Staff

The People

The Volunteers

Although we take pride in our newly renovated facility, the greatest asset we have at Meadow Haven is our many volunteers. For any project such as Meadow Haven to be successful, it takes a special combination of caring individuals with a broad range of skills and abilities to provide the best opportunities for healing and recovery. A diverse group of volunteers contribute their skills, talents, and time to help MeadowHaven be successful.

The Staff

MeadowHaven currently has 5 staff members serving in various capacities.

Bob and Judy Pardon, Executive & Associate Directors

Bob and Judy Pardon maintain their offices on the premises of Meadowhaven. For over a decade they have been dedicated to helping people from high-control religious groups through exit counseling, seminars, and support groups. The Pardons regularly receive queries from around the world for cult recovery resources and information on various groups.

Reverend Bob Pardon was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. There he attended the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies.

Bob did his theological and professional training at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Hamilton, Massachusetts. Upon graduating from Gordon-Conwell with a Master of Divinity degree (M.Div.), he pastored a church in Middleboro, Massachusetts for eight years.

He continued his theological education at Princeton Theological Seminary where he graduated with a Masters in Theology (Th.M.) with a concentration in ethics, and upon graduation pastored a church in Watertown, Massachusetts for seven years.

Bob was a founding member of the New England Institute of Religious Research and currently serves as executive director of MeadowHaven. Currently, he speaks throughout the country on cults in general, and many groups specifically, at national conferences, Churches, secular organizations, etc. He works with families who have lost children to cultic groups, runs support groups for those who have left, conducts extensive research, provides seminars, works with law enforcement when requested, as well as child protection services in many States.

The past five years he has specialized in religious communal groups, many of them destructive. These have included The Commonwealth of Israel (Twelve Tribes - international group), The Family of Love (international group), The Kingdom of Yah (Tennessee), The Community of Jesus (Massachusetts), The Brethren (national group), and The Body of Christ (Massachusetts).

He has worked with and/or appeared on 48 Hours, Dateline, EXTRA, CNN, Early Show with Bryant Gumble, Today Show, Good Morning America, Inside Edition, PBS, Chronicle and numerous local television stations and cable outlets.

Judy Pardon was born and raised in the Boston area. She graduated from the University of Massachusetts, Boston earning a B.A. in psychology and a certification in Elementary Education. Upon graduating she taught elementary school for twenty years in the Watertown, Massachusetts public school system. She later earned an M.Ed. in counseling from Cambridge College.

Judy was also a founding member of The New England Institute of Religious Research, and later MeadowHaven. As Associate-Director of MeadowHaven, Judy meets regularly with members of various religious and non-religious groups. She counsels those who have left destructive groups as well as the families of those who are still involved. Her experience working with people in a multitude of capacities has only enhanced her ability to minister to those suffering from the effects of their involvement in abusive organizations.

Caron Maher, Administrative Assistant, Resident House Parent

Caron's biography under construction...

MeadowHaven's Board of Directors

Rev. Eduardo Andrade, Pastor, Good Shepherd Reformed Episcopal Church, Brockton, MA

Jeff and Sue Whiteacre, Ipswich, MA

Ray and Stephanie Connolly, Former members of an abusive group, Grafton, MA

Peter Marinelli, Lawyer, Cambridge and Wrentham, MA

MeadowHaven's Board of Reference

Rev. Eric Schweitzer, Ph.D., Director, Charis Counseling Center, Middleboro, MA

Craig Branch, Director, Apologetics Resource Center, Birmingham, AL

James Bjornstadt, Ph.D., Professor, Cedarville College, Cedarville, OH

Dan Trathen, Ph.D., Therapist, Denver, CO