Alleged victims of former volunteer at Juneau’s Echo Ranch Bible Camp are suing

Echo Ranch Bible Camp successful April 2024. (Photo by Clarise Larson/KTOO)

A warning: this communicative contains references to kid activity abuse. 

Juneau’s Echo Ranch Bible Camp is among nan places wherever a California man allegedly abused boys complete nan span of decades. Now, nan group who opportunity they were victims of Bradley Earl Reger are trying to clasp nan institutions wherever nan maltreatment took spot accountable. 

Reger was affiliated with Juneau’s Echo Ranch Bible campy for astir 30 years. In nan 1970s, nan California resident volunteered arsenic a caregiver there. He besides brought minors connected trips to nan campy from his location successful California arsenic precocious arsenic nan early 2000s. Multiple men person accused Reger of abuse astatine nan camp, nether nan guise of aesculapian care.

Reger was already criminally indicted connected national intersexual maltreatment charges past year. But a caller lawsuit, which names Echo Ranch’s owner, Avant Ministries, intends to clasp nan organizations Reger was progressive pinch accountable, too. 

California resident Zack Winfrey, nan lead plaintiff successful nan caller suit, attended Reger’s location religion successful California arsenic a kid. He said Reger abused him for years successful California and connected trips to Alaska. Winfrey said nan group astir Reger astatine his religion – and organizations for illustration Echo Ranch – allowed it to happen.

“Brad could person been stopped decades ago,” he said. “I mean, immoderate of them not moreover conscionable reporting to — immoderate of them were successful nan positions of powerfulness to wholly trim them disconnected from this, and didn’t do it.”

Winfrey reached retired to lawyers astir taking ineligible action against organizations Reger worked and volunteered for. Now, 18 of Reger’s alleged victims are progressive successful nan lawsuit. 

“But there’s moreover much victims signing connected now,” he said.

Morgan Stewart is 1 of Winfrey’s lawyers. He’s a partner astatine nan rule patient Manly, Stewart, and Finaldi. They specialize successful representing victims successful wide kid intersexual maltreatment cases astatine churches and schools. 

“It’s fundamentally taking backmost their powerfulness complete a perpetrator and those who allowed nan perpetrator to maltreatment them,” Stewart said.

He said lawsuits for illustration this 1 target nan group who turned a unsighted oculus and enabled abusers.

“The intent is to clasp those entities accountable for it, their endorsement, support and information successful his intersexual maltreatment of these young men,” he said.

Stewart said nan full number of Reger’s victims could beryllium successful nan hundreds. 

His firm has won hundreds of millions of dollars successful settlements successful celebrated kid maltreatment cases. For instance, those involving nan Roman Catholic Church and Larry Nassar, nan U.S. Olympics Gymnastics expert who assaulted hundreds of athletes. 

When asked for comment, a lawyer representing Avant Ministries wrote successful an email that they will beryllium “aggressively defending” nan claims against nan organization. 

As news of nan suit spreads, Winfrey, nan lead plaintiff successful nan case, hopes much victims of Reger will travel forward. 

The FBI has an online form for anyone who wants to study that they — aliases their insignificant limited — whitethorn person been victimized by Bradley Reger. 

Survivors of intersexual maltreatment successful Juneau tin telephone AWARE astatine 907-586-1090 to find resources for support. There is besides a nationalist 24-hour telephone and online chat hotline that offers counseling and support.