2/3/93 Van Schoorl Kiwanis Komments about the OKBR

Robert Van Schoorl was/is an Olympia, Washington Kiwanis member and Port of Olympia commissioner.

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?"

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    Kiwanis Komments February 3, 1993
    Bob's Briefing- A Word From Olympia Kiwanis President Bob Van Schoorl
    The OK Boys Ranch is obviously on the mind of most of our members, particularly with the articles in the Olympian on Monday. Clearly we am not out of the woods yet on the fallout from last summers incidents but, you should know that the outlook is positive.
    Jane Skinner and the Boys Ranch Board have put in a tremendous amount of time over the past six months dealing with some very complex issues and making some difficult decisions. They have made their decisions after a considerable amount of evaluation, research, and discussion. The officers of the Kiwanis Board have been asked to participate in some of these deliberations and we have been impressed by both the level of effort the Ranch Board has put into the decision making process and the quality of the decision. When you get a chance, take a moment to thank the Boys Ranch Board members for their efforts on our behalf and on the behalf of the boys at the Ranch.
    Regretfully, Tom VanWoerden has resigned after twenty two years as the only director which the Ranch has had. Tom will be greatly missed as the director, but hopefully will not be lost to us as a member of Olympia Kiwanis . If you see Tom, or have the opportunity to call him, please thank him for his dedicated service and encourage him to remain active with Kiwanis. The Boys Ranch Board has appointed an interim director while conducting a search for Tom's replacement.
    I am aware that many of you would like additional information on what is happening with the Ranch. I would be happy to answer your questions if you give me a call, as I'm certain Jane would. We will take a few minutes at our next meeting to update you on what we know also. If there is an interest, we can dedicate the Roundtable on February 15 to a discussion of the Boys Ranch. Let me know if you are interested.

Back to more Olympia Kiwanis Komments Newsletters
Below is one page from the Olympia Kiwanis Komments Newsletter from Feb. 3, 1993.

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 people were involved with an "active collaboration with evil". The OKBR staff was apparently actively involved in long-term molestation and sadistic abuse of these kids. The Kiwanians and their friends could/should have stopped the abuse.

Robert Van Schoorl says that he knew nothing about the troubles of the OKBR until it was in the newspapers in late 1992.
Mr Van Schoorl became an Olympia Kiwanian on 6/22/87, was President of the Olympia Kiwanis in 1992, has been budget program specialist for DSHS, has worked for the Washington State Senate on the DSHS budget, has worked for the Washington State Department of Licensing in which he oversaw 50 boards and commissions about their licensing, was a budget manager for the Department of Natural Resources, is presently a chief deputy for the Thurston County Auditor (Olympia Kiwanian Sam Reed) and is presently (1999) an Olympia Port Commissioner, running for reelection this year. Mr. Van Schoorl ran for Thurston County Assessor in 1998, but he lost. The troubles at the OKBR since the early 1980's were common knowledge, among many Kiwanians, Thurston County Officials and citizens, Olympia Police, DSHS officials, ect..., but Mr. Van Schoorl said he was in the dark until late 1992.

Bob Van Schoorl gave a deposition on June 30, 1994 about his involvement with the Olympia Kiwanis Boys Ranch. Mr. Van Schoorl was an Olympia Kiwanis member since June 1987, and was Olympia Kiwanis President in 1992, but he said he knew very little about the Olympia Kiwanis Boys Ranch troubles.

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.

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?

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

From: ~~~~~~~~@aol.com
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.

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