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Joe Thomas White is the CEO of Kanakuk Kamps <\/a>and serves as the CEO and Board Chair of Kanakuk Ministries and founder of Kids Across America<\/a> and Men at the Cross<\/a>. He founded and serves in leadership roles for many other affiliated organizations and programs, which are referred to as a \u201cFamily of Ministries<\/a>.” White purchased Kanakuk Kamps from his father, Spike White<\/a>, in 1976. Along with his wife Debbie-Jo, White has led the growth of the camp empire to one of the largest and most prominent in the field, especially within evangelical Christian circles.<\/p>\nBy 2018, the Whites claimed 500,000 children from all 50 states and five continents<\/a> had experienced camp at Kanakuk since its inception. White is the author of more than 20 books and speaks across the nation at Christian conferences of thousands, hosted by such groups as Promise Keepers<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Ignite<\/a>.<\/p>\n While maintaining a positive reputation and loyal following among evangelical Christians, White has also been the subject of numerous lawsuits and confidential settlements for his role in sexual abuse scandals at Kanakuk Kamps. Through sworn testimony and other statements, White has repeatedly lauded the character of individual sexual predators and defended his own failures to properly investigate and address instances of prolonged sexual abuse. He continues efforts to dismiss, deny, and cover up his camp\u2019s culpability in dozens of child abuse cases by silencing victims through confidential settlements and rebranding the camp as safe through the launch of a \u201cnew, innovative\u201d Kanakuk\u00a0Child Protection Plan<\/a>\u00a0in recent years.<\/p>\n In his speaking and writing, White often attributes success to two significant figures in his life, work, and ministry: Bill Gothard <\/a>and\u00a0 Jack\u00a0Herschend<\/a>. Both men have been the subject of multiple lawsuits for committing or facilitating sexual abuse in a Christian setting.\u00a0Other close friends and mentors whom Joe claims\u00a0include\u00a0Gary Smalley<\/a> \u00a0and James Dobson<\/a> \u00a0of\u00a0Focus on the Family<\/a>.<\/p>\n “Dr.” Joe White holds a bachelor’s degree in biology from Southern Methodist University, which honored him with a Distinguished Alumni Award in 2009. That same year, Kanakuk Kamps Director Pete Newman was criminally charged and convicted of abusing dozens of campers. White did not pursue any postgraduate studies but served as a volunteer with Young Life<\/a> and an assistant to the coaching staff at Texas A&M for one football season before he began working full time for his father at Kanakuk Kamps. White uses the title of \u201cDr.\u201d publicly<\/a>, but his doctoral degrees were honorary only, from Bellhaven University in Jackson, Mississippi, and Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, Missouri. Joe White is not a licensed counselor, although he practices and claims expertise in counseling.<\/p>\n Joe actively promotes himself as a dynamic speaker and\u00a0\u201cAmerica\u2019s Expert on Raising Godly Teenagers<\/a> ” and remains the face of Kanakuk Kamps and related entities. There has been very little public accountability for the crimes against children that have occurred in Kanakuk ministries throughout his tenure at the helm.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row full_width=”stretch_row” el_class=”ovarian-cancer-icon-section about-kanakuk-entities” css=”.vc_custom_1616668102280{background-color: #124d12 !important;}”][vc_column][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text el_class=”aligncenter” el_id=”entities”]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_empty_space][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column el_id=”about”][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text el_class=”aligncenter”]<\/p>\n Outside of Missouri, Kanakuk operated K-Colorado for many years. Kanakuk has international reach through its mission programs abroad, including Kanakuk\u00a0Haiti<\/a> in partnership with Cross International<\/a>.<\/p>\n Domestically,\u00a0Kanakuk\u00a0also offers retreat programs, day camps called \u201cKamp Out!\u201d in host cities, and other year-round ministries, such as the\u00a0K-Life<\/a>\u00a0ministry for teens, which exists in more than 20 U.S. cities,\u00a0Kanakuk\u00a0Link Year<\/a>, and the\u00a0Kanakuk\u00a0Institute<\/a>. Signature events include\u00a0After Dark<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0The Heart of a Mom Gathering<\/a>.<\/p>\n Today Kanakuk Ministries remains under the decades-long leadership of Joe White<\/a>, CEO and Board Chair, and his wife Debbie-Jo, Vice President, who inherited their roles from Joe\u2019s parents in the 1970s. Their son, Cooper, is also on the board of directors, and daughter Jamie Jo serves as the organization\u2019s Director of Alumni Engagement.<\/p>\n Kanakuk\u00a0claims to have served more than 500,000 campers<\/a> from across the United States and around the world. In 2007, it was the third largest employer in Taney County<\/a>. The organization presents itself as “America\u2019s premier summer camp experience, ready to provide the summer adventure of a lifetime based on Christian principles to boys and girls ages seven to eighteen.”<\/p>\n Those “Christian principles” are further promoted through the camp’s Mission Statement:<\/a> “Developing dynamic Christian leaders through life changing experiences, godly relationships, and spiritual training.”<\/p>\n The entire camp system\u00a0claims to be\u00a0based on\u00a0two main tenets:<\/p>\n Despite such principles, Kanakuk and similar camps remain vulnerable to potential sex abuse by nature. Camps depend on seasonal employees and volunteers who have prolonged access to children in unfamiliar surroundings without the direct supervision of their parents. Statistical reporting <\/a>further indicates that many sexual abusers are young themselves, usually with no prior convictions, and they act out on younger children.<\/p>\n Kanakuk’s track record of abuse is a cautionary tale; however, it is not an isolated problem. Camp abuse<\/a> is a national epidemic due to lack of industry oversight and accountability. Crime Stoppers<\/a>‘ web site explains how unregulated the camping is and also maintains a state-by-state registry<\/a> of camps with reported incidents of abuse. Click here for a fact sheet on summer camps in America.<\/a><\/p>\n Besides putting the best child protection plans and safeguards in place, it is equally important that camps and other environments that steward children understand mandatory reporting laws and have clear policies regarding how to react when a potential child abuse situation arises.<\/p>\n There have been a number of alleged and convicted sex offenders attached to Kanakuk Kamps and its family of ministries over the past several decades. While former K-Kountry director Pete Newman, the camp\u2019s most prominent serial predator, was sentenced to life in prison for the abuse of dozens of boys, there is more to this story.<\/p>\n Due to non-disclosure agreements attached to seven-figure settlements, survivors of Kanakuk Kamps abuse have been silenced. It is time to hear their stories. It is time for Joe White to finally put himself third.<\/p>\n<\/a>Kanakuk Entities<\/h2>\n
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<\/a>About Kanakuk Kamps<\/h2>\n
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Kanakuk Kamps grew out of Camp Kugaho, which was founded in 1926 on property owned by C.L. Ford of Dallas in Southwest Missouri, near Branson. The camp changed ownership over the next 30 years, evolving from a modest-sized boys\u2019 camp into multiple coed camps, which now include K-Kountry, K-West, K-1, K-2, K-Seven, a tropical-themed family camp called K-Kauai, and affiliated camps known as Kids Across America<\/a>, which are exclusively for “urban youth.”<\/p>\n\n