Carole Okeeffe: They Shunned Him for 44 Years. I Shunned Them Back.

I was not a Witness, but half my family was. I studied with a Witness to see what my family was into. I thought it was bogus and quit after several weeks. I am not easily led and didn’t go at the rate they wanted. Instead, I read ahead and ended it.

I was the oldest of nine children. The youngest five succumbed to the mind control and all got baptized eventually. My mother followed suit, and a while later my dad joined too. He had been a chief in the Navy and quickly progressed through the Witness ranks. He was an elder before long.

My baby brother and his wife confessed to both having extramarital experiences. This was during the ’70s, a time of experimenting with free love and such practices as swinging. They went before the judicial board, which included my father. They were disfellowshipped.

The wife asked for forgiveness and got back in. My brother didn’t.

The Witness part of the family shunned him for 44 years. They didn’t even reach out to him on his deathbed, which angered and hurt me so bad I decided to shun them.

What really bugs me about the organization in general is they harbor drunks, porn addicts, and attempted murderers, all in my family—and, as we know, they harbor child molesters.

I managed for years to keep up a good relationship with my parents and all my siblings. My parents are dead. I’ve also lost a sister and two brothers. But family unity was destroyed 44 years ago.