HARTFORD, Conn. - TelAve -- For years, I stayed silent about the impact that certain leaders in my youth program had on me. One name in particular stays with me: Kristen Klieman, who now works at First Congregational Church in Bristol, Connecticut.

My experience with her during my time in the Senior Pilgrim Fellowship program at Wapping Community Church was not one of support, guidance, or encouragement—things every young person rightfully expects from a youth leader. Instead, I often walked away from interactions feeling embarrassed, dismissed, and publicly humiliated in moments when I should have been uplifted.

I can only speak from my own memory and perspective, but what I felt in those moments was unmistakable:
I felt small. I felt targeted. And I felt unsupported by someone who held a position of authority.

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The role of a youth leader comes with responsibility—responsibility to nurture, not belittle; to listen, not embarrass; to guide, not shame. When that responsibility is mishandled, the emotional consequences can last years, even decades. Mine did.

This is not about revenge. It is about honesty. It is about reclaiming my voice after spending too long internalizing moments that shaped my confidence in damaging ways. And it is about reflecting on how leadership—when misused or mishandled—can deeply affect the young people who rely on it.

I share this for one reason:
No teenager should walk into a church program and leave feeling humiliated by the very person meant to support them.

By naming my experience, I am choosing transparency over silence. And I hope that by sharing what I lived through, it encourages others who have felt minimized or dismissed by authority figures to know that their voice matters—and their story deserves to be told.