The Olympia Washington Kiwanis members and their friends have cost the Washington State taxpayers over $50 million dollars (so far), because of their willful ignorance of long term, merciless and well known, child abuse that occurred at the Olympia Kiwanis Boys Ranch.

October 2006 note: This Olympia Kiwanis stuff is old news. I've left this information on the web, because I like the thought that someone will say to one of these Kiwanis friends or members: "Grandma, (Grandpa), are you still friends with those Olympia Kiwanians?"

Back to the 2011 or 2009 or 2007 or 2005 or 2003 or 2001 or 1999 or 1997 or 1995 or lbloom.net State of Washington Employees Salaries List

1994 Olympia Kiwanis Members List
2007 Thurston County employees list (pop 207,355)(1,332 employees)(includes gross & overtime wages, hire date)
2005 Thurston County employees list (pop 207,355)(1,257 employees)(includes hire date)
2002 Thurston County employees list (pop 207,355)(1,569 employees)
2002 Port Of Olympia employees list (pop 42,514)(40 employees)
2009 Oly Evergreen St Col employees list (938 employees)
Olympian Newspaper 2010 Thurston employees list
2006 Olympia School District employees list (Includes Benefits)
2002 City of Olympia employees list (pop 42,514)(685 employees)
Olympian Newspaper 2010 city of Lacy employees list
2002 City of Lacey employees list (pop 31,226)(226 employees)
2009 South Puget Sound Com Col employees list (1,001 employees)
Name search of Wash. State voters includes our addresses (and birthdays)
Name search of Wash State Court filings Traffic, Criminal, Civil, Domestic, Juvenile Offender, and Probate/Guardianship
Back to the beginning OKBR Home Page(http://lbloom.net/indexok.html)

These judges, lawyers, politicians, ect..., who caused, ignored and covered up the OKBR, are still in charge of Thurston County government, the Kiwanis, DSHS, and much of Wa state government and they are not remorseful. They blame the kids or the "system", not themselves. Anyone I've listed who sends an e-mail, saying that "because of the OKBR, I am not a friend of the Olympia Kiwanis ", I will display it prominently HERE. I expect very few e-mails.

There were many obvious and long-term warnings about the 1970-94 OKBR.

  • DSHS knew since at least 1977.
  • The OKBR staff certainly knew.
  • The abused kids told staff, schools, counselors, police, caseworkers, therapists, ect.., about their abuse at the OKBR, but nobody investigated.
  • Olympia Police Chief Wurner came to an Olympia Kiwanis meeting in 1986 and told the Kiwanis about the troubles at the OKBR. Chief Wurner was ignored. Maybe he should have done more, but he probably wanted to keep his job.
  • It was well know by the Thurston County courts. These kids were constantly in and out of the Thurston County legal system.
  • The OKBR was written about in the Kiwanis Komments newsletters, and the Kiwanis Board Ranch minutes.
  • All the OKBR Board Members had a legal oversight of the OKBR.
  • Were all Olympia Kiwanis Attorneys & Judges and/or Politicians uninformed?
  • It's amazing how blissfully ignorant some people were about the OKBR. You can read about their guiltlessness in some of their Washington State Patrol and Office of Special Investigation statements.
  • Here's Wa St Patrol Olympia Kiwanis member lists of 1987, 1990, 1994
  • Here is a 49 page index of 5,223 pages of documents that the WSP collected about the OKBR. Anybody can order any of those public documents by following the instructions on that page.
  • The OKBR sent kids for weekend visits to child abusers who donated land to the Kiwanis. The Kiwanians sold the land in 1993 for $125,000.
  • Can the Olympian Newspaper claim ignorance?

    Kiwanis admit seven more women

    By Abby Haight

    November 3, 1986

    Olympian staff writer

    Olympia Kiwanis Club leaders will make a pitch for admitting women to their service organization when they meet with their international president this weekend in Portland. .

    Although the meeting with Kiwanis International President Frank DiNoto was arranged earlier, it coincides with a decision this morning to admit seven more women into the Olympia chapter. The Olympia Kiwanis Board of Directors voted overwhelmingly to accept the women's applications, said President Rex Derr.

    The seven, including Thurston County District Court Judge Sue Dubuisson, are among the first women in the service organization.

    Last summer, Lacey policewoman Loreli Thompson became the first to break the men­only barrier.

    What Olympia.Kiwanis leaders called a logical step into modern times was greeted with threats from the Kiwanis International that the chapter's charter would be pulled if women were admitted.

    Olympia Kiwanis officials say they are adamant about admitting women.

    Last September, the group sent a letter to the international asking that Olympia's chapter be a model to see the effect of women membership, Derr said today.

    The international didn't respond, prompting Derr to request the weekend meeting with DiNoto. The international president is visiting Portland to meet with Pacific Northwest Kiwanis groups.

    Derr said ultimately he would like to see the international drop its ban on women.

    "We'd like to move ahead with this change in concert with the international, rather than in conflict with it," he said.

    Olympia is one of about 20 chapters in nine states that have admitted women.

    But the fate of those clubs may depend on a New Jersey court case being appealed by Kiwanis International. The New Jersey club successfully sued to retain its charter after the international tried to pull its membership for admitting women.

    The international is appealing the court decision.

    The U.S. Supreme Court agreed today to hear a similar case involving a decision by Rotary international to oust a club in California.

    Derr said he had no idea whether DiNoto was sympathetic to allowing women, although DiNoto was a member of the International Board of Directors that recommended last June that local clubs be given the prerogative of deciding whether to add women. The overall member ship of the international, however, voted against the proposal.

    Past Olympia President C.L. "Kip" Stilz, who will accompany Derr to Portland, said the two likely will recommend the international drop its old­time sexism and welcome women as vital additions to Kiwanis.

    "I think we're just going to say we want to take the opportunity to be leaders and not followers and we feel it's inevitable," he said.

    Below is an e-mail I received from a former Olympia, Washington resident.

    From: ~~~~~~~~@aol.com
    To: manaco@whidbey.net
    Sent: Wednesday, July 28, 1999 11:34 AM
    Subject: OKBR
    Just came across your pages and felt the urge to respond... In the early 80's (81-83) I was at the OKBR frequently as a young kid walking to/from school, I became friends with some of the boys. At one point a small boy confided to me that he was being raped by another boy in the home. The abusing boy talked about it openly!
    Days later I walked the victim to OPD where we both gave statements. Later that evening I began to receive these incredibly threatening phone calls from a woman employee of the ranch who's name I believe was Paulette at my home. She kept calling over and over screaming at me calling me names. It was horrible. I thought I was helping someone. Nothing came of it. Then all these years later, it all comes out ... one of the boys that I had known there left as a young adult and still couldn't get it together, he eventually killed himself. As an adult now I don't often think back to those times but it still saddens me. All those boys that needed a safe nurturing place to be, and how many of them were better off for having been taken there? It's not about money. It cost these boys their lives, their souls, their trust. Those people who knew, who didn't care, they should feel such shame. Just my opinion.

    From: louis a bloom manaco@whidbey.net
    To: ~~~~~~~@aol.com
    Sent: Wednesday, July 28, 1999 7:30 PM
    Subject: Re: OKBR
    thanks for your e-mail. from what i've read, dshs, the olympia police department, and other "authorities" didn't consider child on child rape to be against the law. it was considered "normal experimentation". The "paulette" you mention, may have been Collette Queener who was an assistant director at the OKBR. Collette, OKBR Director Tom Van Woerdan, and OKBR counselor Laura Rambo Russell were ineptly charged by Wa. St. with "criminal mistreatment for failing to stop abuse". The charges were dismissed by Thurston County Judge Daniel Berschauer on technicalities. The lawyer who represented Collette Queener said, (Nov. 14, 1996 Olympian), that it was a "witch hunt", and that " a more innocent person (than Queener) you could not have for a client. She's an ex-nun ..... I don't see how you could view her in an evil or negative light."
    I congratulate you for doing the right thing, when all those adults looked the other way. I repeat on most pages that the " OKBR has cost the Washington State taxpayers over $35 million dollars (so far)", because I think most people don't care about the kids involved, but they may care that it has cost them (taxpayers) money.
    louis bloom


    manaco@whidbey.net