#la verkin

[southwestadventures]

La Verkin UT

[placesthatchangedpeople]

Former employee about Second Chances in Utah

This testimony was found on Google Local Guides made by a former employee I was employed here. I was extremely unimpressed and disappointed with this facility and their program. I received absolutely no training in how to handle any potentially dangerous or volatile situations. With troubled girls who are there for mental illness, drug abuse, and behavioral problems, training should always be given before one ever enters the workplace, as a situation could quickly become out of hand. I was shuffled from person to person to "job shadow" but was largely ignored and given no guidance, except to be reprimanded for something I had no idea was against policy (showing a girl a picture of my wedding dress). I was also astounded at how poorly the girls were treated. Treatment facility is a euphemism for hell hole. This step above a prison was dirty, damaged, and in disrepair. There was an extreme lack of professionalism from staff in the treatment and supervision of the girls in their care and their program seemingly sets them up for failure in order to get the girls to have to stay at their facility longer, in essence extorting money from the girls and their families. I would not work for this facility nor would I ever subject anyone to be trapped there in that dirty, dingy house with employees that are untrained and unqualified, that exploits the term treatment facility to make one think they are there to help, when really they are just looking to extort.

[placesthatchangedpeople]

Jen at Cross Creek Manor

This review was found on Google Local Guides on the website for the Second Chances asylum in La Verkin, Utah. The building used to house a department of Cross Creek Manor, which was part of the WWASP organization where several teenagers lost their lives while they attended residential programs. The present management does not seem to have ties to the WWASP organization. The manager used to run a group home which was mismanaged resulting in violence. I was in this exact facility in the early 90s when it was known as Cross Creek Manor, a division of the specialty school programs that are owned by millionaire business man Robert Lichfield. This place traumatized me as a scared and troubled youth. I work now as a clinical psychologist and one of my aims in my career is to inform parents about the realities of these programs. In some cases, they have killed children by way of starvation, over work and abuse (reference Serenity Bay in Jamaica, boys schools in New Mexico, American Samoa and Mexico). More commonly, they cause irreparable rifts in the family system as your child loses trust in you as their parent and protector. Alternatives to explore include family systems therapy with all family members present for the healing process of all members, find a local practitioner to help you and work together to treat the family system. Listen to your child, they are acting out likely in response to something stressful in their lives not because they are inherently bad. Parenting is difficult. And sometimes desperation takes over, but as a doctor and survivor of this very place, I implore you, do not send your children here.

[placesthatchangedpeople]

A testimony about The Heritage School and Cross Creek Manor

Cross Creek Manor is closed now. It closed some years ago while the management were involved in various lawsuits. The building now houses Second Chances which use almost the same system with 6 levels studentsh ave to pass before graduating

Gosh it was so long ago!!!! Let's see.......I was sent at the age of 12 to Heritage School in Provo, UT. on January 16th, 1986 (not a wwasp school). I was then transferred to Cross Creek in La Verkin, UT. sometime in May of 1989. I spent about 9 months there until I ran away on February 14th, 1990. How would I describe my stay there? Lovely, j/k lol!!! Let's see, I think they could have done things way better considering what our parents were spending. But, this was when the schools were just starting. They weren't very organized, and the program and the rules seemed to change daily making it hard to follow the rules.

The staff were not very nice. They were short tempered, and really seemed to enjoy the power of being able to punish us. We had a lot of differences. I think the fact that the majority of them were from local Mormon families, made things extremely difficult. The way they grew up was very different then how most of us grew up. I think they pretty much thought we were Satan's children, lol!!!

I liked the fact they offered therapy. I looked forward to that every week. It was my hour to be able to vent all my anger and frustration about my years away from home. Once I was 16 my therapist basically told me that I was never going home, and that I was going to be there until my 18 birthday. I think the reason he did this was because he ran out of excuses why my parents weren't allowing me to come home. I was always trying my best to work on things, and not get into trouble. I thought it was my fault that I was still there, and that it was because I was just not trying hard enough. I think the staff thought I deserved to be there. I could see why. Especially because there were times I would have incidents of hurting myself or others (usually staff). But, how the hell could you blame me??? I was put into these institutions, and basically forgotten about. For no real good reason I might add.

So, I took matters into my own hands. I took a vacuum cord and found the only window without an alarm, and flung it out the window. I almost broke my neck getting out of there, and the burns to my hands from the vacuum cord ripping through them was very painful. Did I tell you I landed right in front of a late night staff meeting in progress? Yep. Sure did! I guess they had waited until we were all in bed to have this meeting. Let me tell you how fun it was to feel the pain of the impact in the parking lot from the jump, then having to get up and run for my life!!!! It was funny seeing the look of shock, then them bolting out of their seats to get to the front door to come chasing after me!!!!!!!

They never did catch me. So, I lived a year on my own in St. George before my Aunt and Uncle found me. I then moved to California to live with them so I could graduate high school. I learned a lot from them. My 3 cousins became my brothers and sisters. I can't tell you how nice it was to finally be a part of a family who loved, and cared about me. From time to time I would make bad choices, but that is all a part of growing up. I take that back! Actually that's just a part of life!!!!!

So, Happy New Year to all of you! I'm really looking forward to being done with 2008, and getting on with 2009.

[placesthatchangedpeople]

A testimony about Cross Creek Manor and High Impact

Cross Creek Manor used to be located in La Verkin, Utah. Today the campus is housing Second Chances working almost like Cross Creek Manor did with 6 levels of brainwashing before students can graduate.

High Impact was a private boot camp working as sub-contractor for Cross Creek Manor and other residential programs using the WWASP curriculum. The authorities in Mexico raided it and closed it down because their methods were illegal.

When I was 15 years old I was sent to Cross Creek Manor by my parents. My father transported me there with my sister. I just found out yesterday that he brought my sister just so I wouldn’t run. I was at Cross Creek for 3 months. They kept me in the isolation room most of the time, and when I was out of the isolation room they made me sleep in the hallway so they could monitor me at all times. Pretty much like suicide watch. I got restrained way more times than I can count. There were quite a few times that I was restrained in my own blood. One night I was talking to the lady watching me and I accidentally woke up one of the managers (tom). He came into the isolation room and restrained me and he jammed his elbow into my back and neck. I was maybe out of special needs for 3 weeks total out of the 3 month period. I was in there for thanksgiving and Christmas. I wasn’t allowed to open my Christmas presents until the morning I left for High Impact and I couldn’t take any of the stuff with me. . Ron Garrett kept threatening to send me to High Impact. One morning around 2am two people came to transport me to Mexico. I had no idea I was going until they woke me up and said lets go.

I recently found my “hope buddy” that was assigned to me when I first got to Cross Creek. I didn’t remember much other than being in the isolation room. She told me that the day I left to go to High Impact the staff were laughing because the isolation room was quiet again. She was assigned to clean the room I was in the day I left. She described it as pretty much scary. My blood was all over the place and she had never even been to the isolation room before.

When I got to High Impact I saw the cages and the fenced in area of land that we ran our laps in. the criteria to graduate were simple… or so I thought. We had to do 60 worksheets from listening to A.A tapes and 2,000 laps around the dirt track. Then I got introduced to the consequence sheets that take away laps. If you came to high impact from home, you needed 5 consequences to get 80 laps taken away. If you came to High Impact from another facility, it only took 1 consequence to take away 80 laps. The reason for that is because if you come from another facility you are expected to know what to do and have experience on following the rules. I spent the majority of my time there in the dog cages. Laying in R&R position. R&R position is basically like laying down in the position you would be in on a cross but laying on your stomach. I wasn’t able to move at all. If I moved any part of my body, chin legs or anything, I was restrained and had my chin grinded into the dirt and their knees were jammed into my back, neck and arms. A lot of the times I was kept in that position for hours and sometimes the whole day.

Papa Miguel (the manager) would come down to our campsite and basically torture us. While I was there I was raped by him 5 times. The first time was on my 16th birthday. When he was done he had a staff member escort me back down to the campsite. Before I left he said “happy sweet 16” then I got shoved into the shower with my clothes on. One night I asked for my sleeping bag because it was taken from me and it was a very cold night. The over night shift called Miguel down and he basically grabbed me, threw me down, put my head in the toilet, flushed, then he pushed me in the shower and he said I had to sleep in wet clothes and still no sleeping bag. We were made to do ridiculous amounts of exercises at night before we went to bed.

I was made to do the program over after I was done. I was there for 4 months. The average stay for High Impact was about 2 months. But Miguel decided to take all my laps away and I was made to basically re-do the program for another 2 months. Every day I would wake up and wonder if I would be alive to go to sleep that night… always wondering If it was ever going to end. I was restrained pretty much every day there. Lots of times I would black out because I couldn’t breathe. I was in the cage all day one day and sun burnt all over. I lifted my leg because the sand was extremely hot and Miguel told me to put my leg back down and I said “no”. He came into the dog cage and stood with all of his weight on the back of my knee. My skin was so sun burnt and sensitive that it just ripped open. They did nothing for my open wound. Just told me to remain laying down and not to move. I have several scars from that place. Not to mention the permanent mental scars. The day I left, the staff let me take a longer than 5 min. shower to scrub all the caked on dirt all over my body. I didn’t know I was leaving until the minute I left. Since we weren’t allowed to use our hairbrushes my hair was so gross I had dreadlocks. It took 6 staff to try and comb it out and when they couldn’t do it, it took 4 staff to cut the dreadlocks out of my hair. They basically did everything they could to make me look decent when I saw my parents. So they would think everything as ok. Ugh…

To this day I have nightmares so bad I wake up screaming, crying, shaking, and sweating. I have flashbacks so bad that I black out and don’t even know what I am doing. I just wish I never went there. Or Cross Creek.

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SUP Marker # 101B in Hurricane.

When first conceived, the Hurricane Canal seemed like an impossible dream. Beginning at a point seven miles up the Virgin River, water had to travel through flumes, tunnels, and over deep ravines. The canal had to hang on steep, unstable cliffs and be tunneled through sections of mountain. To make matters more difficult, money was virtually non-existent for the local residents. Engineers said the canal could not be built.

Upriver, the little towns suffered from the flash floods of the wild Virgin River that devoured half their farmland. The men were desperate. More cultivated land was needed to support their growing families. In the fall of 1893, James Jepson of Virgin and John Steele of Toquierville envisioned and promoted the plan for the water to be brought to the “Hurricane Bench.” With a simple carpenter’s spirit level, they figured a feasible route, and men were recruited from neighboring towns. Isaac McFarlane, county surveyor, surveyed and estimated the construction cost at $53,000. The only tools available were picks, shovels, crowbars, and a homemade wheelbarrow. Over 100 hopeful me worked on the canal project the first few winters.

By 1902, long after the expected completion date, only eight to ten men were left working. Many of the men had sold their stock and quit. Expensive portions remained undone, and the few remaining men were broke and discouraged. Life was injected back into the project when Jepson went to Salt Lake City and convinced the LDS Church to buy $5,000 worth of canal stock. The influx of money restored morale; and now, giant powder to blast through tunnels and lumber to build the flumes could be purchased.

Two years later, August 6, 1904, the impossible dream came true as water flowed onto the Hurricane Bench from the canal, giving life to 2,000 acres of fertile land. The valley could now be settled. After twelve years of sacrifice, incredibly hard work, and true grit, a community was born, complete with real heroes.

The vision of two men, James Jepson and John Steele, along with the faith, dedication, and tenacity of many others, changed forever the lives and dreams of thousands of people in Utah’s Dixie. They did all this for their families. And they did it for us. We give thanks to these men of valor.

The Historic Hurricane Canal SUP Marker # 101B in Hurricane. When first conceived, the Hurricane Canal seemed like an impossible dream.

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Hurricane, Utah

The Paiute Indians called the area Timpoweap, “Rock Canyon”. It is a deep gorge where the Virgin River emerges from the Hurricane Fault. The town of Hurricane lies below the fault to the south of the river and the community of La Verkin. Hot sulphur springs boil up from the bottom and sides of the river on the fault line. About one mile below the hot springs the conjoined streams of Ash Creek…

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