(From a second-generation member of the Family International)

Age 30
Happily Married 11 years
Born & raised in The Family
Currently a missionary in Mexico with “Proyecto Rescate”(Project Rescue)

Children are a heritage of the Lord & the fruit of the womb is His reward. This verse sums up my feelings of the upbringing I had in The Family, and reminds me of the responsible attitude and conduct which I saw continually portrayed by my parents and caregivers throughout that upbringing. I am a second generation Family member, the oldest girl in a family of nine children. Because of my parents’ deep faith & love for the Lord I was given the privilege to be raised in what I consider the absolute best environment in the world.

I am just a little older than Ricky so we both lived through the same time periods or “phases” in The Family & all throughout my 29 years I have never personally seen nor experienced anything unloving, dangerous or damaging to myself or any other children as I grew up in Family communities all throughout Australia, India, Japan, the Philippines and New Zealand. Absolutely no form of abuse is tolerated in The Family! We were raised and still live according to the loving, Godly principles laid out in the Bible and my present lifestyle clearly reflects that for any objective inquirer who should care to hear a firsthand account from one of the allegedly “abused, deprived victims.”

I live in Mexico along with my husband & our five children (ages 1-11 years old) who we feel are a reward & honor to raise. Our expanding missionary work to help the needy people of this country has many aspects ranging from giving physical aid, in the form of food, clothing, medical supplies, toys etc… to the more important spiritual aid, that of counseling, mentoring, comforting, encouraging, assisting and guiding; And this all for a very broad variety of class and culture within Mexico.

We daily interact with extremely diverse individuals from opposite walks of life i.e. orphans, delinquents, homeless families, college students, educators, lawyers, businessmen, policymakers, and officials just to name a few.

Our methods of outreach in all of this are wide-ranging and each of the many projects we have started have necessitated that we draw on the very complete and multi-faceted education which we were blessed to receive in The Family. (If you are interested to see all the projects I’m talking about in detail you can check out our web site proyectorescate.com )

And this work is done by a team largely comprised of Family young adults ages 18 through 31, most of whom have been born & raised in The Family. The superior training that we received all of our lives has proved its value in the amazing things which we have accomplished. We were raised to be adaptable, relatable, versatile, persistent, industrious, have a strong work ethic, and we were well prepared to approach life so that we would excel in whatever capacity we chose.

Besides all the missionary work we of RESCATE are doing, there is the somewhat behind-the-scenes work of organizing, people handling, managing, accounting, organizing and fundraising. All vital to keeping our team of 28 people operational. And this took exceptional training as well! You try to run a business and then also live with your 27 other coworkers every day and notice the tact, concern, love, unselfishness, patience and countless other values needed to be productive. We were given that extra measure of morale needed by growing up in the Family.

I know that the Family in the best place for children to be raised because I lived it. –My husband lived it. –The 8 other second generation Family adults I live with lived it & we are all still living it. My eight brothers & sisters—apart from my eldest brother who moved on & has since become a very useful citizen to secular society—are all also still living it & making a difference each & every day in their respective mission fields.

A few months ago my husband and I had the pleasure to meet & be around sweet Angela who has under such sad conditions met an untimely death. I have never before experienced such sadness over the loss of one I knew for such a short time. But she had that effect on people! Her bubbly, happy personality made you feel like you were her best friend & even just passing her in the hallway she always would stop me & say something so kind to me. It was a little unnerving at times to have someone so honestly compliment me. She just loved the children & no matter how busy her day was she had time to stop & take a break with the children. She would call it her “kid break time.” They loved her & were very happy to talk with her. I have not yet worked up the courage to tell them that she is gone. Although they did not know her for long she left a lasting impression on them. There are not words enough for me to express my grief at the thought that she might have suffered at all at the time of her undeserved death. It is usually just easier not to think about it!

I do not personally know Ricky but as every other kid reared in the Family, I do know of him. And although I was at first extremely angered at what he did, I have to say that my feelings now are more of sorrow for him. However, the thought that there was someone capable of murdering such an angel of love & kindness leaves me wondering at the stability of Ricky’s sanity. I believe that just as the truth can set you free, a lie will put you in bondage & drive you insane trying to justify your lie. I feel it is weak & lame for Ricky to blame his actions on his upbringing. He was a grown man & he needed to get over himself.

April Fischer is a second generation member of the Family International.