Our Stories

Quinn Moon-Reed: Shunning is Traumatic

When I was 18, I was kicked out of my parents’ house, largely because I began questioning the Jehovah’s Witness religion that I had been born and raised in. Despite still attending meetings for a while, my disconnection from the faith ...

April Fraedrich: From Despair to Healing–My Journey Out of the Jehovah’s Witnesses

My mother started studying with Jehovah’s Witnesses when I was just seven years old. From that moment, my entire world changed. I was taught that I had to be separate from “worldly” people—no friends outside the faith, no b...

Eydie: Shunned for Thinking Differently

I was born and raised in South Africa, speaking Afrikaans. My journey with Jehovah’s Witnesses began when I was six years old, as my mother started studying with them, followed later by my stepfather. My childhood was controlled by ...

Gretchen Guzman: Leaving Jehovah’s Witnesses—My Journey to Truth and Freedom

I must have been five or six years old when I first grasped the terrifying implications of my religious upbringing. I was at my little friend’s house across the street when, in innocent cruelty, I blurted out, “You’re going to di...

Alice: Waking Up Together

I was born and raised as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses in the UK. Like many others raised in the faith, I never questioned it. I was baptized at 17, began pioneering at 18, and devoted the next ten years of my life to it. At 19, I met my husband, and...

Dorene Del Real: Breaking Free from Fear and Shunning

I was born and raised as a Jehovah’s Witness in the 1970s and 80s, a second-generation member of the faith. When I was just an infant, a Witness came to my mother’s door, and she soon began studying and attending meetings—despite...

Rae Bruvold: Leaving Jehovah’s Witnesses

I am 30 years old, and this is the story of my journey in and out of the Jehovah’s Witnesses —not once, but twice. My life has been shaped by the doctrines, the fear, and the manipulation of this high-control group. Now, I am finally free, and I w...

Sarah D: A Life Broken by Mandated Ostracism

I was born to Jehovah’s Witness parents, and from a very young age, religion controlled every aspect of my life. My parents made enormous sacrifices to remain loyal to their faith: no demanding or well-paid jobs, no credit for buying a house, and ...

Suzanne Snyder: The World of Jehovah's Witnesses Was All I Ever Had

I sit on the edge of my bed, staring at the faint glow of my phone screen. It’s been years, but the memories never fade. Some nights, they return with suffocating intensity—my sister’s voice, my brother’s laughter, the cold, heartless silence that...

Eulalio: I Lost My Family to This Religion

I never imagined that joining a religion could cost me my family. When I became a Jehovah’s Witness, I believed I was doing the right thing—following the truth, serving God. But I didn’t realize the price I would pay. At first, I was encouraged t...

Jennie Walace: Losing My Family Twice

My name is Jennie. I’m 68 years old, a widow, and a mother of four grown children. I was a Jehovah’s Witness for 38 years, along with my husband. We raised two children together, a son and a daughter, and for most of my life, I believed we were pa...

Derrick Miller: Shunned at 15, Abandoned for Life

I was born into a fourth-generation Jehovah’s Witness (JW) family in the U.S., a lineage that began with my great-grandfather, who was considered one of the “anointed.” My upbringing was deeply immersed in the faith—family members worked at Bethel...

Matthieu: The Price of Truth

My name is Matthieu, and for many years, I was a devoted Jehovah’s Witness. I served as a ministerial servant in France, married to a fellow Witness, and I truly believed I was where I belonged. But everything changed when I was 37. Why? Bec...

Volker Blockhaus: A Life Devoted to Jehovah’s Witnesses, Then Shunned

My name is Volker Blockhaus, and I am 69 years old. For nearly 50 years, I was a Jehovah’s Witness, and for 30 of those years, I served as an elder in three different congregations in southern Germany. I was fully dedicated to my faith and sincere...

Cody Casteel: Losing Everything to Mandated Shunning

I grew up as a Jehovah’s Witness, fully believing that I was part of the one true faith. Baptized at 15, I genuinely wanted to serve God and please my family. As I got older, I became passionate about my faith and even enjoyed debating with non-be...