Former Board Member Richard Jay, Courage Worldwide Fail To Respond Amid Mounting Concerns from Former Staff and Parent

Richard Jay has marked himself on his public LinkedIn as a past board member now of Courage Worldwide with a tenure from 2024 to July 2026 which coincides with an article about mounting allegations concerning the previously moved from California house for girls now in our area.

Jay has failed to answer repeated emails about why he left the board after Courage Worldwide had previously listed him on their leadership page saying he “has served more than 36 years in community leadership roles in the Reno-Tahoe region.”

“I haven’t really been involved with operational functions,” Jay had previously written back to Our Town Reno in late July.  “My role is more of finding grants and donations.” 

“It’s hard to believe but the newly opened Courage House Nevada (safe house for girls under 18 who have been trafficked) was miraculously spared from the devastating fires this week,”  Pastor Joel and Stephanie Midthun wrote on a public Facebook post after the Bug Fire, even though one parent whose child has been placed there has written to Our Town Reno she was never trafficked but had other issues.

“The photos show the firefighters at Courage House bravely protecting the home. The other photo is our CEO, Jenny Williamson, at the property days later- you can see it burned all the way up to the house and barn. This is such a set back. There are some big needs and unexpected costs now before the girls can move back in which will take some time. Please pray for the girls and staff,” the post indicated with a link seeking more donations.

A recent Facebook post on their page there has hiring opportunities for a part-time residential supervisor / coach and nurses.

In recent weeks, after our previous reporting, we’ve received half a dozen emails from former staff questioning practices there for employees, girls, horses and dogs, as well as how the home was set up.  The emails include multiple accounts of what are described as strange one on one meetings with Andrew Wilderlove, listed on his LinkedIn as the Staff and Facilities Director.

Several former staff said these meetings were repeatedly requested in the name of “team bonding,” and that they were required to list a “life map” of events from their childhood, adolescence and adulthood as if they were themselves undergoing therapy.

“These meetings [called] soul checks were usually about an hour long, sometimes longer. He would ask a lot of personal questions,” one former employee remembers.  

“It began with asking how I’m feeling at work and ended with questions about my family, my health, and my spirituality. He always wanted me to share more. It made me really uncomfortable. I felt pressured into oversharing about my life and traumas. If I got quiet, he would get angry and start pressing me for more information,” they allege.

Wilderlove’s LinkedIn has him as having received a Bachelor of Science from Liberty University while currently pursuing a Master of Arts, Global Development and Justice from Multnomah University, even though it’s been renamed as the Multnomah campus of Jessup University.

“We had to sign a form basically agreeing not to talk about him. We were told not to say anything about work when we went home. We were afraid to talk to each other,” another former employee email to Our Town Reno indicates of how it felt working there under his leadership. Several former staff and a parent also allege he had constant access to view multiple security cameras installed in the house.

“Around early spring- staff members often were expected to perform heavy physical labor in getting together the barebones property,” one former employee wrote. Moving gravel, “making trips to Home Depot with no gas reimbursement, mucking horse stalls with improper tools, painting the house with no masks…” one alleged of the arduous setup. 

“Staff were directed to write nearly 500, very long handwritten letters thanking donors,” they added.  “We often “staged” the home for many of Jenny’s exclusive home tours for potential partners and news stations. She made sure the house was empty of all staff during these visits.”

Detailed health allegation concerns related to the water on site, rodents, horses and dogs were also shared with us, as were complaints of how the girls were being handled once some were moved into the house. “It felt like we were all just babysitting … foster children,” one former staff summarized.  

“Washoe County Human Services Agency collaborates with a variety of service providers that support children and families with differing needs, Courage Worldwide being one of them. Placement decisions are based on a comprehensive assessment of each child's unique circumstances, safety, and best interests – not on a single circumstance or label,” Bethany Drysdale, the Washoe County communications manager, wrote back to Our Town Reno without offering specific details when we asked about these concerns. 

“The County maintains oversight of each child's placement through regular case management, contact with the child, provider, and treatment team, ongoing reviews of the child's progress and needs, and prompt investigation and response to any concerns that arise. I’ll have to refer you to the state for questions about regulatory oversight. You’ll want to check with the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services.”

When asked about concerns of how the horses were allegedly being treated at the location, Robert Wooster, the field manager for Washoe County Regional Animal Services wrote back: “There are no regulations that our department enforces directly related to equine therapy and having horses, but we would investigate any allegations of cruelty, neglect or mistreatment of animals when they are reported to us.”  

Another person who said they were a recent employee there previously told Our Town Reno they felt it was an extremely unstable environment with lots of turnover and disgruntlement among all levels of staff. A mom who says her daughter has been there also says it felt short staffed with questionable practices. 

“I am terrified of retaliation but am broken for all the people who actually wanted to see a new home for girls open in Nevada,” the mother wrote as part of her allegations we previously published. 

While previously based in California, the Courage Worldwide Facebook page currently has a Lakeside Drive address as its headquarters.

Its 40-acre property in northern Nevada was initially described as offering care for “18 children across three cottages, with our first phase of implementation providing immediate housing for six residents.”

The website states it also has two locations with special programs operating in Tanzania.

Its Courage House Nevada page says Nevada ranks second in the U.S. for trafficking incidents per capita, and its listed purpose on a recent tax form is to provide “homes and resources for children who have been recovered from sex trafficking worldwide,” but the mother who wrote to Our Town Reno says that is not the case of her own daughter who she says was placed there by a county case worker for other reasons.

The website indicated Courage House Nevada opened in Spring 2026 with housing for just five girls, with trauma informed therapies, on site education, life skills training, mental health treatment plans and family reunification support.

The most recently available tax filings from 2024 have Williamson listed as secretary for the nonprofit having a yearly compensation of $100,000 with overall yearly revenues and expenses at about $900,000.

On the website, Williamson is listed as CEO and founder. Her bio says she moved to northern Nevada with her husband Michael, and that they co-own Williamson Energy, an energy consulting business.

“We’re so grateful to share that Courage House Nevada welcomed its very first girl home on April 9th,” Courage Worldwide wrote on Facebook in May.  “Since then, we’ve been approved for a second young lady and are interviewing a third. After years of hard work and preparation, girls in the US are finally finding safety, support, and healing through Courage House Nevada.” 

The organization’s Northern California home closed in 2020 “due to residents transitioning out of the program and the COVID pandemic occurring. These previous residents continue to receive resources and services from Courage Worldwide as they progress in their healing journeys,” according to its own website.

There have been repeated positive northern Nevada television stories about the new house, including during the Bug Fire.  Rewind ten years ago though in California and it was a different kind of exposure.

“No Turkey trot. Donors slip away from sex trafficking nonprofit,” read one headline. “‘Spiritual warfare,’ ‘demonic attacks.’ The role religion played in home for sex-trafficking victims,” headlines indicated in the Sacramento Bee a decade ago.  

The articles pointed out that in 2016, the nonprofit started in 2005 with a “vision” from God, saw Williamson close a six-bed facility for girls under 18 due to being cited for state violations including inadequate staffing levels and no current administrator working at the home.

A former employee told the Bee the nonprofit had been cited over a dozen times in the first half of 2016, with other violations such as breaching privacy. Previously the reports indicated the nonprofit had been cited for not respecting residents’ freedom of religion and forcing them to attend church services every week.

Other former employees pointed to a volatile environment with high turnover among staff, unexpected firings and micromanaging, as well as recurring complaints on the use of identifiable images of girls staying at the home being posted on social media.

One licensed therapist was quoted as saying the situation was “abusive.” The article indicated previous clients were enrolled by social workers or probation officers netting the facility about $9,000 a month per girl in government support.

In the articles, Williamson called the citations and accusations baseless, absurd and unfair.

We emailed Courage Worldwide asking if they had a comment about current concerns and about Jay no longer being a board member several times, but have not heard back as of publication. We will update if we get a response.  

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