Moderated by award-winning radio and print reporter, Natasha Senjanovic
Thursday, March 2
7pm
FREE Virtual Event
At thirteen years old, Stephen Mills is chosen for special attention by the director of his Jewish summer camp, a charismatic social worker intent on becoming his friend. Stephen, whose father died when he was four, places his trust in this authority figure, who first grooms and then molests him for two years.
Stephen tells no one, but the aftershocks rip through his adult life, as intense as his denial: self-loathing, drug abuse, petty crime, and horrific nightmares, all made worse by the discovery that his abuser is moving from camp to camp, state to state, molesting other boys. Only physical and mental collapse bring Stephen to confront the truth of his boyhood and begin the painful process of recovery―as well as a decades-long crusade to stop a serial predator, find justice, and hold to account those who failed the children in their care.
The trauma of sexual abuse is shared by one out of every six men, yet very few have broken their silence. Unflinching and compulsively readable, Chosen eloquently speaks for those countless others and their families. It is a rare act of consummate courage and generosity―the indelible story of a man who faces his torment and his tormentor and, in the process, is made whole.
Our Kids social worker, Lisa Milam, M.A., DSW, LCSW and Rabbi Shana Mackler of The Temple will be on the panel with author Stephen Mills.
“An unparalleled achievement, a work of shattering, almost-unbearable radiance. Chosen is destined to be a classic because this is a book that will save lives.”
—JUNOT DIAZ, author of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
“Chosen is a masterfully written story of love and hate that is as tender as it is traumatic. I couldn't put it down.”
—GERALDINE BROOKS, author of People of the Book
The Gordon JCC partners with the Jewish Book Council. 