manaco@whidbey.net
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)
Until Oct 1999, I believed that the Kiwanians and their friends were guilty of careless neglect or callous indifference. After hearing frightening audio depositions from some of the abused kids, I now believe that these Thur Co citizens were involved with an "active collaboration with evil." According to these depositioned kids, (which was not contradicted by Kiwanian attorney Don Miles), the OKBR staff was involved in long-term molestation and sadistic abuse of these helpless children. DSHS, Olympia, & the Kiwanians criminally ignored the warning signs and then justified their inaction by claiming ignorance. Many of these inattentive judges, lawyers, & politicians want your vote for re-election.
google is the best search engine, and you can make a detailed search of just this site.
There were many obvious and long-term warnings about the 1970-94 child abusing Olympia Kiwanis Boys Ranch.
STATEMENT OF LES JAMES ON December 13, 1995 95-687
I am Sergeant Steve McCulley of the Washington State Patrol, Internal Affairs Section. The date is December 19, 1995. The time is 9:25 a.m. This is a statement of dictation notes from a interview I conducted on December 13, 1995 at 9:50 a.m. The interview was conducted over the telephone with Les James, previously the head of administrative services at DSHS.
James held this position from January 1987 until October 1990, and again in August 1991 until October 1992. He advised that within the office of administrative services, he oversaw the operations of OSI, Medicare fraud, and the office of operation reviews. James stated that Bill Griffith was his person in charge of the office of operation reviews and the audits. Based on the way they did business when he was the head of administrative services, he would of had a meeting with Art Cantrall and Bill Griffith as the result of an audit. Especially like the audit Cantrall conducted involving the OKBR in '88. He said he had some trouble with Mark Redal, region 6 administrator, responding to this audit and others. James stated that in keeping with the chain of command, he reported directly to Bob Benson, then deputy secretary of DSHS. It was Benson's responsibility to oversee the audit function of administrative services.
James said he wasn't absolutely positive, but he thought he had attended a meeting with Benson, Trause, Griffith, and Cantrall to discuss the audit Cantrall conducted on OKBR in '88. The purpose of the meeting was to make recommendations about what should occur at the boys ranch. He said at that time, there was a standing order that there would be a meeting with the deputy secretaries as the result of audits which showed potential risk to the clients or the department.
James was asked if he was familiar with the rumor that DCFS tended to resist the results of audits more than other divisions. He stated he heard DCFS was always resistant to the audits. He felt part of the problem with the audits Cantrall conducted was Cantrall himself. He said Cantrall was not much of a people person. He was black and white, very dogmatic, and very strong in his dealings with people. James said this tended to cast a shadow over Cantrall's audits. He had to determine how much Cantrall was over stating or exaggerating a problem, and how much was a real threat.
James went on to discuss the resistance by DCFS to audits and felt that much of the resistance came from the tough job they had to do from being under staffed not to mention the constant problems they had to deal with. He also felt it had to do with the nature of their work and the impossibility of it.
When we asked James about the OKBR audit, James stated that he was sure Cantrall was not over stating the problem, and there were actual problems that needed to be addressed (he didn't have any specifics). James told us another problem with the audit was they had to look at how much of the criminal type children at the ranch were being truthful, and how much of it was fabricated in their attempt to get the staff in trouble. This has been his experience in the past when dealing with some group homes and statements made by the kids. But he felt in reviewing Candrall's's audits, he concluded there were some potentially serious problems at the OKBR (again, no specifics).
James said in his experience with Redal, he would do anything to keep from "rocking the boat." In his opinion (without any specific to back it up), he felt Redal was afraid to rock the boat because of past confrontations with legislators whenever DCFS would try to take action on a facility. James related his experience with pressure from legislators when he was director of vocational rehabilitation. He tried to close a facility in Spokane, not because they were hurting anyone, but they were not spending the funds according to the contract. When he tried to take action on the facility, the facility director went to the area legislators who complained. James then had to attend several legislative committees to attempt at explaining what he was trying to do. He said for people in his position, it became a real problem having to always deal with legislators when you were trying to take action in accordance with guidelines and policies. James stated it was a common practice for vendors to go to legislators with their concerns
or complaints. The legislators would in turn go to the secretary to complain. This would end up causing problems by placing pressure on the directors who were trying to take action on a facility.
James felt, in recent years, he and others received less support from the administration when pressed by legislators, and there were more efforts in attempting to please everyone including the public and the legislature.
James characterized Trause as a "spin-doctor." He clarified this statement by saying Trause would always put the right spin on any issue and always tried to please everyone instead of saying "this is the right thing, this is what we're going to do, and this is how we're going to do it." He said Trause would do whatever it took to please everyone, which made it very difficult for some directors. He characterized deputy secretary Bob Benson as a straight shooter, easy to deal with, and responsive to the needs of the directors.
Follow-up Interview December 19, 1995
On December 19, 1995, at 11:30 a.m., I contacted James again to ask if he would respond to my contact with Bob Benson.
When I called Benson and asked him about his information regarding OKBR and the audit conducted by Art Cantrall, Benson stated he didn't have knowledge of any problems occurring at the OKBR or the audit. James said he was surprised but not shocked that Benson didn't have any knowledge. He stated that in Benson's position as deputy secretary, he primarily dealt with budgeting issues and had constant problems to deal with. He told me that part of Benson's oversight was on the audits. If he was aware of problems at the boys ranch, as a result of the audit, it would be his responsibility to advise fellow deputy secretary Paul Trause and the secretary of DSHS.
Again, James stated that he would not be able to testify on trial that he had a meeting with Benson and Trause reference the Cantrall audit, but he was almost certain the meeting occurred.
Below is an e-mail I received from a former Olympia, Washington resident.
From: ~~~~~~~~@aol.com
From: louis a bloom manaco@whidbey.net
To: Louis Bloom 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.
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