Official Sites. Suddenly there was no money to buy lumber or supplies--"he was such a tightwad," Stephan Jones says--and the homesteading fervor gave way to the minister's incessant meetings and group lectures and warnings about "enemies.". In "Raven," Reiterman and Jacobs describe the minister presenting the congregation with a batch of fruit punch: "We're going to drink poison and kill ourselves," Jim Jones declared, and it was not until many people had drunk that Jones said he had simply wished to test his followers' loyalty. Some of the original settlers, included Stephan, resented the new arrivals who second-guessed their work (Reiterman 348). In the days before Ryans fact-finding mission to the settlement, the players were in Georgetown for a tourney with the Guyana national teams. Retrieved December 10, 2022, from https://www.haaretz.com/life/2019-01-22/ty-article-magazine/.premium/four-decades-on-jim-jones-son-tells-how-it-was-at-jonestown/0000017f-e640-d62c-a1ff-fe7b2ea00000, A collaborative project of Cowles Library at Drake University and the Special Collections Department of Library and Information Access at San Diego State University, Chronological List of Annotated Documents, Alternative Considerations of Jonestown and Peoples Temple, https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1983/11/07/jonestowns-haunted-son/f9369588-008b-497a-9ad3-b303dc01a8df/, https://jonestown.sdsu.edu/?page_id=17058, https://www.haaretz.com/life/2019-01-22/ty-article-magazine/.premium/four-decades-on-jim-jones-son-tells-how-it-was-at-jonestown/0000017f-e640-d62c-a1ff-fe7b2ea00000. Early Life Stephan Gandhi Jones was born on June 1, 1959 to parents Jim and Marceline Jones in Indiana. They have three children. James Warren Jones, Sr. They have three children. I believe that it was always a personal agenda for my father, and yes, there was a gradual shift in the balance. And I dont know if it was paranoia. I see it in politics, I see it in advertising, I see it in a variety of places, and I feel theres no more pernicious or toxic belief than that. But the reality is that it was far from a mass suicide. jones stephan marceline wife binesh shrestha "Who they spoke to. On the other hand, Stephan was sometimes hurt by his father not making time for his family (Reiterman 120), and felt his mothers betrayal when he first learned of Jones extramarital affairs (Reiterman 121). Jennifer Lopez reveals she has an alter ego named Lola who is 'playful' as she says she has FINALLY 'realized the importance of enjoying life', Trump calls to DEFUND the DOJ: Ex-President calls indictment 'morally disgusting' - while his attorney calls it a 'relief' because there's 'NO new evidence', Is Donald in the doghouse? 1960), becoming the first white couple in Indiana to adopt a black child. Haaretz.com, the online English edition of Haaretz Newspaper in Israel, gives you breaking news, analyses and opinions about Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World. They were under siege, Jim Jones would cry; the snipers were after him; the Guyanese army was about to descend; the children would be taken away and probably tortured. After years of struggles that included drug addiction, Jones says hes now living a pleasant life in the United States with his wife and three daughters. I did. They felt there was an outside threat, and that was hammered into them. There have been things Ive wanted to do (Reiterman 454). He has been married to Kristi Jones since 1991. More than 900 members of the Peoples Temple had lived in theagricultural missionin the distant jungle of Guyana, South America, led by the cult leader Rev. Now, Stephan is a father of three daughters, ages 16, 25 and 29, and works in the office furniture installation business, Eugene Smith recalls how his mother, a churchgoing African-American, bought into Jim Jones' dream when he opened a new church in Fresno. They were forced. Prior to Stephans birth, Jim and Marceline had adopted two children from Korea: a four-year-old named Stephanie and a two-year-old renamed Lew Eric. Prior to Stephans birth, Jim and Marceline had adopted two children from Korea: a four-year-old named Stephanie and a two-year-old renamed Lew Eric. Stephan Jones was born on June 1, 1959 in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. After Stephans birth, the Jones family adopted two more children, another Korean child renamed Suzanne, and a black baby named James Warren Jones Jr. Stephan missed his mother, but was happier than hed ever been. For years it was largely forgotten along with a number of other insanities in the United States in the 1970s. Those who broke rules were disciplined. He dreams he is in a crowd, and his father is talking about suicide. The reason I ended up in Jonestown is that I left. People raced over to the outdoor pavilion. This sniper attack, plus the escalating political battle over John Victor Stoen, escalated into a full-blown crisis with the entire community being put on lock-down in preparation for an attack, possibly by mercenaries backed by Tim Stoen (Reiterman 362). A woman named Sharon Amos had slaughtered her three children and committed suicide. Stephan and Marceline both argued against it, but eventually both gave in and Stephan went at his mothers request, agreeing to go for only a week, though as soon as he arrived in Jonestown he was informed that his position would be permanent (Reiterman 310). Among the films in which he appeared were Written in Blood (2018), The Peoples Advocate: The Life and Times of Charles R. Gary (2007), and The True Story of Charles R. Gary (2007). Richmond, Wayne County, Indiana, USA. Of those 25 percent that drank the poison, most of those people were just defeated and didnt know where else to turn and didnt want to run out on the others. And she could only sense the site of the pavilion, the once-vibrant center of Jonestown life where so many died - including her two sisters and two nephews. . James Warren Jones, Sr. Also learn how He earned most of networth at the age of 62 years old? He also made sure that the other disciples who were in the capital would do nothing hasty. Stephan Gandhi Jones was 19. WebShanti Gandhi (born 10 February 1940) is an India-born American cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon and was a Republican member of the Kansas House of Representatives, representing the 52nd District from 2013 to 2015.He won a contested party primary and won again in the 2012 general election.. When Congressman Ryan and his party came to Jonestown, Stephan and the rest of the basketball team was away in Georgetown competing against the local team. "I was still naive enough--well, not necessarily naive enough; I still believe the CIA is capable of all kinds of things--but I felt that we could geniunely be a threat to the image of the United States and that people might be trying to do things to undermine or eliminate what was happening down there," he says. I wondered why it happened. 'I believe that it was always a personal agenda for my father, and yes, there was a gradual shift in the balance. Stephans relationship with his father fluctuated between feeling intense positives and negatives. With their lives, the story of Jonestown continues, even now., The mass murders and suicides of hundreds ofPeoples Temple membersin the distant jungle of Guyana, South Americaon November 18, 1978 is a horror that remains nearly unimaginable 40 years later, Among those speaking out ahead of the 40-year anniversary of the mass deaths isMike Touchette, who was a 21-year-old Indiana native at the time.. You describe yourself in your writings as a rebellious kid. Im sorry. After the Jonestown massacre, Stephan spent three months in a Guyanese jail as authorities tried to confirm the cause of death for Sharon Amos and her family. Stephan was around 17 years old when he moved to Jonestown in February 1977 to help build the compound. During the bouncy ride out, former temple members said that one of the supposed defectors, Larry Layton, was a Jones loyalist and had been depressed. He was not prepared for suicide. "I still get very angry," Stephan Jones says. Stephan Jones was born on 1 June 1959 in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. In his spare time he swims, or rides his bicycle, or lifts weights, or plays basketball. 29. Jim Jones set off one of these panics every few weeks, sometimes keeping people awake all night as he shouted his warnings. A large poncho covered his belt area so no one knew for sure and no one challenged him. Jim Jones. "You can tell when it's a man; the positions are different," Jones says evenly. WebShe lived in San Francisco, California before she moved to Jonestown, Guyana where she lived in Dorm 1. By the fall of that year, almost 1,000 Temple members emigrated to Jonestown, but for Stephan Jones, the pleasure crumbled when his father arrived. Stephans high school experience was marked by grueling weekend temple trips, multiple switches in schools, difficulty making friends outside of the temple, and sports (Reiterman 309). I guess maybe somebody who hadnt been in the temple their entire lives and was just stepping into it couldve seen it coming. Early Life Stephan Gandhi Jones was born on June 1, 1959 to parents Jim and Marceline Jones in Indiana. Jones often tried to involve Stephan in his various deceptions, including one in which Stephan would pretend to be shot while going to greet a lawyer from the U.S. (Reiterman 375), and one in which Stephan would pretend to kidnap John Stoen in a bag and then pretend to rescue him from his assailant (Reiterman 398). That wont work. 'I believe 100 percent that not everyone would have been dead,' he said. When John Cobb was born in 1960 in a black section of Indianapolis, his mother and older siblings already were temple members. I want out of this.' Learn How rich is He in this year and how He spends money? Where they were lying. I think it was Dad controlling people through fear, me and my siblings when we were very young.. In the days before Ryans fact-finding mission to the settlement, the players were in Georgetown for a tourney with the Guyana national teams. I see it in politics, I see it in advertising, I see it in a variety of places, and I feel theres no more pernicious or toxic belief than that. 'Hit the deck!' The younger man demanded that everyone in the truck move aside. After years of struggles that included drug addiction, Jones says hes now living a pleasant life in the United States with his wife and three daughters. And he faked getting shot in Redwood Valley [California] when I was still pretty young, and we felt like we were in danger much of the time. . There had been underground boxes to punish the lazy; public beatings; drills where guns and bows and arrows were hauled out on call of 'white knight,' and plans for mass suicides. For a long time I thought they felt the convulsions before they died, until somebody assured me that you pass out before you feel the convulsions. Stephan Jones Seeks Forgiveness For Jonestown Massacre, Late Jim Jones Son Stephan Jones Is An Actor, Who is Brandon T. Jackson? . In the summer of 1977 a large contingent of Peoples Temple members moved to Jonestown, growing the population from around 50 to over 1,000 over the course of a month (Reiterman 337). America was a genuinely unfriendly place for a boy from an interracial family and community, and Jim Jones knew how to fan that into a fear of everything that lay beyond the temple walls. He has been married to Kristi Jones since 1991. Like why would they follow such a madman and to such a crazy final act, and we probably know by now that it wasnt a mass suicide, but thats how it has been portrayed.. At first it was spanking of children. Stephan was around 17 years old when he moved to Jonestown in February 1977 to help build the compound. WebStephan Gandhi Jones, the biological son of Jim and Marceline Jones, said the temple was his life _ first in Indiana, later in California. "I don't know what was happening . Stephans dislike of the church services only grew stronger as he became privy to more of the Temple secrets, and was aware at a young age of the many things that were told to be truths, but were actually manipulations by Jones (Reiterman 106). (2003). "He always gave us a hug and a kiss, but it became more mechanical as time went by." Jim Jones radioed his son with orders to return to Jonestown, Stephan Jones refused to cut short the trip. Jonestown was the highlight of his life for a time and he recalls feeling pride pioneering in the distant jungle of Guyana. He was right, of course. Jim Jones, pictured in 1976,dreamed up Jonestown. She entered Guyana on August 10, 1977. Stephan spent many hours visiting with her whenever he got the chance (Reiterman 400). In code, his father told him everyone was going to die in 'revolutionary suicide. He was taking pain pills, and he said he was dying. When asked what Stephan wished people would take away from the Jonestown tragedy, he stated: Be aware of this message that was prevalent in the temple: The end justifies the means. And I see that throughout society. The temple was the only life he knew but says he always had his doubts. Self: The People's Advocate: The Life & Times of Charles R. Garry. When Smith reunited with his mother and wife in Jonestown, Ollie was 8 months pregnant. The shooting triggered the mass murders and suicides in Jonestown of more than 900 people orchestrated by the Rev. Play it now! He was summoned to the temple radio room. In the aftermath, he built a new life. Stephan Gandhi Jones is 6-foot-5, lean, broad at the shoulder, olive-eyed, black-haired, handsome as a billboard model. He has learned, he says, to understand his own resources and the depths of his emotions. So grew the young Stephan: the quiet witness steeped in rage. But the entertainers stayed in Jonestown to entertain Ryan. ", The thought of killing Jim Jones had occurred to his son, but Stephan never tried to do it. How to find out if YOU have been targeted. The temple was the only life he knew but says he always had his doubts. He was in Georgetown, Guyana on November 18, 1978 with the Jonestown Basketball Team. In the radio room at the Lamaha Gardens house in Georgetown, where the basketball team was staying, Jones called Stephan over the radio and implored him to Please, please, take care of everyone there; to ensure that not only Tim Stoen and the enemies of the Temple dead, but that every member in San Francisco and Georgetown died as well (Reiterman 542). Seating assignments were chosen after Ryan briefed the press on the knife attack and credited Mark Lane with saving his life. They moved forward slowly until one soldier bumped into an object on the ground. WebAs of December 2022, Stephan Jones is 63 years old. He grew, and discovered basketball. And I had good reason to be enraged with him'. On Nov. 18, the day Rep. Leo Ryan and four others were shot to death on the airstrip at Port Caituma, Guyana, Stephan Jones and his teammates went to the movies in Georgetown. When one of Stephan Jones' adopted brothers once declared in a rage that they had to kill their father, Stephan remembers talking him out of it: "I said, 'God, you'd have chaos on your hands if you just went out and did this. He was just 14, Stephan Jones and some other team members believe they might have changed history if they were there. He has been married to Kristi Jones since 1991. I guess I wanted to believe that, as a child.". Stephan believed, for a time, that his father was a great man, and that they were so similar they may have had a telepathic connection (Reiterman 120). Some of the defectors told me later that the men in the trailer were members of Peoples Temple. Stephan, Jim Jones son who was 19 at the time, says the warning signs that went unnoticed at Jonestown can be seen in the world today. The guy you see in all the images. It was easy to see and feel what was attractive about my father. Photo from Peoples Temple files, acquired from Reiterman 393. Then he decides it is time, and he falters, and he tells them they may not believe what he is about to say. To cope, he says he abused drugs and exercised obsessively. I didn't see who fired the shot but the sound came from the tractor and trailer. Reiterman, T., & Jacobs, J. Were you aware that you had a very different childhood than most? Top right: Young Jimmy and Stephan. He keeps his voice very soft, as though practice has taught him to hold certain subjects to a whisper in public, but his gaze is direct. 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