These people are scumbags who profit by the misery and trauma of children. By definition, they are child traffickers, all of whom should be summarily executed, as should any parent who hires them.

just want to say when he says there is no screaming yelling or handcuffing kids that is not true. i was threatened with restraints which can mean handcuffs or similar things such as zip ties i would imagine. and they did threaten they would use force if i don’t submit. i am sure that stuff does happen.

I tried to reply similarly already, but, now that you are out, how's your relationship with your parents? Do they realize the damage they've caused?

very strained at the moment. yes, they do. in private. until they are willing to take public accountability for this mistake and find a way to make reparations for the damage this has done to me, and the damage their promotion of this industry has done to others, i suspect our relationships will continue to be strained. having your trust broken by your own parents in the way that mine did is not something that’s easy to get over. i hope that someday things will be different. for now, i am choosing to prioritize relationships with family and friends who support, protect, and defend me, and working to gain independence so that i can live my life freely and in peace, which is my right as an adult.

It was traumatic at first, but I understand the need. If my parents tried to take me themselves, I would have gladly jumped out of the moving car on the highway or found some way to kill myself before we made it. Being transported was the best way to go about it for me. The escorts informed me that if I resisted, I'd be restrained so I didnt. It was a smooth process because of that. Following instructions of those trying to help you makes things easier. Not everyones story is a bad one, and 99% of kids in treatment are there for a good reason.

How was the rest of your stay in the TTI system? Do you feel you were not abused, either by the transporters or by staff of the various programs in which you were imprisoned?

I was not abused by anyone. And I went to the same RTC as Avital and at the same time. Alpine academy is the only place I can speak of, as I've never been to any other treatment facility and I can assure you, it was/is FAR from prison. In a typical day, we'd be woken up by staff opening our bedroom doors and saying goodmorning. We would have 3 or so minutes to show our faces to prove we were up and then we would do our morning routines such as getting dressed, using the restroom, brushing our teeth and hair, doing makeup, etc before moving onto cleaning our rooms and assigned section of the bathrooms. Then we would go downstairs for a home cooked meal prepared by staff and the student who was assigned chef duty for the day. We would then ask to be excused from the table and rinse our dishes and put then into the dishwasher. Next we would do a morning check in, get in med line (for those who needed medication- mainly birth control if anything and/or psych meds such as anti-anxiety or antidepressants if needed. We each had a psychiatrist who we would talk to and they always explained any med we were taking and it was our responsibility to let them know if it had an adverse mental reaction such as making the anxiety worse. Makes sense because they cant read our minds.) From there, we'd gather our school supplies, put on our shoes and head to school which was about a 2-5 minute walk depending on which house you lived in. We had 5 classes in a day on an A-day/B-day schedule to help with kids who were behind on credits and risked not graduating. Every friday was a day dedicated to tutoring so that every student could have the opportunity to study/catch up on work/get help if needed for the first half, then they offered various clubs for the second half of the day. None of the classes/clubs had any religious affiliation whatsoever. We did however say grace before each meal in the homes, but it was stated as "thanking whoever you believe in" or if you're atheist, then a moment to pause before the meal. Once we got home from school, we would check in and talk to staff about our day and each check in would be for points. These points were there to show us that every action has a consequence- good and bad. And if we did something to make amends for doing something wrong, we would earn points back after earning negative points. For example: for cussing out another student, we would earn negative points. To earn points back, we would be asked to do something like write a letter to the student we cussed out stating that we were sorry and explaining what we were trying to communicate originally after validating what we did wrong. Sometimes it took a couple tries, but if we were genuine and could be civil with each other, we would earn points back. If not, we wouldn't earn points back but would have other opportunities throughout the day to earn more positive points.
Every meal was home cooked, we did our own laundry, we did chores, earned allowance and would hold family meetings. We went on family activities such as the movies, mall, or somewhere special like paintball or an outdoor ropes course. We all went camping twice a year. Like I said, FAR from prison...

We were taught to be self sufficiant and learned about responsibilities all while having a deep rooted support system there. We had therapy several times a week in the form of individual, family, and group therapy. We learned how to be functioning parts of society and family when many of us didnt even know how to use a microwave.
They even offered an independent living program for those who were 17-18 years old and transitioning into going home in the following months. No point system, more freedoms, more responsibilities, more say and you could have a cell phone/laptop/internet...

rose, i respect that we feel differently about our experiences at alpine. you have the right to share yours and i’m glad you felt comfortable doing so. i can only speak for myself when i say that alpine did not teach me to be self sufficient or a functioning member of society. i was much more self sufficient and functional before i was interned at alpine. i had been cooking for myself and my family since i was small child, doing my own laundry, cutting my own hair, getting myself to and from school most days, taking care of several pets, i even taught myself how to read. i had lots of friends and a girlfriend i cared about and had a healthy relationship with. i did not get along with my parents because they were incredibly dysfunctional. i feel that what i experienced at alpine was brainwashing. after i came back i struggled socially because i acted like i had a lobotomy. i had severe stockholm syndrome and allowed myself to be treated like a doormat, taken advantage of, and victimized when before alpine i was very strong and good at defending myself. i struggled even worse at school and barely made it to graduation. i hardly left my house for years and years afterwards, all i did was cry. i was terrified to do nearly anything. i struggled to find a job because the only thing on my resume was an obviously fake job at alpine (aka human trafficking/slavery). it took me years to find my first job despite applying to hundreds. alpine delayed my independence severely, and the trauma i experienced there as well as becoming severely addicted to benzodiazepines and suffering brain injuries from overmedication i was forced into and likely did not need left me almost totally nonfunctional for most of the last 8 years. only now am i finally beginning to recover from what for me was the worst thing that ever happened to me and the worst decision my parents ever made, and starting to gain my rightful independence as a 25 year old ADULT after what feels like a lifetime of being a prisoner in a life i never wanted. again, i respect your feelings on the experience, i feel very differently. i am glad you do not feel traumatized and that you’re enjoying your life. you’re a lovely person and i want nothing but the best for you.

I admit, after graduating from Alpine and returning home, I was a little more socially awkward than I was before, and I'm sorry that your treatment and post-recovery/ reintegration was difficult. I do feel "human trafficking/slavery" is a stretch though. Human trafficking implies the trade of a person into different forms of abuse for money and slavery would only make sense if we didnt get paid or have basic human rights in exchange for hard labor- which we did everyday chores around the house and we got allowance.
I do remember that, as a student, certain staff members weren't as accepting to certain students and it legitimately pissed me off. I remember one day in particular, one of the "House Parents" said something pretty fucked up and nasty to Sara and I went off on him.
When I went back to work there as an AFT, so much had changed. They are 1000xs better at welcoming all sexualities and from what I remember, are planning on accepting trans girls into the school. They even have identity support groups for people finding themselves. Its evolved as a school and is evolving the community around them. They have much more intensive training for staff members now than they did 7 years ago.
I do acknowledge that not all RTCs are truely helpful or caring and in some ways, Alpine still needs work, but Alpine Academy is probably the best last resort for a kid who needs help.
On a separate note- I'm happy to hear you're starting to find yourself again and on the upside of recovery. I love to know that my Alpine brothers/sisters/siblings are making it in life- even if it's slow progress, it's still forward progress as I've been telling myself for the past 10 years now ♡
Keep looking forward and I'm on fb if you ever want to hit me up :)