At a time when he should be getting a job, earning a wage from real labor, and focusing on his supposed “recovery” from lifelong homosexual struggles, the Rev. Ted Haggard has apparently sought donations for himself and for a defunct Colorado charity that the Rocky Mountain News (with help from writer Dan Savage and attorney Dave Coffman) has linked to a convicted sex offender.
Today, overseers of Haggard’s supposed ex-gay recovery rebuked the fallen minister and canceled his plan to work for the Phoenix Dream Center, a halfway house for people struggling with compulsive behaviors.
According to the Colorado Springs Gazette, the overseers said:
After their fact-finding was complete, they (overseers) informed Mr. Haggard that his plan and his communications about it were unacceptable. Mr. Haggard’s solicitation for personal support was inappropriate. It was never the intention of the Dream Center that Mr. Haggard would provide any counsel or other ministry. Mr. Haggard will not be moving in or working with the Dream Center. He will not be doing any ministry. He will be seeking secular employment to support himself and his family.
Unanswered questions:
Why would Haggard, who received a $138,000 severance package from his former church and owns a $715,000 house in Colorado, need two years’ worth of charitable handouts for himself and his wife?
Why would Haggard launder those handouts through a convicted sex offender?
Yeah… but the housing market is soft especially at the higher end.
Those are very good questions, Mike!
Another good one is, “Exactly who are the overseers and exactly how much pull do they have?”
Personally, I can’t wait for the busloads and vanloads of fun-loving LGBTs to patronize a McDonald’s in Colorado Springs during a certain new hire’s shift.
“Well, look at you all dressed up in that cute uniform! They even had your size, extra dorky!”
I know, my mama raised a mean little girl, but my sympathy well’s running dry for Mr. Haggard.
I’m not surprised; these were the same overseers who declared Mr. Haggard 100% hetero in defiance of common sense, and embarrassed other ex-gays with their ridiculous claims. Why should we now take them seriously? Mr. Haggard would do well to get away from his so-called ‘overseers’.
there is some sort of pathology at work here, among such ministers in general, i am not a psychologists so i can’t put a name on it.
some combination of self delusion, aversion to real work, amorality. I guess in part it is a type of sociopathy since it involves an inability to see the immorality of one’s own acts and seems to repeatedly involve exploiting others (church members, family members). Similar to the type of behavior one sees in standard grifters and con men. Just dressed up in religion.
Do you have any support for the claim that he owns a $715,000 house in Colorado?
That appears to be the case.
Property records show that Haggard still owns the home he lived in for six years – and in fact, the property is not currently listed on the market.
Thanks for the source.
From what I can tell, it looks as though there may be up to (or over) $650,000 in mortgage debt on that property. Assuming sales costs of about 57,000 (8%), it doesn’t look as though the Haggards have any recoverable equity in the home or, if so, it isn’t very much.
While I think it perfectly reasonable to question why they can’t live on $138 K per year until he can find a job, I think the house is probably a non-issue.
Zillow.com estimates the property value at closer to $501 K so Haggard may actually be upside down on the house.
Your turn for sources, or was that a guess from the purchase price and date? Even if so, I wouldn’t say it’s out of the equation – he could dump a large mortgage payment and $4K in taxes if he got rid of it, particularly since he isn’t using it now.
And yes, $138K per year seems more than adequate. I’m not sure soliciting funds in this manner would have been appropriate even if he was totally broke. It all seems very “slimy” to me.
Yikes, I made a mistake!! The value of his old house is about $512 K.
The value of the current property is estimated at $768,000
And I bet those houses need LOTS of Windex!
Why would Haggard launder those handouts through a convicted sex offender?
Just out of curiosity, does anyone know what the sex offence was?