GOSHEN — Amid allegations of misconduct, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield has sanctioned the leaders of a religious summer camp that had operated at the church’s Goshen camp for more than two decades.
In an announcement Monday, the diocese announced that it has cut ties with the leaders of New Spirit Inc. after an investigation into alleged “inappropriate” behavior and the organization’s reported failure to follow up on those allegations.
The diocese began investigating New Spirit a year ago after it learned that an allegation of misconduct against New Spirit co-founder Barry Kingston had been filed with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which shared that information with Massachusetts State Police and the Northwestern district attorney’s office. The diocese said that complaint dated back to 2007, and that during the diocese’s follow-up it was alleged that the complaint had originally been brought to New Spirit leadership in 2018 but no action was taken.
Based on those allegations, Bishop William Byrne suspended New Spirit last July while the diocese conducted its investigation.
On Monday, the diocese released the findings of its review board, which found sufficient evidence of “inappropriate” behavior and “multiple boundary violations with multiple minor children” by Kingston. There was no credible evidence, though, that Kingston had “sexually abused, molested or groomed minor children” at New Spirit, the diocese stated.
“As a result, Mr. Kingston is permanently banned from any work, volunteer activity, performances or ministry in any capacity with minor children within any parish, school, agency or any other related or affiliated ministry in the Diocese of Springfield,” the church said.
The church also sought to investigate an allegation that fellow New Spirit co-founder Patrick Sears failed to report possible abuse after it was disclosed to him, but Sears, on the advice of his attorney, did not participate in the diocese’s investigation. In its conclusions, the diocese said it had insufficient information to make a determination regarding Sears, but that it has suspended him from all ministerial work or volunteer activity until he is willing to provide requested information and take part in a supplemental investigation.
Lastly, the diocese said that it recommended there be “no finding” against New Spirit camp chaplain and board member the Rev. Rick Martignetti for failing to take appropriate action to report possible abuse. The review board nevertheless recommended that Martignetti complete mandated-reporter training, review and sign the diocese’s code of conduct and meet with Byrne to discuss “child protection expectations” before he is granted faculties to minister in the diocese.
Efforts to reach Sears’ attorney, Jared Olanoff, were unsuccessful Wednesday.
In a statement, Kingston’s attorney, David Hoose, said that Kingston is “very happy” the investigation has concluded “that there is no basis for the allegations of sexual grooming of minors.”
“Sadly, the damage was done when the Diocese recklessly made these allegations public last summer, without the slightest investigation to determine whether they had any merit,” Hoose said.
“The Diocesan reference to supposed ‘boundary violations’ is unfortunate, yet sadly unsurprising. No one has informed us of the specifics of these allegations, and they appear to be an effort to justify the pain and mental anguish which the diocese has inflicted on Mr. Kingston for nearly a year.”
Hoose said that the decision to bar Kingston from working with the diocese is a “non-issue.”
“Given the way he has been treated, Mr. Kingston notified the Diocese months ago that he had no interest in ever returning to work in any way with the Springfield Diocese,” Hoose said. “Barry is grateful for the many former campers, counselors and parents as well as members of the religious community who have supported him over the past year.”
In a statement, Byrne said that although he doesn’t hesitate to accept and implement the review board’s recommendations, he did so with a “heavy heart” after hearing from “many individuals of the important and transformational impact New Spirit Inc.’s ministry had on so many over the course of the past 25 years sharing the Good News and their love for Jesus Christ with countless youth and young adults.”
“But that same Good News also directs us to recognize the dignity of each person, formed in the image of Jesus Christ, and in turn the specific responsibility we have to care for our younger brothers and sisters,” Byrne said. “Anything less than this is unacceptable.”
The review board also recommended that all future contractors, subcontractors and vendors who work with minors in the diocese must comply with the diocese’s “safe environment policies” and be subject to oversight.
New Spirit is a nonprofit that is not officially part of the Diocese of Springfield, but has run a two-week camp for middle schoolers and high schoolers at the church’s Camp Holy Cross in Goshen. New Spirit was formed in 1994, according to an archived version of the camp’s website. The organization’s 2019 tax filings show that Sears and Kingston, the nonprofit’s only paid employees, earned $76,200 salaries.
Last year, the Diocese of Springfield released an expanded list of church officials and employees who have been credibly accused of sexual abuse.
Dusty Christensen can be reached at dchristensen@gazettenet.com.