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Thu 31 Mar, 2005 12:45 pm
Cherish Lloyd articles introduction
These articles appeared in the Columbus Dispatch in 1993, right after Cherish Lloyd left Peru and came to live with her Uncle John Lloyd. Cherish is the daughter of Carole Lloyd, who is identified in the Dispatch articles as Carole Nygaard. If you are interested in posting these articles, they can be linked to articles at Movingon, where Cherish' mother (Palestina) posted a Eulogy that alludes to her deceased daughter as being an angel and pro-Family. The Eulogy article at Movingon was followed by publication of private emails from Cherish to friends in which Cherish makes it clear she was far from being pro-Family at the time of her death. These 1993 articles in the Dispatch also show Cherish as something less than pro-Family. If you are interested in posting them, I can write the Dispatch for copywrite permission.
Also, members of Cherish's family have never been upfront about the cause of her death, although there is information suggesting she died with an untreated kidney infection. Other sources suggest drug overdose, and of course, suicide cannot be ruled out. Close friends are not even certain about where she was buried. Although she died here in Columbus in the summer of 2003 under mysterious circumstances, I can find no obituary for her in the local paper. I could obtain a death certificate, but I won't do that unless her closest friends give me the detailed information I'd need to get it easily and quickly.
Articles from 1993 are in the following three posts.
I knew Cherish during that very difficult period and I am very sad to hear of her passing. I can say without doubt was not 'Pro-family', far from it. She had many of the zombie-like qualities I've heard described here, but she still had enough of a mind left to know the Family abused her terribly and she spoke that truth. However, sadly, not many people took her stories seriously because 1.) they are literally unbelievable to people who don't know of the COG, and 2.) she was not an effective communicator after years of brain-washing.
I think the worst part of all of this is seeing some of you guys debateing and second-guessing what happened with yourselves. This has to be one of the greatest stories of abuse never told.
Cherish
As a correction to my earlier post, Cherish did not die in Columbus, but in Atlanta, GA. Reliable sources suggest her death was due to natural causes, primarily as a consequence of not seeking medical attention soon enough to address a treatable condition(s). Yes, this makes me angry, because I believe Cherish's reluctance to seek prompt treatment stemmed from her abuse in the Family. It's not at all unusual for abuse survivors to ignore physical symptoms of illness. It's the same coping mechanism that allowed the survivors to ignore the violation of their bodies as children.
I never met Cherish personally, but I was deeply moved by her 1993 story in the Columbus Dispatch, because it evoked my own forgotten history (at the time) in the group. I also saw her art work on display once, and I found it deeply moving. Last, but not least, my interest in Cherish as a fellow Cowtowner lead to a very important friendship with one of her childhood friends. She had to have had a powerful spirit, and I regret she died before I could have met her.
The story of child abuse in TF is going to be a major study in child maltreatment, I am certain. I did my dissertation on child abuse, so I know something about the potential of this story for scholarly investigation. It is very unique in many ways, particularly with regard to the level at which women and mothers participated in the sexual abuse of very young children.
Finally, I'm a bit aggravated that the editors of this site have not seen fit to include Cherish in the list of former members. She was a person of courage and accomplishment who did much with her tragically short life.
@Anonymous,
Well, it's been nearly 9 years since this post was made, so my expectations of it reaching anybody are slim. Nevertheless...
I went to college with Cherish and had several classes with her. I was wondering if you know where she might be buried (assuming she wasn't cremated).
Please feel free to email me directly at
[email protected]
I hope to hear from you.
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