Future of holding therapy iffy after VanBloem's death

Grieving partner isn't sure what will happen to Cascade center

By Jesse Hyde

OREM — The death of a prominent Utah Valley therapist has devastated his family, sent clients scrambling for treatment — and leaves uncertain the future of the controversial form of therapy he spent much of his life defending.

Larry VanBloem, 52, known for an unorthodox treatment of troubled children, was killed Friday at about 6 p.m. when an eastbound truck struck his car on U-73 near Eagle Mountain.

On Monday, his partner at Orem's Cascade Center for Family Growth, Jennie Gwilliam, said she did not know what would become of the practice. The two have practiced holding therapy — often used to help severely abused children — at the center for more than a decade.

For the past seven years, since a former client made claims of abuse against the center, VanBloem and Gwilliam have been under investigation by state officials.

Despite VanBloem's death, state investigators will continue to probe past practices at the center, said Christine Keyser, a spokeswoman for the Utah Department of Commerce.

"The case is still pending against Ms. Gwilliam," Keyser said. "We license people, not entities."

There are also two medical malpractice lawsuits pending against Cascade.

The first was filed in Provo's 4th District Court June by Cheryl Denise Ely Haws, who alleges that after she sought help for depression and marital counseling from 1998 through 2000, center employees physically restrained her in painful holding therapy sessions.

She claims the therapy sessions caused nausea, bruises and loss of consciousness.

The second was filed in 4th District Court last month by Mary Lou Dixon, who alleges that her 8-year-old daughter was physically and verbally abused during six months of holding-therapy sessions in 2001.

An attorney for both women, Kevin Sheff, said his clients will proceed with their lawsuits. Both seek unspecified money damages.

"There's no question these people shouldn't be practicing," he said. "It's crazy to me that what they do is still legal in Utah."

The legal fees that VanBloem paid to fight lawsuits crippled him, his supporters say. On Monday, friends were trying to raise money to pay for an obituary and a viewing for VanBloem.

Gwilliam says the allegations against Cascade are "vicious lies" and cursed news reporters who wrote stories about VanBloem since the Cascade Center was linked to the 2002 death of 4-year-old Cassandra Killpack.

Killpack's adoptive parents allegedly forced her to drink glass after glass of water as punishment. They were arrested and charged in her death but say they learned the bizarre punishment at Cascade.

VanBloem denied involvement, and Cascade was not implicated in the subsequent investigation by the Utah County Attorney's office.

"The media just keeps regurgitating all the stuff about the lawsuits and the Killpacks," Gwilliam said. "Just leave it alone. It's all lies."

Gwilliam said VanBloem was unfairly made out to be something akin to "a back-alley abortion doctor."

"He was my best friend. And all the crap that was said and written about him, it just broke his spirit," she said. "My grief is so deep, you can't even fathom. Our hearts are breaking. We can't bring him back. It's an irreplaceable loss."

She said VanBloem's clients were also struggling to cope with the loss Monday. Gwilliam said she does not know what will become of Cascade.

"I'm still here, I have to pick up the pieces," she said. "I have no clue what I'm going to do with the center. I'm left holding the bag . . ."