He ran all of this
off of private donations. He took nothing, and wanted nothing to do with the
State, or government in general.
There were four particular girls that
lived at the home that were privileged and they went to town each day and sang
as a quartet on his shows and they traveled with him in his plane and sang and
gave testimony, all over the country. They were called “The Honey Bee Quartet”
But no matter if he was in town or out of town, the girls and everyone in his
organization was required to listen to his two broadcasts every day. That is
what broadcast is. During broadcast, no
one could speak. We just sat there and listened for forty five minutes. I just
wanted it over and for my mom to come back.
After
broadcast, we had to go to bible study and that was an hour long. The girls had
to memorize one CHAPTER of the bible each week. (Not a verse but a chapter) I was
wanting out of there so bad, I couldn’t sit still. Finally that was over and then
we had one free hour before lunch. As soon as we were free from the regimen, all
of the girls came over to me, they were all asking me questions and telling me
that they loved me and they were praying for me. My mom still wasn’t there when
we went to lunch.
Lunch was
interesting. We again lined up and went through this ritual. We were given a
piece of fruit and a cheese sandwich, I was hungry by then so I ate. I asked
the girls where I could get a glass to get some water. They told me that we
were never allowed to drink anything with our meals. I looked at them and said
“What?” We had that smelly milk with breakfast.” They told me that milk was
only given when they got oatmeal. If I wanted a drink, I had to wait until I
was through eating and then I could go to the water fountain on the wall. I
asked them why? They said that Brother Rolloff believed that if you drank while
eating, it disrupted your natural digestive system. I just couldn’t believe
this place.
Finally my mom
got there after lunch. As soon as I saw
her, my heart lifted and I went running to her, but before I got to her, Granny
stepped in between us. Granny stopped me and said “April, We want to talk to
your mom for a little while before you visit. I looked past Granny at my mom,
using every pleading expression I could muster, of “get me out of here”, but
she went into the office with Granny, Poppa, and Aunt Martha. So I waited out
in the main room with the rest of the girls.
So far I had
counted about 35 people in this whole big building. Including me there were 28
girls, but I found out that in the trailers out at the back of this big farm,
were the pregnant girls, and there were seven or eight of them, plus the two
women that lived with them. They only came up to the big building for weekend
church and things like that. They had their own kitchens and did their own
bible study.
After almost
an hour of waiting, they all came out of the office, my mom was crying. Poppa,
Granny, my Mom, and that trustee lady, “Elaine” took me into the room that I
had just spent the night in. They sat me on the bed and proceeded to tell me
that “for the time being,” this was the best place for me, and that I WOULD be
staying here. I stood up and started begging her in front of all of them, telling
her all that I had heard from these girls, I told her that I would be good, and
never give her another problem. I started crying and I didn’t care who was
there. I was begging her, “Mom please don’t leave me here! Please! You can’t leave
me here!”
Poppa said “April, You are staying and
we will not listen to anymore. Begging will not change this, its happening, so
you better accept it.” He picked up my hair brush and tried to hand it to me.
He said “Dry your eyes, brush your hair, and get ready for Church!” I stood up, got right in his face and looked at
him with hate in my eyes and said, “I am NOT staying here! And you can’t make
me!” Without any warning, he hit me in the face with my hairbrush, right across
the mouth. He looked at me with a look I
will never forget, and said “You ARE staying! And you will never threaten to
run away, or I will give you a beating you will never forget. We are thirty
miles from anyone, remember that! Now get ready for church!”
I looked at my
mom, while I was rubbing my swelling mouth, but she wouldn’t look at me, she
just turned away from me.
I can’t even
begin to tell you what I was feeling at that moment. I was numb, crushed, and
devastated. All I was sure of was that my mom was giving me to these crazy
people. She was punishing me for something I didn’t do, and if I did do
something, if she would just tell me what it was, I would fix it. There was no
way that they were going to let me alone with her, I saw that.
While my mind
was off in oblivion, Granny picked up my hair brush and quickly brushed my
hair. She said “There, that is better, you will learn to love it her in
time.” I didn’t even argue. I was having
brain cloud. My mom was really going to leave me here.
They led me
out of the room and back into the church, they sat me down with the other girls.
I don’t remember much after that. I do remember Granny taking a picture of my
mother and I before she left and I do remember that when she did leave, I tried
to run after, begging her again not to leave me here, but Granny grabbed me and
drug me back inside the building.
As soon as my
mom was out of sight, Granny slapped me across the face and said “Shut you’re
crying up right now, or you will get a beating. You are here and you will learn
the rules and abide by every one of them. We will change you, there is nothing
you can do about anything, so get used to it.”
After my mom
left I was alone, truly alone. Oh I had people around me, at all times. In
fact, I was not allowed to be alone, at all. I know I walked around with a
Kleenex in my face for at least two weeks. I cried all of the time. I went to
sleep crying and I swear to god that I woke up crying every morning. It was
horrible, I was so miserable. I kept thinking that this was as bad as it gets,
but they kept proving me wrong. I didn’t know it then, but I would not see my
mom or my siblings for almost two years.
