 12 or 13 or when it was decided that they were old enough to learn to keep secrets. Some WS children would occasionally go on short road-trips with their teachers and a couple parents to nearby Mexican villages to sing and "learn how to witness".
* WS members received approximately $40 USD personal money each per month, and either an additional $10 alcohol money or occasional provided alcohol. In 2010, WS homes received the authority to decide on what to spend their allotted budgets for in a "Home Council" and so some additional extras were made possible. Any other money received by WS members by gifts or inheritances, were generally expected to be put into the WS common pot and used towards the "reli trips" or medical expenses.
* WS members were not allowed to have sexual relations with non-WS TFI members.
* Like all other Family members since [[1987]], incoming WS members were required to take HIV and STD tests.
* Identifying tags on clothing or baggage had to be removed before any trips to visit relatives. A members of the "[[Steering Counsel]]" was required to physically look through the baggage of outgoing WS members to ensure nothing telling was in the luggage.
* WS members worked from Monday-Friday 8 hours with one hour lunch breaks allowed. Saturday and Sunday were days off until approximately 2009 when Saturday became a half day off, that could be accumulated for up to 2 days.
* WS members were allowed about 14 days of vacation days a year. New WS members were giving one day vacation time per month on the first year they arrived.

Some peculiarities of WS living were as follows:

* A lot of young families.
* A less loose and liberal atmosphere than a few years before. There were two main batches of young TFI members brought into WS. The first was brought in at about the time of the "marriage of the generations" and when [[Rebecca Rapp]] was brought in, they apparently had their own versions of the "wild WS days" and then calmed down somewhat when their own children were born. The second batch was brought in approximately 2006-2007.
* There was an odd separateness of people. One would live and work in one's own room (that doubled as an office), meet for devotions some days, and then there were occasional parties. Usually, however, only a few particular groups of people mixed very much and most people were on their own a lot. It was not a particularly happy place and the staff usually felt very alone and isolated.
* There was a huge focus on healthy living, healthy eating and exercise, to the point that one doctor told one young TFI member that she was sick because she was eating too healthy.
* The work ethic mixed with the high expectations of a super good spiritual life (translated to receiving prophecies a lot, a daily 1/2 hour prayer vigil, etc.), which resulted in a lot of stress. The few ultra-organized people who could pull it off were the samples and everybody else tried to live up to.

Many [[:Category:Family Publications|Family publications]] were copyrighted under the name "World Services".

==People==
[[Image:WS Summit group shot-01.jpg|thumb|right|(L to R): Joy, Anne, Samuel Perfilio, Rebecca Rapp, Sean Mullen, Barbara Emerson, Phil/Elliot, Jessica Epstein, Karen Zerby, Steven Kelly]]
*[[Thomas Mestyanek]]
:- Finance Manager of [[The Family International]] since the 1970s
:- Aliases: Shemariah Books or Elliot
*[[Sean Michael Mullen]] ([[SGA]])
:- senior leader under [[Samuel Charles Perfilio|Kevin Brown]]; administration
:- American
:- Aliases: Francis Fisherman or Michael
*[[Gayle Kelly]]
:- member of North American leadership ([[NACRO]]) and Director of the [[TEAM Foundation]]; former wife of [[Steven Kelly]] and mother of [[Christian Kelly]]
:- American
:- Aliases: Abi, Abigail or Damaris
*[[David Forsberg]]
:- member of North American leadership (NACRO)
:- Aliases: Don, Andrew, Simon
*[[Thomas Hack]]
:- member of North American leadership (NACRO) and President of [[Activated Ministries]]; former [[Family Care Foundation|FCF]] Director
:- American
:- Aliases: Abner
*[[Barbara Ann Emerson]]
:- Executive Secretary to [[Karen Zerby]]
:- American
:- Aliases: Misty, Libertad
*[[John Francis]]
:- former spokesman for The Family International
:- American
:- Resigned and left group in 1996
*[[Susan Claire Borowik]]
:- an official representative of The Family International
:- Canadian
*[[Kristina Virve Gud Mihkelson]]
:- was Karen Zerby's personal cook in [[Portugal]]
:- owned properties in New Mexico where Karen Zerby lived
:- Swedish
* [[Jacqueline Sue Scott]]
:- American
:- Aliases: Moon
*[[Joy Qesheth Cox]] (SGA)
:- personal secretary to Karen Zerby since 1996; publications/secretarial
:- American
:- Aliases: Joy West, Joy East, Jenna
*[[Cedar]]
:- American
*[[Jessica Epstein]] (SGA)
:- GP department
:- Aliases: Lorie
*[[Rebecca Rapp]] (SGA)
:- personal secretary to Karen Zerby
*Nathaniel (SGA)
:- administration
:- younger brother of [[Sean Michael Mullen]]
*Anne (SGA)
:- administration
*Phil / Elliot (SGA)

==Former members of World Services==
*Arthur and Becky
:-King's Counselors of [[World Services]] and Directors of [[Wild Wind Productions]]
*[[Justus Ashtree]]
:- one of the prime editors of all material leaving WS in the 1970s and early 1980s as well as head of the Publications Department. He left the [[cult]] in 1981.
*[[Justus Pound]]
:- Treasurer of World Services, book keeper, Chief Officer, and Business Manager
:- removed from post in [[1975]]
*[[Sally Scribe]]
:- former personal secretary to [[David Berg]] and [[Karen Zerby]]
*[[Apollos]]
:- David Berg's chief "theologian" and prime editor of WS publications until 1999. Has since left the [[cult]]
:- American
*[[Mark Lloyd]] (aka Zadoc)
:- formerly International Business Manager
*Zebedee and Zorah (aka "The Z's"; not their legal names)
:- former editors of the "Family News" magazine
*[[Ed Priebe]] (aka Hart Inkletter)
:- a former illustrator for "[[True Komix]]". Berg appointed him head of The Family's Art Department in 1981. He left the cult in June 1990
*[[Paul Theophilus]]
:- a former editor

==Locations==
The following is an incomplete list of past and present locations of WS units and sub-units. Due to the extremely expensive and time-consuming aspect of moving a unit, they usually avoid trans-locating. As a result of this, many of these units remain in the same area for many years.

* [[wikipedia:Flüelen|Flüelen]], Switzerland — ("[[EURCRO|EURCRO Office]]", "[[Aurora Production AG|Aurora Home]]", "[[Family Missions Foundation]]", etc.)
* [[wikipedia:Leányfalu|Leányfalu]], Budapest, Hugary — (Eastern "EURCRO Office", "MM Home"/EECCC, European "[[PPC]]")
* Dallas, Texas, USA
* Vancouver, BC, Canada
* Japan
* Philipines — (The WS unit that was here was apparently called "the open pussy" in Spanish.){{citation needed}}
* Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA — (This is where WS first combined into 3 units, the Haven, the Apartments and one other. This was the first time in modern TFI history when WS units were all in the same location. Karen Zerby and Steven Kelly were living in the larger, rural unit, "Haven" when [[Ricky Rodriguez]] was meeting with [[Angela Smith]], which inspired a renewed focus on WS secrecy. (The Haven property belonged to [[Kristina Healey]] at the time but has since been sold.){{citation needed}}
* [[wikipedia:Chapala, Jalisco|Chapala, Jalisco]], Mexico — (After leaving Albuquerque, all WS members, averaging 140 from 2007-2010 and including Karen Zerby and Steven Kelly, moved to the small village of Chapala, right outside of Guadalajara, Mexico. WS rented 4 large properties fully outfitted with gyms, swimming pools, school buildings on one property, large industrial kitchens, a fleet of vehicles regularly kept updated, etc. In late 2010, most WS members either left WS or moved to their own apartments and homes, relying on stipends paid by WS.){{citation needed}}

{{LeadershipStructure}}
[[Category:Secrecy]]
[[Category:Leaders]]
[[Category:Fronts]]
[[Category:Glossary]]