Church Employee in Houston Arrested for Grooming and Abusing Young Teen
An employee at a Catholic school in the Archdiocese of Houston has been arrested on child sexual assault charges. We now call on Catholic officials in Houston to do outreach to parents and parishioners and to update their list of the credibly accused to include this staffer and all other lay employees in Houston that have hurt children or vulnerable adults.
Ronald See, an IT staffer at St. Anthony Padua Catholic Church and School in The Woodlands Township, TX, has been arrested for grooming and sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl who was a family friend. While See did not find the victim through his position at St. Anthony Padua, it is possible that he could have had access to other children while working in the school and parish. It is critical that Cardinal Daniel DiNardo use every resource at his disposal to ensure parents and parishioners at St. Anthony’s are made aware of the story and that anyone who may have seen or suspected crimes by See or any other church employees are encouraged to come forward to law enforcement.
This story demonstrates that it is not just clergy, brothers, and nuns who abuse boys and girls, but also all manner of lay employees. If Catholic officials truly want to demonstrate a commitment to protecting children and the vulnerable, they should include every staff member who has abused minors on their “credibly accused” list, not just priests and deacons. We call on Archdiocesan officials to update their list immediately with information about See and any other lay employee who has hurt children or adults while working for the Archdiocese of Houston.
“The sexual assault pandemic continues to spread through the Catholic church and Archdiocesan officials continue to demonstrate a great lack of transparency,” said Eduardo Lopez de Casas, leader of SNAP Houston. “There is no mention of this story on the St. Anthony website and they continue to keep their followers in the dark. This must change.”
CONTACT: Eduardo Lopez de Casas, SNAP Houston ( [email protected], Zach Hiner, SNAP Executive Director ([email protected], 517-974-9009)
(SNAP, the Survivors Network, has been providing support for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings for 30 years. We have more than 25,000 survivors and supporters in our network. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)
Winter Appeal 2023
To our friends,
2023 has been a long year with many ups and downs for us all. As we close out the year, we at SNAP hope that you are feeling like you are on your way to being healthy, fulfilled, and happy. This past year has brought both successes and challenges. Thanks to the support you have shown in the past, we’ve been able to celebrate the good days and weather the stormy ones. Now, we are once again asking for your support as we work to support survivors new and old as we ‘Move SNAP Forward.’
At SNAP we are proud to have hosted a very well-attended conference in August 2023. This event allowed us to gather friends, survivors, advocates, and allies for a weekend of camaraderie and connection. We were so happy to be able to welcome many first-time attendees to gather in person and are already looking forward to the next conference.
To strengthen our movement for justice, healing, and prevention, SNAP will be expanding our peer support and providing more volunteer opportunities in the coming year. Through this great work, we are ensuring survivor voices are represented as we work for significant change that will benefit children and survivors.
Right now, survivors worldwide are getting the help they need from SNAP, and more and more reach out to us daily, but we need your help to keep those programs going and get our volunteers the training they need to thrive.
Your tax-deductible gift to SNAP can help offset the cost of our important mission. If you are not in a position to contribute, you can still support us by sharing this letter with those who can. As we continue to fight for survivors across the globe, your donation or sharing the great work SNAP does will help us continue our work to protect the vulnerable, heal the wounded, and prevent abuse.
Your donation ensures SNAP will be there for those who need us more than ever!
Warmly,
Michael W. McDonnell, C.P.S.
Interim Executive Director