Posted on 07/23/2025 8:50:20 AM PDT by Morgana
Courtney Wingo trusted Leatherwood Baptist Church in Anniston, Alabama, to take her 12-year-old daughter Kamryn on a youth trip in the Houston-area from June 4–7. But she believes the church betrayed her trust and risked her daughter’s safety.
“This trip was executed with no proper planning, no consent, and no consideration for the safety or readiness of the children involved,” Wingo told MinistryWatch. “My daughter was unprepared and shaken by what she saw in the tent city. It’s deeply troubling to me that an adult in a position of leadership would act so recklessly — especially when responsible for other people’s kids.”
Kamryn, who has been attending the youth activities at Leatherwood on Wednesday nights, was excited for the trip; she even used her birthday money to pay the $250 trip cost.
When the trip was first promoted in March, it was called a youth camp. The itinerary included the expected activities, including games, worship times, a service project, and a trip to the beach.
After an information meeting about the trip on May 28, Wingo said she asked Mike Webb, the church youth ministries director, about the specific nature of the service project the group would be doing.
She told MinistryWatch that she remembers specifically asking if her daughter would be under bridges handing out tracts to homeless people. Wingo is familiar with Houston and that it is considered one of the most dangerous cities in America for violent crime.
Wingo said Webb assured her the service project involved time serving at an area food bank. Satisfied, Wingo gave the church the remaining balance for the trip.
On May 28, the same day as the information meeting, a social media post now framed the trip as a “mission trip” but did not make any mention of plans to visit a homeless encampment. Nor was Wingo contacted about any change in the trip itinerary, she said.
Access to MinistryWatch content is free. However, we hope you will support our work with your prayers and financial gifts. To make a donation, click here.
On June 4, Kamryn was dropped off at the church to be taken with the group of about 75 kids and 11 adults to the Atlanta airport for the flight to Houston.
On June 5, a Leatherwood Student Ministry post asked readers to pray for the group as they “serve in the food warehouse and share the gospel wherever God leads us!”
However, according to a sermon delivered by Webb on June 8, Webb wanted to get the kids “out of their comfort zone.” After serving at the food bank, he googled where to find the homeless in Houston. Then the group drove to a tent city.
When they pulled up, Webb himself said he was fearful and recognized the possible danger in taking the students into the homeless encampment. He thought, “Ain’t no way I’m getting these kids out of this van. I will be fired. Mamas will be beating down my door.”
However, at the prodding of someone named “Christian,” Webb said he got the group out and they began talking to the homeless groups gathered there and agreed to come back with food the next day.
Later that day, back at the ranch where the group was staying, Kamryn called her mom and reported what had happened. She said she was not given the choice to remain in the van with any of the leaders.
Kamryn was not given any evangelism training, Wingo said, nor were any safety instructions provided, other than “stay close.”
On June 6, many from the group returned to the tent city, but this time students were given the option to stay at the lodge. Kamryn chose to stay behind.
Webb admitted he pressured at least a few of the students to return to the homeless camp.
As Wingo listened to Webb’s June 8 sermon with details about the youth trip, she grew more upset and angry.
After the service, Wingo confronted Leatherwood Senior Pastor Phil Winningham about the trip’s dangers and lack of supervision. She told him about her prior conversation with Webb about the service project — a conversation Webb denied.
“You took my child somewhere dangerous,” Wingo said she told Webb. But he replied that Kamryn was fine and that “God had called him to do it.”
The church refunded Wingo $250 for the trip, but she remains concerned about how they have handled the matter since.
Wingo sent a certified letter with her concerns, but has received no reply.
“[Kamryn] was completely unprepared — emotionally, physically, and spiritually — for what she encountered in the tent city,” Wingo wrote. “She feels hurt, misled, and betrayed. That is not the spiritual or emotional impact I was expecting from what was advertised as a church-sponsored youth event.
“This is not about whether ministry to the homeless is right or wrong — it is about the ethical, legal, and moral obligation to protect minors, communicate transparently with parents, and respect clearly stated boundaries. It is completely unacceptable for a youth pastor to disregard a parent’s explicit instructions and expose children to high-risk environments without consent,” Wingo wrote.
Wingo no longer allows Kamryn to attend Leatherwood’s youth activities. She doesn’t trust the leaders to protect her daughter.
Wingo is thankful nothing dangerous happened to Kamryn—but it could have, and churches should not take that risk with the children’s safety, she said.
“Staying silent doesn’t protect children — it protects bad judgment,” she said about why she’s speaking publicly about the incident.
A quick google search lists guidance that ministries should take for mission trip protocols, including appropriate risk management, capable and accountable leadership, biblical and timely training, and post-trip evaluation.
Leatherwood Baptist Church did not respond to multiple requests for their safety protocols, trip plans, post-trip review, or other lessons learned.
Freepers hate me because I lost my faith. I PRAY that I am wrong. I hope every day that there’s a God in heaven who loves all of you as much as you believe!
But many churches and self proclaimed “Christians” are as dangerous as the left. When I was a refugee, all you could do is try to pick a Christian or conservative to deal with. I got abused or ripped off every time. The condemnation of me by so called good church goers about the 5 years of hell since has been humiliating and heartbreaking.
We sent our kids to a mission trip to Memphis and someone threatened to kill them.
We did a mission to the homeless in LA. One of the girls got to work with Pauley Perrette (Abby on NCIS) and had idea who she was.
We can not look to fellow church members or attenders. Some seem truly great and probably they are. But the Bible says we are ALL sinners.
I encourage you to live by faith and scripture which would include Bible believing church worship —- without looking too hard at other people. Eyes on Jesus.
…I don’t hate you! I doubt many do.
Don’t lose your faith is Jesus, He is still the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.
Stupid people will always be stupid people winning Darwin awards on FR every day. This is just another example.
Yea I don’t think people hate you. It’s just sad the way things are. Really though it was that way when Jesus was here on Earth. Remember he made a whip and drove morons from the temple because it was so bad.
How long has the encampment been there ?
Consent from their parents, or from the homeless? They might have alpreciated a little notice...spruce the place up, a bit.
‘the Bible says we are ALL sinners’
That’s right.
I don’t have any kids and where I live there are no homeless camps so I don’t know.
But - Is this a case of “How dare you expose my child to reality” or were the kids actually put in danger?
I don’t know, don’t live in that state. Wanna bet however since Obama?
” or were the kids actually put in danger?”
Well...
100% of them are on drugs which means there are needles all up and down the streets.
Feces and urine all up and down the street. Can you say cholera, shigellosis, and Salmonella infections, viral infections like hepatitis A and rotavirus, and parasitic infections like giardiasis?
Some homeless men are registered sex offenders.
They should have had three or four parents on the trip regardless.
They should have told the parents this was going to happen before it happened!
A lot of parents would have probably said NO and I don’t blame them. This is dangerous for adults much less children.
“encourage you to live by faith and scripture which would include Bible believing church worship —- without looking too hard at other people. Eyes on JESUS.”
Why do you assume I know nothing??!
That’s the arrogant attitude I am talking about. I have never been treated as badly as I have been from Christian zealots on Free Republic!
I gave it 75 years. I’ve studied and prayed more than 1000 churchies.
And I walked my talk. I’m a better Christian than 99 percent of people in church. I’ll never trust another one! Never! And forgiveness is HIS job, not mine!
The local church.. I went.. until some psycho bitch was jealous and spread vicious lies that the church bought.. they care NOTHING about the teachings of Jesus Christ. NOTHING.
I’M with Ben Franklin...
I follow the man, Jesus of Nazareth not dogma created by a church.
Enough!
Franklin criticized the “priestcraft” and division caused by various religious denominations. He found the focus on complex doctrines and rituals distracting from the core principles of faith like love and compassion.
“I have found Christian dogma unintelligible. Early in life, I absenteed myself from Christian assemblies.”
“I think his (Jesus) system of morals and his religion, as he left them to us, the best the world ever saw or is likely to see; but I apprehend it has received various corrupting changes,
and I have, with most of the present dissenters in England, some doubts as to his divinity”
Benjamin Franklin
All I know for sure is I have always stood by and fought for YOUR FREEDOM TO WORSHIP and will until my last breath, but It’s never been reciprocated.
I’m really tired of being preached at.
As for “living by faith”...
I have NO FAITH left. I have seen too much!
Your religion says I have to die to find out the truth!
That’s brainwashing and Extortion, not Faith.
I’m not an atheist. I’m much worse. It’s time for the deity to take some of the blame instead of all the glory.
“”But - Is this a case of “How dare you expose my child to reality” or were the kids actually put in danger?””
It doesn’t matter. Any time school authorities remove kids from the school and take them somewhere else, the parents need to be informed and asked for consent. Anything could happen to those kids while being transported (accidents have happened) and the school is opening itself up to major lawsuits if the unthinkable does occur.
It’s a woke, leftist ideology that posits that parents don’t have the right to know or control what their kids get “exposed” to while at public school. And it is, like most or all leftist thoughts, dead wrong.
Oh no no no, it does happen (if you mean by “you’ve got to be kidding me”, that a church or youth group pastor or leader won’t put your child in danger.)
My own experience when I was a kid in several youth group or trip situations with multiple churches my parents attended. The phenomenal, absolute, complete bovine excrement that went on was beyond belief. One trip I could’ve been killed when a man operating a boat at a lake at high speed, being distracted by a skier he was towing, slammed into the dam.
No doubt in my mind whatsoever, God sent an angel to save myself and everyone else in that boat. Two adults and four kids (one being the skier).
I did not want to go on that lake trip.
There was a bass tournament going on that weekend on that lake, and I knew it would be crawling with high-speed boats and pro-fishermen.
I was raised on the riverbank, and I knew all about how rich folks ran all over the lakes on waverunners and boats and were nearly running over and killing folks running their trot lines and fishing for crappie off of tree stumps and under bridges.
These idiots being drunk made things far worse. Lots of idiot drunk underage kids in their daddy’s boats.
But back to any church dragging your kid off to some trip, “mission”, camp, excursion—I don’t care if it’s just to the corner store. No. Like heck no. They can go fish.
If your kid doesn’t want to go, there’s a valid reason for it. Listen to them.
Investigate the event like Columbo on steroids. Gods trying to protect your son or daughter.
She said she was not given the choice to remain in the van with any of the leaders.
remain in the van with any of the leaders.
the leaders remained in the van......
If you do not think this is wrong then you have either been brain washed or are brain dead. Between 67% and 77% of the homeless are mentally ill, two-thirds of chronically homeless individuals have a primary substance use disorder or other chronic health conditions or just drugged out bat shit crazy. You known like the guy in NYC who set a woman on fire just to see her die...............
If my child had been endangered by the cowardly act of those supposed "leaders" who never left the van. That van may have, just may have ended up as a final resting place for them......so they would never have to leave it.
Jesus was hated too by many. Many people say they follow him but act very poorly. We are all sinners. Don’t judge Jesus off of what these people say and do, judge him from what he says and what he did. Look to him only.
No they don't, you hate yourself and the God you don't believe in because you quit, you didn't rest in Him, you didn't trust in Him. Even God doesn't hate you, you have enough for all.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.