Preacher Boys Podcast

Today's episode, Eric is joined by former IFB member, Rebecca Foltz. Rebecca shares about her experiences at churches at Northern California, Southern California, and Nevada, as well as at Golden State Baptist College in Santa Clara, CA. Rebecca was sexually assaulted three times in thirty years, with two actively covered up by Hopewell Baptist Church in Napa Valley, CA, and the other by a chu...

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Today's episode, Eric is joined by former IFB member, Joshua Ross. Joshua talks about when he first started noticing strange things within the movement. He gets transparent about his experiences up through his one year attendance at Golden State Baptist College before ultimately leaving the movement behind him. Today's Sponsor: https://shows.acast.com/surviving-to-thriving/ (https://shows....

Your host, Eric Skwarczynski, is joined by Heather and Zack Knight. Heather Knight is currently serving as the founder and chair of Surviving to Thriving, an Atlanta based non-profit that provides a long-term sustainability program for victims of domestic violence. The passion for domestic violence awareness and prevention started from a personal situation in her teen years and then grew into a ca...

On this episode of Preacher Boys, your host, Eric Skwarczynski sits down with Micah Helton, Micah’s mom Amanda was on a prior episode of the show titled “I had to Divorce My church: Escaping Domestic Abuse in the IFB." Find more stories regarding the IFB movement by visiting: https://open.acast.com/shows/5e123e2b355ab8560d61f99c/episodes/preacherboysdoc.com (preacherboysdoc.com) https://www.fa...

Amber Johnson shares her harrowing experiences within the New Beginnings Girls Academy that once called Pace, Florida it's home. After attempting suicide, she was sent to the school, locked away in isolation, taken off her anti-depressants and given no permission to speak. Just one year later – and with no prior religious background – she was so scared of hell and judgement that she stayed at...

On this episode, your host, Eric Skwarczynski, sits down with Bruce Gerencser. Bruce lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 41 years. He and his wife have six grown children and twelve grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. He left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. He is now a humanist and an atheist. Fin...

In the intro of this episode, your host, Eric Skwarczynski addresses how IFB pastor Bill Reeves and his staff, plus other IFB leadership have been handling the Coronavirus situation by selling special tracts, encouraging people to attend their church in spite of CDC recommendations not to, and using the outbreak to guilt non-church attending believers. For the interview, Eric is joined by Austin O...

“This man was my boss, my pastor, my father-in-law, and the man of God in my life. When he started sexually touching and abusing me, it almost broke me. I was programmed to please him in all that I did but I knew this was not supposed to happen but fell into a sense of shock and repressed the memories as he would use my body for his deviant pleasures and sexual release. Grooming a victim for rape...

On this episode of Preacher Boys, your host, Eric Skwarczynski sits down with Amanda Packard. Amanda shares about her experience with domestic violence within the IFB, and how she dealt with the church that offered support to her abuser. Find more stories regarding the IFB movement by visiting: https://open.acast.com/shows/5e123e2b355ab8560d61f99c/episodes/preacherboysdoc.com (preacherboysdoc.com)...

On this episode of the show, your host, https://www.instagram.com/eskwarczynski/ (Eric Skwarczynski), is joined by Ashley Ruiz – former member of Faith Baptist Church in Wildomar, CA. She describes the environment that has fostered several instances of physical and sexual abuse. Cases mentioned: https://ktla.com/2019/08/01/former-youth-pastor-is-2nd-accused-of-sex-crimes-at-church-in-wildomar/ (ht...

Much conversation has been had about the nature of cults, how to identify what churches simply teach high standards vs what churches are actually exemplifying cult-like behavior, and whether or not some or many IFB churches meet the criteria to be considered cults. On this episode, Eric shares the key characteristics of a harmful organization from the "BITE Model." Steven Hassan originally...

On this episode of the podcast, host Eric Skwarczynski is joined by Joseph Tindle from Louisville, KY. They dive into hot button topics including racism and even politics – however, the episode is not about persuading the listener to a certain political position, but is rather about the larger conversation surrounding the concept of separation and getting outside of your bubble. Mentioned in the e...

On Monday, February 17, 2020, a lawsuit was filed by JOY RYDER against DAVID HYLES, HYLES-ANDERSON COLLEGE, INC., and FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF HAMMOND, INDIANA, INC. More info can be found here: https://www.preacherboysdoc.com/ryder-v-hyles (https://www.preacherboysdoc.com/ryder-v-hyles) Find more stories regarding the IFB movement by visiting: https://open.acast.com/shows/5e123e2b355ab8560d61f99c/...

Karen Kroft was in the Independent Fundamental Baptist Movement for 43 years. She talks about being raised with immense fear of government and then, moving from one fearful situation to another when her dad moved them from Nebraska to Oklahoma City, where he served on staff at http://www.windsorhills.org/ (Windsor Hills Baptist Church) – a church she described as “more Hyles than Hyles.” The pasto...

Your host, Eric Skwarczynski, welcomes Jon Hollifield to The Preacher Boys Podcast. Jon is currently Assistant Pastor at Calvary Baptist Church in Manchester, TN since 2013. On this episode, he shares the biggest concerns he developed during his time within the IFB movement at other ministries. Eric and Jon discuss what actually makes a cult a cult, why pastor worship is so dangerous, and what the...

What could two IFB churches – 8 minutes apart – in Mesquite, TX have in common? Pedophiles, financial scandals, and-cover ups. All covered in this jaw-dropping interview. Find more stories regarding the IFB movement by visiting: https://www.facebook.com/preacherboysdoc/ (https://www.facebook.com/preacherboysdoc/) https://twitter.com/preacherboysdoc (https://twitter.com/preacherboysdoc) https://www...

Stephanie (Helms) Kittilsen joins your host, Eric Skwarczynski, on the podcast to talk about the problems in the IFB that prompted her to leave her job as a teacher in Hawaii(!). Find more stories regarding the IFB movement by visiting: https://www.facebook.com/preacherboysdoc/ (https://www.facebook.com/preacherboysdoc/) https://twitter.com/preacherboysdoc (https://twitter.com/preacherboysdoc) htt...

​Tiffani Cappello spent many years struggling with depression and an anxiety disorder that was dominating her life and damaging her health. She suffered many traumatic experiences throughout her life, including the death of her own child and 5 years of debilitating chronic illness. As a result, she felt defeated by life and wound up believing many things about herself and the world that were disem...

On this episode, your host, Eric Skwarczynski, interviews Benjamin Williams. His father, Ron Williams, was the founder and director of Hephzibah House in Winona Lake In, which also has Believers Baptist Church – independent church that was started by my father on his own. His father and mother have years of documented abuse that has occurred under them to students in the home, staff children and e...

On this episode, your host, Eric Skwarczynski, answers some listener questions. Questions: How do you define fundamentalism? I grew up believing that it just meant the following: divine creator, inerred word of God, His diety (virgin birth, died for us, bodily resurrection), He will come back and establish His kingdom, and there is a literal heaven and hell. Does fundamentalism mean something diff...

On this episode, your host, Eric Skwarczynski, sits down with ex-IFB member, Wendy Saddler. Wendy’s personal hell began 1984 at First Baptist Church of Easton, when she says Pastor Joe Thompson began trying to sexually groom her and other girls, eventually attempting to force himself upon some of them. Wendy also saw firsthand the abuse of her mentally handicapped brothers by Pastor Joe Thompson a...

Steven Thiel was recruited into an IFB youth group when he was almost 15, and was groomed to be a “preacher boy," preaching every chance he got in homeless shelters, detention centers and services. He surrendered to the “call” on his life and committed to full-time ministry. He attended West Coast Baptist College and then served 8.5 years in two different IFB churches. Find more stories regard...

Paul's journey with the IFB began at five years old. From that point until he broke away nearly twenty years later, he experienced torture – disguised as "discipline." From his early days within the Christian school, receiving daily swats with a large 2x4 to being sent to an even more abusive "boys home" because he snuck out to watch Ice Age as a teenager – this harrowing story...