site_header_logo_left
  • Clear
    34°
    Full Forecast
  • RSS | E-mail | Twitter | Facebook | Mobile
Search
  • Home
    • News
      • National
      • Regional: Lehigh Valley
      • Regional: Berks
      • Regional: Southeastern PA
      • Regional: Poconos & Coal Region
      • Regional: Pennsylvania
      • Regional: Western NJ
      • Sunrise
      • Technology
      • Politics
      • Biographies & Appearances
      • Copies of Stories
    • Weather
      • Pocono Ski Cameras
      • Weather
      • Hour by Hour
      • Local Radar
      • Accuweather Radar
      • Map Room
      • School & Business Closings
      • Local River Levels
      • Send Your Weather Report
      • Severe Weather
      • Contact Us
      • Homework Help
      • Ed's School Program
      • The Accuweather Channel
    • Traffic
      • Traffic
      • Traffic Camera Map
      • Traffic Cameras
      • Pump Picks
      • Projects & Detours
    • Sports
      • Scoreboard
      • H.S. Football Schedules
      • The Big Ticket
      • MLB
      • NHL
      • NFL
      • NBA
      • NCAA Football
      • NCAA BB
      • MotorSports
    • Business
      • Bloomberg Index
      • Local Stocks
      • Business Matters
      • ALLENTOWN YELLOW PAGES
    • Entertainment
      • Contests
      • Music Monday
      • At The Movies
      • TV Listings
    • Lifestyle
      • Food and Recipes
      • Family
      • Money
      • Auto
      • Pump Picks
      • Health and Education
      • House and Home
      • Travel Getaways
      • Talk With Your Doctor
    • Community
      • Databank
      • Send Us Your Video
      • Send Us Your Images
      • Walk Team
      • Employment
      • Calendar
      • Missing Persons
      • Lost Pets
    • Features
      • Arts Around Town
      • Made Right Here
      • Think Tank
      • History's Headlines
      • One Tank Trip
      • Anchors Away
      • Up & Atom Science
      • Medical Breakthroughs
      • Freddy Awards
      • Connect With Kids
    • Station
      • Contact Us
      • Mobile
      • Employment
      • Send Us Your Birthday Photos
      • Advertise With Us
      • TV Listings
      • Email/Text Alerts
      • Internships
      • Cable Listings
      • Virtual Tour
    • OBITS
      • Home
      • > News
      • Abuse Victims Urged To Come Forward

        Author: Karin Mallett
        Published On: Aug 24 2011 01:52:39 PM EDT  Updated On: Aug 30 2010 06:17:09 AM EDT
        • Small Text
        • Medium Text
        • Large Text
        • Print
        • Email
        • Tweet
        Close

        Send to a Friend

        ALLENTOWN, Pa. -

        A support group for victims of abuse by priests wants others to know they're not alone.

        On Monday, the group urged victims to come forward and said there may be a connection to a priest who was named in a lawsuit filed in Reading just last week.

        They stood in front of the offices of the Allentown Diocese.

        Quick Clicks

        • Muslims, Christians meet, discuss...
        • Residents worry about affects of sludge...
        • Police department upgrades to faster...
        • Slow down: more speed limit signs...
        • Palmer Township prepares for next...

        SNAP stands for the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests.

        "No parents should ever have this happen to them," said group member Mark Rozzi.

        Rozzi said he was abused by a priest as a young boy in Berks County. He said he knows the parents of the 19-year-old who had a child with Father Luis Bonilla.

        Bonilla was the chaplain at Reading's Central Catholic High School when he met the teen and acknowledged having an inappropriate relationship with her.

        In November 2009, he was removed from his post.

        "I just see what the parents are going through," said Rozzi. "Just to see that their daughter had been taken away from them."

        In the lawsuit, the 19-year-old's parents said the school and the diocese should have done more to protect their daughter.

        SNAP said it believes there is more to the story.

        "We are hoping and reaching out to the people in Reading and hoping they will come forward if something has happened to them, or if they even suspect that he has done something he shouldn't have with another child," said Karen Polesir.

        We tried to track down Father Bonilla for his response to the claims, but have been unable to reach him.

        The Allentown Diocese said its policy is to encourage anyone with any knowledge of inappropriate behavior or sexual abuse to come forward and that the allegations are immediately reported to police.

        "Just the fact that history has shown that they have more than one victim would lead us to believe that it is a possibility," said Polesir.

        SNAP was founded in 1989 and said since then, it's helped thousands of survivors.

        • Copyright 2011 WFMZ. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

        Up Next:Reading police still trying to identify 'John Doe'

        Comments


        The views expressed are not those of this company or its affiliated companies. Please note by clicking on "Post" you acknowledge that you have read the TERMS OF USE and the comment you are posting is in compliance with such terms. Your comments may be used on air. Be polite. Inappropriate posts may be removed by the moderator.
      • Advertisement
      • Advertisement
      • Links We Like

            from our sponsors
      • STORMCENTER

      • School / Business Application

      • Worship Registration

      Home
      News
      • National
      • Regional: Lehigh Valley
      • Regional: Berks
      • Regional: Southeastern PA
      • Regional: Poconos & Coal Region
      • Regional: Pennsylvania
      • Regional: Western NJ
      • Sunrise
      • Technology
      • Politics
      • Biographies & Appearances
      • Copies of Stories
      Weather
      • Pocono Ski Cameras
      • Weather
      • Hour by Hour
      • Local Radar
      • Accuweather Radar
      • Map Room
      • School & Business Closings
      • Local River Levels
      • Send Your Weather Report
      • Severe Weather
      • Contact Us
      • Homework Help
      • Ed's School Program
      • The Accuweather Channel
      Traffic
      • Traffic
      • Traffic Camera Map
      • Traffic Cameras
      • Pump Picks
      • Projects & Detours
      Sports
      • Scoreboard
      • H.S. Football Schedules
      • The Big Ticket
      • MLB
      • NHL
      • NFL
      • NBA
      • NCAA Football
      • NCAA BB
      • MotorSports
      Business
      • Bloomberg Index
      • Local Stocks
      • Business Matters
      • ALLENTOWN YELLOW PAGES
      Entertainment
      • Contests
      • Music Monday
      • At The Movies
      • TV Listings
      Lifestyle
      • Food and Recipes
      • Family
      • Money
      • Auto
      • Pump Picks
      • Health and Education
      • House and Home
      • Travel Getaways
      • Talk With Your Doctor
      Community
      • Databank
      • Send Us Your Video
      • Send Us Your Images
      • Walk Team
      • Employment
      • Calendar
      • Missing Persons
      • Lost Pets
      Features
      • Arts Around Town
      • Made Right Here
      • Think Tank
      • History's Headlines
      • One Tank Trip
      • Anchors Away
      • Up & Atom Science
      • Medical Breakthroughs
      • Freddy Awards
      • Connect With Kids
      Station
      • Contact Us
      • Mobile
      • Employment
      • Send Us Your Birthday Photos
      • Advertise With Us
      • TV Listings
      • Email/Text Alerts
      • Internships
      • Cable Listings
      • Virtual Tour
      Obits
      Weather information provided by
      Part Of The IB Network
      © 2012, Internet Broadcasting Systems, Inc.
      Privacy Policy | Terms of use | Advertising Information
      See All Internet Broadcasting Sites | Site Map