“Avoid, as you would the plague, a clergyman who … has risen from poverty to wealth, from obscurity to a high position” Jerome.

---

Subtitle: Josh Duggar meets Joni Lamb.

---

The current scandal at Faith Life Church in New Albany, Ohio.

I am always grateful when a reader sends me information about issues we cover at TWW. This reader likened it to Josh Duggar meets Joni Lamb. Here is part of the email

Gary and Drenda Keesee are the husband/wife lead pastors at Faith Life in New Albany, Ohio. They’re uber wealthy and well connected. Drenda is also a county commissioner in Knox County, just north of the church. Most of the church leadership consists of their children. Youngest daughter, Kirsten, posted a message Apparently, she was a child SA victim of her brother, Tom, and her parents hushed it up. Tom has had access to the youth group and numerous SA victims are coming forward. Ohio Attorney General, Dave Yost, whom is about to be appointed to the senate seat vacated by JD Vance, is alleged to be keeping this SA case from seeing the light of day, due to his friendship with the Keesee’s.

The reader included this screenshot. I am sorry for the blurry image, which is my fault.

The family runs the church, and that is a problem when accusations of sex abuse within the family arise.

There are allegations that the parents hushed up the sexual abuse of their daughter by their son.

Today, the Christian Post published Tom Keesee, son of Faith Life Church founders, accused of sexually abusing sister, others.

Gary Thomas “Tom” Keesee, a son of Gary and Drenda Keesee, founders and senior pastors of Faith Life Church, a family-run, multi-campus megachurch in Ohio, is facing allegations of sexual abuse, including one from his sister, Kirsten McKinney.

In addition to being a son of the Faith Life Church founders, Tom Keesee is also the former chief media officer at the church, according to LinkedIn. He resigned from the position last August.

The church is also involved in DayStar programming, and Drenda is reportedly friends with Joni Lamb.

Here is a YouTube video titled BREAKING! Whistleblowers Expose Daystar Programmers Covering Family Predator on their Own Daughter.

The Ohio Attorney General is a friend of the family. Is that why the investigation stalled? The petition seemed to move things along.

Apparently, some claimed that the failure of the Ohio Attorney General, who is reportedly a friend of the family, interfered with the ability to investigate the accusations. So, a Change.Org petition was created.

DEMAND DAVE YOST CSA INVESTIGATION

Dave Yost has not assigned report number S-P2402390 to be investigated. This report is to bring justice to the victims of Gary Thomas Keesee for SA and abuse of minors.

His victims include his sister (who posted below) and girls under his influence in the church.

These victims deserve justice.

Dave Yost is allegedly blocking the investigation due to his relationship with Knox County Commissioner Drenda Keesee.

ASSIGN THE CASE, DAVE.

Kirsten Mckinney, the abuser’s youngest sister, addressed the concern in the petition. She believed that something was causing the investigation to stall.

Many are aware of allegations involving a family member. I was a victim, and when I learned of ongoing concerns for others’ safety in combination with other’s stories I already knew, I felt a responsibility to step forward. A private police investigation has been working on this case alongside other victims.

When the case was being escalated from our local Police detectives to the Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI), I decided to go on record, and my information was sent in as a victim for an official interview. The agency initially indicated they would assign a detective immediately and coordinated with the Police department to get my name and information. However, shortly after my information was submitted, I was informed that the BCI said they would not get involved with the case. No explanation was provided, and I was not given an opportunity to meet with anyone or share my account.

Given the facts of this case, I find it deeply concerning that the BCI is unwilling to hear from firsthand victims, despite law enforcement confirming there was sufficient evidence to proceed without my story. I also cannot ignore that my mother has a close political relationship with Attorney General Dave Yost. I do not know if this has had any impact on the decision, but it raises serious questions about the fairness and transparency of the process. Many individuals in law enforcement and government positions have also expressed confusion and frustration over why this case is not moving forward.

A close friend in law enforcement told me the case is being “blocked” due to “conflict of interest.” This is the second attempt to have this case placed that has been blocked due to an alleged conflict of interest. They will now attempt to move it to a third location, but there are concerns this might be a repeat pattern.

The petition attracted so much attention that, on 2/4/25, the case was added to the roster to be investigated. The petition attracted 2500 signatures.

The Columbus Dispatch posted Licking County to handle the New Albany megachurch sex abuse case after Dave Yost’s recusal. AG Yost admitted after the petition had attracted signatures:

Yost acknowledged on Feb. 1 a friendship with Keesee, whose son, Tom Keesee, is accused of the sexual abuse.

“The suspect’s parents are friends and have been to my home for dinner. My relationship with them meant that we could not credibly perform the investigation,” Yost wrote.

Yost claims that he could not credibly handle the case.

According to the Columbus Dispatch:

Yost explained in the post that if he agreed to investigate the church allegations, the credibility of the work would have been questioned “either by critics who claimed my friendship prevented a thorough investigation, or by defense counsel at trial, who would try to claim that I am overreacting and targeting his client to prove my integrity for political purposes.

The church attorney leaped into action, finally acknowledging the situation.

Katie Tabor, the church attorney, sent this statement to the Columbus Dispatch.

“We want to express our deepest compassion for those who have come forward and for anyone who has experienced harm. We recognize the courage it takes to speak out. We encourage anyone impacted to seek appropriate support and to report concerns to the proper authorities. We ask for prayers for all those affected and for our church family as we navigate this challenging time. We remain steadfast in our mission to serve with faith, love, and compassion.”

Dad made a statement.

The Christian Post published a statement by Pastor Gary Kreesee claiming the church does not condone abuse. Note the following statement.

“I’m not aware of anyone currently on this staff that has been accused of being involved with any type of this activity. Please make sure you know that. Please know that Drenda and I, our pastoral team has not been accused of anything. Our goal is to carry out the work that God has assigned us to do, and in that process, law enforcement will deal with anyone that may be guilty of such activity, and the innocent will be exonerated,” he said.

Did you catch it? He is not aware of anyone “currently on staff” who has been accused of sexual abuse. His son resigned last August.

There appear to be other victims besides Kirsten.

According to The Christian Post:

Among the other alleged victims is Olivia Wooten, who publicly revealed that she’s a survivor in response to McKinney’s disclosure.

…Olivia Wooten’s husband, Nathan Wooten, who is a former employee of Faith Life Church, also alleged in a statement on Facebook that Tom Keesee confessed to him more than a decade ago that he had sexually assaulted his wife while she was a minor.

According to the Columbus Dispatch, “accusers say there may be as many as 11 victims.”

What are we left with?

• Mom and Dad are well-to-do and run a megachurch.
• They are friends with Daystar’s Joni Lamb.
• Their son, now a former employee, is alleged to have abused his sister.
• There appear to be other victims.
• The family has personal ties to the State Attorney General who may fill JD Vance’s Senate seat,
• Mom and Dad appear to have protected their son from natural consequences.

Prediction

It appears the family tried to cover up their son’s alleged abuse. If so, they should step down from ministry. However, they won’t. Joni Lamb will stand by them, and people will leave their church.

The TWW reader had it right. This story is “Josh Duggar meets Joni Lamb.” They never seem to learn, and I fear that we will learn that this situation is worse than we can imagine. Folks should stay away from family-run churches. A church is not meant to be a cash cow for the pastors and their family. There is too much incentive to “cover up the problems. This practice should stop, but it won’t.

Jerome had it right.

“Avoid, as you would the plague, a clergyman who … has risen from poverty to wealth, from obscurity to a high position” Jerome.