Alisa’s Testimony – Hagaman Guest House and St. Jude’s Retreat

I was taken off the porch of a home in Saranac Lake, NY owned by Adrienne who had recommended the house to my family and then helped them set up the plan to take me when I was 14 years old.

I was tied to a hospital bed when I arrived at the house in Hagaman, NY, for about 1 week and then I was put into a room with a series of drug addict roommates.

The house was falling apart and some rooms were exposed to the elements.

The room I was in was supposed to be safe but I was beaten by Gerald B., the owner, and sexually assaulted by several of the men who were between the ages of 30-60 at the time, including Dan M. from Buffalo, NY.

I was then transferred to a half way house with a female resident of the program named Lina who was around 40 years old.

I was given drugs and abused by Linda who then attempted to sell me to a pimp for drugs in Schenectady, NY. Linda brought me to a strip club and attempted to sell me to the owner. It was an older woman who threatened to push me down the stairs if I didn’t comply. They made me drink alcohol and then put on an outfit they had picked out and the pushed me onto the stage. I did not understand what was happening and when I tried to run off the stage I was grabbed by a man who pulled me into his lap and I had to throw my body on the floor to break free. Linda and the other woman were angry and I ran out of the building onto the street. Linda brought me back to the Hagaman Guest House after that where the abuse continued for a year.

I turned 15 in the house and I turned 16 shortly after my release. I was only released after I had attempted to run away and was caught and held down on the floor in the hallway by Carol who sat on top of me and laughed in my face which she did under the direction of Mark S. – for about 4 hours.

My mother was lied to by the staff to keep me locked up. They had her sign legal custody of me over to them and they billed her for a “private school “ in the house that did not actually exist. It was just a dirty room with old science fiction books. I was not in school and I missed all of 10th grade while in the house. When I was able to finally get out, my life was a shell of what I had been. I could no longer be the same child I had once been. I suffered many issues from this abuse and I still do today.

A few years after my release, I was contacted by their offices and found out that they were using the story of my experience to solicit more families to send their children to the Hagaman Guest House. Over the next few years, I began to call several people including the local sheriff and an attorney who was investigating the house after a former addict – turned staff member, had committed suicide in the basement. I was told not much could be done about the horror of my experience because the statute of limitations had expired. Since then, it’s have done my best to keep my story alive so as to attempt to protect other children and their families from this abuse and fraud.

The Hagaman Guest House has now moved to Amsterdam, NY, it has been expanded and has changed their name to the St Jude Retreats.