Who was the Gilead Student that jumped overboard?

VM44

A GILEAD STUDENT FROM THAILAND

A young Thai girl who came to new York to attend the Gilead School in upstate South Lansing, New York, had a mental breakdown. Staff members pleaded with President Knorr to send her home by plane, under supervision. He adamantly refused and gave instructions to send her home alone, "the cheapest way possible." She was sent to San Francisco by train and had passage booked for her on a ship to Thailand.

Evidently suffering another breakdown, she jumped overboard. The ship circled but never found her in the shark-infested waters. The captain sent a radiogram to the headquarters in Brooklyn. The switchboard operator, Arthur Barnett, received the message and receptionist Russell Kurzen also learned of the tragedy. The distressing news was then relayed to several members of the staff. When Knorr heard that the news was being circulated among the headquarters personnel, he was furious. Both men were reprimanded, and removed from their positions for revealing the contents of the radiogram.

[...] There was no announcement at Gilead School or at Bethel headquarters about the incident. [...] The young girl from Thailand was never mentioned again.

THE FOUR PRESIDENTS, page 96

VM44

Does anyone know what her name was?

When did this happen?

What was the name of the ship?

Right now this is just a story.

whathappened

OMG, this was a truly dispicable man.

VM44

This is an important story to document as it would prove what sort of person Knorr was!

Does anyone have any specific facts about it?

Right now it is just an anecdotal account.

minimus

How do you even know if this story is true?

Leolaia

I tried to research a few years ago. I could look up what I found, but I remember I was unable to come up with a name or a reference to the incident in newspapers.

james_woods

The only thing about this that sounds rather suspicious (to me) is:

Why would the ship's captain call Bethel rather than her next of kin or the police to find them?

Wouldn't a ship's captain generally report such a death to the local (land based) authorities to find and notify her survivors?

Leolaia

This is Bill Cetnar's version of the story, published first in the 1970s:

"Another incident shook my faith in the organization and its leadership. In 1956 or 1957 two young ladies came from Thailand to receive missionary training at Gilead. The pressures of learning the language and the other necessary subjects caused one of them to suffer a mental breakdown. She was periodically driven by an overpowering compulsion which caused her to take off her clothes and run through the building. She was sent to Bethel with the hope that she might be able to relax some and recuperate. But her condition grew worse and she tried to commit suicide by attempting to jump from the Bethel home.
"President Knorr told Worth Thornton, transportation secretary, to send the girl back to Thailand the cheapest way, as soon as possible. Arrangements were made to place her on a train to San Francisco and there she would board a ship for Thailand. When she learned of this she begged to be placed on a plane, or to have another missionary accompany her. She explained that when she had the spells, she could not control herself and if she were on a ship, she might jump overboard. Both of her requests were refused as being too expensive. Worth Thornton was very upset about this, a fact known to me because I had discussions with him about the matter.
"The girl was put on the train, and at San Francisco she boarded a merchant vessel. When the ship passed Hawaii, she had one of her seizures and jumped overboard. The ship circled back to search for her, but she was never found. Possibly she had been eaten by sharks. The ship notified the Society by radiogram about what had happened, and the message was received by Arthur Barnett, who was operating the switchboard at Bethel. Russell Kurzen, Bethel receptionist, also learned of the tragedy. Both men were shocked and they relayed the news to others in the Bethel family. President Knorr became very upset that the information had been given out, and both Arthur and Russell were removed from their positions.
"This episode bothered me very much. There were sufficient funds available to provide first-class travel accommodations and every luxury for the president of the Society — but we couldn't afford to care for the Witness girl properly so that she could get home safely. This callous decision cost her her life."

Atlantis

VM44:

Scroll down and read the replies of "Mouthy" at this link:

http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/watchtower/scandals/161008/2/Suicides-at-Bethel

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Mouthy states: "I know the girl that jumped overboard is true. I knew the brother that asked for her to fly at the BRO's SISTers EXPENSE. And top floor said NO!

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If Mouthy knew the brother who was trying to help with flying expenses, then perhaps a "name" was mentioned through the grapevine.

Atlantis

Giordano

James if the society booked and paid for her ticket they would have been notified.

I hated Knorr so much I wouldn't even buy Knorr soup!

"Staff members pleaded with President Knorr to send her home by plane, under supervision. He adamantly refused and gave instructions to send her home alone, "the cheapest way possible." She was sent to San Francisco by train and had passage booked for her on a ship to Thailand."

Who was the Gilead Student that jumped overboard?

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