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	Church Worker Sentenced for Molesting Boys By Dianne Wood The Record August 19, 2009 http://news.therecord.com/News/Local/article/586891 “Mark Hiemstra made it past my mother radar.’’ The words are from the mother of a young boy molested by Hiemstra, the former director of the children’s ministry at Highview Community Church in Kitchener. On Tuesday, Hiemstra was sentenced to 23 months in jail for molesting seven young boys over a 17-year period. The mother’s words, contained in her victim-impact statement, convey her sense of betrayal. They reveal her anguish at failing to protect her son and disbelief that she could have been fooled by this seemingly kind and gentle man. But Hiemstra, who worked in church organizations in five communities starting in 1990, deceived many people. “Mr. Hiemstra was able to manipulate her, and many others, to get access to young boys,’’ said prosecutor Marg Janzen. Hiemstra, 37, was convicted of seven sex-related offences involving boys in Kitchener and other communities between 1990 and 2007. The incidents involved fondling. The abuse happened during sleepovers at church camps, at church day camps and day programs, and even while babysitting boys. Hiemstra became a father figure to two boys he met at a church in the early 1990s after their parents split. He volunteered to run the church camp. He stayed in touch with the family from 1993 to 2002 and even slept at their home. The boys took turns sleeping with him. The mother who wrote the victim impact statement said she now understands Hiemstra’s numerous offers to babysit her son. Her little boy was Hiemstra’s “little buddy and helper,’’ she said. She’s lost her job and her marriage has been affected. She fears for her children’s safety every day. Three of the assaults took place in the six years Hiemstra was director of the children’s ministry at the Kitchener church and ran a summer camp program Kitchener’s Ontario Court heard that Hiemstra went to police and confessed his crimes after one of the victims contacted him as an adult. He was struggling with what had happened. Hiemstra went to a lawyer for advice, then turned himself in to police. He admitted to a series of assaults, including two the victims didn’t even know about. Justice John Lynch gave him credit for that and for counselling he began immediately. Several rows of the courtroom were filled with Hiemstra’s supporters. The prosecutor said there was nothing wrong with that, but she urged the judge to also support the victims and think of the “real harm caused by sexual predators such as Mr. Hiemstra.’’ The children, who loved him, are now confused, Janzen said. They looked up to him. They wonder about their sexual identity. Which adults can they trust? Hiemstra wrote letters of apology to the victims which will be forwarded by the court if deemed appropriate. An assessment presented to the court described Hiemstra as a homosexual pedophile who is at high to moderate risk of reoffending. “He was apparently going to continue with this until someone said or did something,’’ the judge said. Lynch said it was important to keep controls on Hiemstra. He’ll be on three years of probation after his release from jail. During that time, he can’t associate with, or live with, anyone 18 or under. He can’t contact anyone 16 or under by computer. He was banned for life from going to parks, schools, swimming pools and other places children gather. Hiemstra resigned from the church after he was charged. Contact: dwood@therecord.com
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