I have cousins who had twelve children. He was an engineering instructor at a college and his wife was a nurse and worked until they had their sixth child when he insisted she stay home. The family was amazing, the children all had chores and were well behaved.
I'm happy to hear that you weren't physically abused, but there are child labor laws in this country. Children shouldn't have to support their own families. I'm sure you didn't see it that way, but it's not how it works in the outside world. I will say that you had skills that allowed you to end up living a regular life.
I just found your channel and I’ve been obsessed with your story. You have such kind hearts and spirits. Thanks for sharing and educating us about polygamy etc. I can’t imagine sharing my husband! 🤨. You both are beautiful and I’m so happy you got out and are thriving. Blessings ❤️
Melissa, it looks like you changed up your hair color a bit and it looks so great! Thank you guys for the videos. I, like many, have a weird fascination with learning about the FLDS, and your videos are an incredible resource! You two are wonderful 💜
I find your story so intriguing! I’ve been binge watching your videos haha...I’m curious, does Melissa learn the answers to all of these questions with us? She seems so interested in all of the questions/answers, but I know she’s said that she knew a lot of your story before you were married. You seem like a great couple & I think it’s so awesome you’re so open with your past, & you’re able to dive into it all together 💕
(Melissa Answering) I know most of the answers before we film, although sometimes I think of new questions to ask while we are filming and get new answers myself as well! haha For me, I love this channel so much because it is a way for Sam to not only share his story with others, but for us to preserve it for our posterity. I love getting to be a part of these videos, and I feel like the more we talk about his past, the more I understand how he came to be the amazing man that he is now.
Hi! I'm a new sub. I watched the first video late Wednesday and binged the rest yesterday. Coming from a non denominational Christian upbringing. I find this so fascinating. Thank you for sharing and have a fabulous Friday! 😀
You should! It is hard to put yourself out there for the world, but everyone has their own journey to share, and I am sure yours would be just as interesting!
New viewer who just found your channel. This is so interesting and I actually love hearing the positive side and happy memories, a lot of negative is portrayed on the media. I’m wondering if the boys got any preparation for becoming household leaders and how to have multiple wives? I’ve watched almost all your videos now and I saw that Sam said his father did a great job making each wife feel equal and not showing any sort of favorite and was curious if that’s something they are taught is important? As a teenager did you imagine you would have multiple wives and was it at all weird to consider leaving and only having one at the time? Thanks for posting these, love learning about different ways of life.
Welcome welcome! We are so glad you found us! My father never sat us down and talked to us about becoming a polygamous husband and father ourselves, but I think he set a good example that we would have followed. I never thought I would get married out there because I was kinda a rebel and wouldn't have been deemed "worthy" of any wives let alone multiple! haha =) As soon as I left and started dating, I realized very quickly that I would only ever be interested in monogamy. Thanks for all the great questions! =)
Thank you for being such a Rockstar subscriber! We both get so excited when we see comments from you, because you are such a positive and uplifting person! We are so grateful to have you as a part of our RUclips family!
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy thank you so much for the kind words. I’m so glad I stumbled upon this channel and get to watch you tell make amazing videos that are so educational
Just found you guys! You are awesome. I'm currently reading a book by a lady who left also, and was curious about a specific question and found you guys. This is all so interesting from an outsider perspective.
Y’all are amazing! I’m a very lapsed Catholic, who is not a fan of organized religion anymore. Have you ever thought about writing a book Sam? I’m very intrigued by your story. Keep sharing videos, you don’t know who you could reach! ❤️
Hello I'm a black woman from Brooklyn NY. We come from completely different worlds. I'm so intrigued with your story, Im so happy you got out and living a happy life. Which FLDS practice hurt you the most?
I worked all my life but hubby and I couldn't have kids. It's disgusting that my hard work paid for people who just kept having more children than they could afford to raise. Welfare is only supposed to be for short term issue, not a permanent way of life.
I recently went on a road trip and stopped in Colorado City, Utah. I saw a gal leave the store in her Sunday dress ( on a Saturday) with 5 gallons of milk in her cart (among other things)
I am not supportive of multiple wives...but IF a man is going that route he better be able to financially support ALL his wives and children! If not he has no business getting over his head like that. Same for a man who marry 1 wife.
Loved this! I know you said later when Warren Jeffs became the leader you didn’t celebrate holidays, but does that include birthdays? No special dinner or anything to celebrate? I can’t imagine keeping up with 36 birthdays!
Birthdays were a family by family case. My family didn't "celebrate" it with parties or presents, but sometimes our Mother would bake a special cake and they would sing.
Hi Sam. My wife & I travel through Colorado City/Hilldale on the highway often. When we are on the highway toward SG and a white lifted pickup is overtaking us at a high rate of speed (usually around early morning or late afternoon) I would say to my wife “here comes a polyg there goes a polyg”. They always drive fast and pass whenever they catch up to you, double line or not. I’m usually/always right.
Thanks for posting! I’m not sure what the issue is, but maybe there was some audio feedback on this one. Maybe just a mic issue? Anyway, just a heads up
Thank you for the input. I was having the same thing on my computer and then when I checked it on my phone it wasn't there, so I was hoping it was just my computer. I'm sorry that it wasn't. I will definitely be doing a sound check before the next video! Thank you for reaching out! =)
I get so excited every time you guys post a new video, really enjoy watching them and learning :) I have a question about hair. I've never seen an FLDS man with facial hair or long hair, so I assume that wasn't allowed? And also, for the women's hair: when did they start doing the poufy style, and is there any particular reason for it? Is it something that men in the church find to be attractive? It's soo distinctive looking and unique, I've always wondered about it haha!
I actually saw some FLDS folks here in Grand Jct CO about a year ago or so in the doctors office . It was the VERY distinct hairstyle that made me notice them. Plus many children lol.
Men were required to be clean shaven and have clean haircuts. The women were required to keep their hair up at all times, even around the home. The poufy hair was considered to be a respectful way to show your obedience.
My 3 brothers and I had to buy our own cars and pay for insurance on our own too. Nothing like that given to us. If we wanted it we had to work and pay for it on our own. Nothing wrong with that.
My grandmother had 18 children. Did not believe in birth control. Did clothes on a wringer washer, no inside plumbing. And only had one husband and no other wives. She did it all alone. After some of the older children got bigger they were able to help with the smaller kids. And only 2 sets of twins.
We weren't allowed to celebrate most holidays. Sometimes I wonder if it really was because they were "Pagan" or if it was to save money on Christmas hahaha =)
Imagine how much the electricity bill would've been with a family that large all watching television.... So not having media was a good thing in more ways than one. I kind of agree with the negative influence television and the internet can have on impressionable children, on the other hand I think kids need to be aware of what's going on in the world outside of their immediate surroundings.
Around 2007, wasn't there issues in some communities in regards to church ownership of properties and non payment of tax? Didn't this lead to some unpleasant evictions?
It absolutely did. The people were told that they needed to pay their property taxes or be kicked out of their homes. Then the prophet told them to not pay their taxes, so they didn't, and tons of families were evicted from their homes. It was incredibly sad to see them lose their homes over listening to the prophet.
I’m a retired Social Worker and in the states where I worked, a mother has to name the father of the children when applying for Welfare. That’s so the state can hold the father financially responsible for his kids. Marriage status has no bearing on naming the kids’ father when applying for benefits.
🔴I really like you both, so please don't take this offensively. But you should be made aware that: *Every person who claims "single parent status" and receives government assistance, while living with the father of those children, or knowing his whereabouts, is actively defrauding the government and performing a criminal offense.* On the forms, the mothers would have had to lie and say they do NOT know the father, or his whereabouts, every single time they had to refill out those forms, which is regularly! Otherwise, the government would have gone after your father for not paying child support. Again, I don't want to offend you, *but if we are being truthful and honest, which God calls us to do,* this is absolutely against the law! *Every person receiving government assistance in the FLDS movement, who knew, or knows, WHO and WHERE the father of their child was, is actively COMMITTING A CRIME and stealing money from the government and all of us, the taxpayers.* If your mom is doing this, she risks going to prison! Does she know this?! It doesn't matter that "everyone was doing it" in that group. Wrong is wrong. Sin is sin. And even moreso, breaking the law is serious business to the US government. If your dad is filling out those forms on behalf of your mom, he risks going to prison, risks your mom going to prison, and is putting your mom and the whole family in jeopardy. *That alone should be reason to see that the church was false.* Jesus clearly preached against defrauding others, and "Thou shall not steal" and "Thou shall not lie" is right there in the 10 Commandments. If any church is conducting any activities that go against the Bible, or somehow justify their actions, *they certainly wouldn't be "The one true church," now would they?!*
I don't believe that my family was doing this, but it was done by other families and they were definitely committing crimes. Many of the church leaders were caught and imprisoned for these crimes.
I just found your videos last night . Together you tackle this subject with honesty, candor and Sam I admire your respect for your family even though you no longer believe in their "religion". My question is what religion or religious beliefs do you both follow now and Melissa what church did you belong to growing up or before marrying Sam.
(Melissa Responding) We are so glad you found us! Thank you so much! I was raised LDS, and we are actually going to do a video in the next few weeks to share Sam's spiritual journey since leaving the FLDS and our spiritual journey we've taken together since being married. So stay tuned! =)
I remembered when I was teenager and one of my ex-brother in law he worked for Skywest airline in Cedar city, Utah and one of his co-worker who was FLDS. Both worked together for mechanical. I met him. He was very nice guy. I was some questions about his family as FLDS. He told me his dad have only one wife. He didn’t want more wives. I was confused. I thought the FLDS prophets demands to have more wives. But I learned more later. I believe he left FLDS. it’s interesting about money. It make me wondering how they can afford for Christmas gifts. Both of you are awesome couple:) 💙💙
Your story is so cool. I have a question though, what was your experience with religion after you left? Like do you still believe in a God, or a prophet? know when some kids completely reject any form of religion when it was pushed so firmly on them. I am super curious to hear your experience on it.
Great question! Yes, most of the adult men I knew had a bank account and debit cards, check books, and credit cards from regular banks. There is a lot more to this topic, would make for a good video.
Great question! I am hoping to have one of my sisters join me in a video soon. I will just say that some of them had jobs and some stayed home to help raise the babies. One of my older sisters was one of my primary caretakers as a young boy. It just depended on the sister and family. =)
I'm basing these questions off of your previous videos, and assuming there was little to no sex education or discussions of sex once there was an appropriate age to discuss it. Was there any biology or anatomy lessons for the older children? At 18, was it a culture shock to see sex in the media and possibly people you knew talking about sex and sexuality in relationships?
Great questions. Sex was just not talked about. There was no education about it in school, and they would not discuss it with us at all. I had even heard stories about couples that even after getting married weren't aware of how to have sexual relationships.
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy Thank you for answering my question. I happened upon your channel one day and have been following ever since. Thank you Sam and Melissa for being open and honest (even when it's uncomfortable) and I look forward to more videos.
Do you know anything about the FLDS group that allows the women to choose their husband? I’ve seen a few older documentaries on it. I wondered how accurate a presentation that was?
I believe you are thinking of Centennial Park. They live near to Colorado City/Hildale but are a seperate group. Still wear long sleeves/dresses and braided hair but usually more modern looking or purchased from normal stores, rather than the homemade prairie dresses of the FLDS. From what I understand in that community the women choose their husband (or pray for God to reveal which man is to be their husband).
What were the rules of your house growing up. I know you said there were many and then what were some stories of you or your siblings breaking these rules and what were your guys punishments like. We’re they normal like you’re grounded go to your room or just what was that like growing up.
What was life like for the girls/daughters? Did they get drivers' licences? Could they get jobs to save up money to buy a car if they wanted one? Were there any girls who independently left the community or did they just follow husbands/fathers who left?
Also, had anyone ever told you that Sam looks like a way better version of James Kennedy from Vanderpump Rules? I'd be shocked if you've never heard that before.
I just saw the video about the electric bills I laughed so hard !! I have 2 kids and I was always yelling to turn the lights off !! I still tell my married daughter to shut her lights off . Hahaha
Several years ago ( the 90's ?) there was a case brought before Judge Judy. I believe it was from Utah and I am unsure of who the plaintiff was but the defendants were a polygamist family. So in trotted an older man with quite a few women young enough to be his granddaughters. During the case it was told that the ladies were not married to him legally but the plaintiff who may have been from the state, stated they received welfare, food stamps and other benefits lying on paperwork as to who the children's father was so that he would not be financially held accountable for all the children. It was interesting and she really gave it to the polygamist as to how he was letting his kids down and brainwashing these young women. I remember they all smirked and when accussed of committing welfare fraud they swore to her they sold " magazine subscriptions" to earn money. No wool pulled over her eyes. However, I believe she said ahe could do nothing except bring the information to national attention. The man 's name may have ;even Tom Green. Sam can you tk about your schooling ? Since your schooling ended at age 12 how were you able to get into college ? Did you go to high school upon leaving g ? Or, did you take night classes then work on your GED ? Wss college difficult?
Thank you so much for watching! The husbands were in charge of the finances. Even if a mother did work, she would just give the money to the husband and he would take care of everything.
Very interesting. Not too different in some ways from here in the UK where I don't think most parents can afford to buy their child a car! ( people are richer in the US than UK so that is probably part of the reason) and I certainly go round putting lights off if people leave them on around the house. Window open in one son's room and heating on is my current annoyance. I am not paying to heat the outside I say.....
I have family in the UK, and I think part of the reason kids don’t get a car from the parents, is that your public transportation system is a million times better than what we have in the US, so it’s not as necessary
Imagine how much it would cost to heat or cool a house built in a day/week built by people with a 6th grade education! How did they not have more house fires?!? When I saw the houses there they were sooo sad and never completed or finished, many had painted plywood on the outside as the finished wall.
@@vjs4539 I've met them. It's not uncommon there to only educate the kids about religion... and pull the boys out of school at about 12 to have them help make money. It's not a judgment it's just how it was there. Additionally they are being educated by others who were pulled out of school young too. I've stayed in one of the nicest houses the built (in 90 days) in the community and it had major issues!
I’m not in agreement with polygamy, but it sounds like there were values like hard work, and being smart with money and helping the family, that were instilled in the kids. I know there were a lot of negative things as well, but there were some positive things too
Did you feel like you had a crisis of morality when you left and questioned every single thing you had learnt in your life or could you figure out what was okay and what was not straight away? I can’t imagine what it would be like to have such a culture shift after leaving!
I feel like it was easy to be a good person. My parents had taught me how to have good judgement, even outside of religion, so it wasn't too bad. There was definitely a sense of wanting to experience things that I wasn't "allowed" to out there, but it didn't take long to figure out which of those things were good, bad, or just choices.
Question: Did you work on a construction site under the age of 18? Wasn't that child endangerment? What's about child labor laws? What about insurance?
I did work full time construction under 18 and I was told that if anyone asked, I was to tell them I was 18. I was 6' 4" by the time I was 14 so no one ever questioned my age.
Do you ever help others that want to get out of the religion? I have seen some scary lengths the community would go to try to prevent people from leaving. Where you hunted down or messed with? Have you seen others be captured and returned etc.? Could you address how they handled medical situations? What if someone needed a transfusion what would they do? Did they vote? I have heard that there were communities of flds in Mexico, are you aware of this?
I have helped many siblings leave, and siblings that are still out there have my number and know that I would help them leave if they wanted to as well. There were people to be on "watch duty" to run people out of town that weren't part of the faith. I have heard of families that took drastic measures to keep their children there, but my family was not like that. After we were 18 we were allowed to choose what we wanted, even though it was considered a huge deal and made them very sad. As far as medical situations, they weren't as quick to run to the ER as most people in the normal world, but they did not reject modern medicine when it was necessary. For example, multiple brothers and I were in a bad car accident and I was in a coma for 4 days and two of my brothers were in one for a whole month, and any and all medical help to keep us alive was provided. I have heard of the group in Mexico but don't know much about them.
I wish there were some way for people to band together and support the ones who want to leave in various ways! I've already got two kids, but I'd definitely be willing to become a foster family or something! I imagine the idea of not having family that's safe and worth enjoying life with, could make it very scary for the children who have left or those who consider leaving...
I honestly don't know. I think it is "because the prophet said so". The prophet assigned her to my father, and so that is what happened. But I am grateful that we had her as a part of our family and got to know her. =)
That is so messed up that children have to go get jobs to financially compensate for Adults PLANNED decisions. They didn't ask to be born 😡 I'm sorry. This touched a nerve. I'm now starting to understand why child labor laws had to be in acted.
So I am a very curious person so hier are the things that I am interested in : if it's not intrusive what are your religion now? Do you celebrete the mayor holiday's? What are your favorite things in this " free world"? Any regrets? What do you think about the polygamist series like "sister viwes"? Are they thrutfull? Your thoughts on LGBTQ+ community. How du you look on the different races. Then and now?
These are fantastic questions! Where my wife and I are now spiritually is a video that we will be doing very soon, so stay tuned! And some of these other questions I would love to answer more in depth with some videos as well. =) I will say for now, my wife and I celebrate every holiday now, and love it haha. One thing that I love now that I was not allowed to do before is watch movies! I absolutely love movies! haha I have no regrets leaving at all, especially now that my life has led to my wife and children.
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy dude you should do a book on this and write a novel on the lifestyle. You can inform more people who may be curious to know more. Just saying. Maybe you didnt think about it.
In your videos you have mentioned how when you started working with your brothers you started meeting people that were not FLDS. You said that you were surprised that these people seemed like really good people that were happy and that made you start to question the “truth” that you had been taught that no one outside FLDS was good or happy. I was wondering: Were any of the good/happy people you met LDS/Mormon (the current main stream Mormon religion)? Was the family that let you stay on their couch the night you left home Mormon? Do you belong to a church/religion now? I assume the area you lived in was mainly Mormon. What religion was Melissa when you met her? Did learning that you had been in what most consider a cult make you start to question all religion? I am a former JW (Jehovahs Witness) so I understand what it feels like to wake up to realize your religion was a lie. When I left the JWs I started to question everything and came to the realization that every religion is man-made in that at some point men put together writings and then used them to develop rules /guidelines for the various forms of Religion that we know today. I used to laugh at how ridiculous it was that Muslims believed that the Quran is a holy book written by Muhammad who, as the Quran has it, took a night trip to heaven aboard a trusty winged pony-horse-mule-ish creature called Buraq and then came back and wrote the Quran. Then I realized that Christians believe Jesus was magically transported to heaven by God from a tomb after he had been dead for 3 days so it made me feel a little foolish to have judged them for believing unbelievable things. Heck we have the garden of Eden, a talking snake and an apple that caused the downfall of humanity (seems like a harsh punishment) sure wish God would’ve used the naughty corner like your Dad and made them sit and think about it for a day instead 😂😂😂 As a parent who loves my kids, I can’t imagine punishing my kids so harshly. Kind of made me wonder what kind of loving parent would do that....seems like child abuse. Anyway, I enjoy your videos and if you have already answered the above questions could you tell me which video? I’m binge watching your vids now Thanks! Alison
Another reason to legalize plural marriage... says the Christian wife of a dedicated single marriage. The government allows same sex marriage and therefore should allow plural marriage.
Typically the girls were provided for, but some women had jobs at local grocery stores, restaurants or offices. We were not allowed to interact with girls outside of our family as a way of preventing us from falling in love with someone who we weren't going to be assigned to.
Looking at this vid is just how I, a British Muslim have married girls and I did this out of pity for them and love them. - One Bulgarian Lev Tahor who was bullied at the same school where I went due to her being meek, shy and for her chador. I stood up for her. - One Solomon Islander- Namibian who was neglected by her parents in Solomon Islands. I've always loved her life of simplicity and the food of Solomon Islands plus Ghanaian and Jamaican foods too. She is the tallest of all my wives. - A Belarusian-Russian girl who was freed from prostitution in Thailand. I've always wanted to marry a Belarusian or a Russian. She was second tallest to my Solomon Islander wife. - A Rohingya rescued from forced marriage and domestic slavery. I wish I could rescue all Rohingya girls and children from forced marriage set up by their damn parents. - A Tajik Lyuli girl who was said to have been rescued from bride kidnapping. Different cuisines from different wives and the foods that I prepare are of Pakistani and Turkish origins. The difference between me and this man from this vid is that I adopted several girls who are mainly three years old. Again, I did this out of pity. No one should be a slave or live in poverty. One Bhutanese Sharchop girl. A Cambodian Hakka girl who lost her stepfather. Two Malawian sisters who were under pressure by Nyakyusa tribe and forced labour. Two Venezuelan sisters along with their neighbours who were four Indigenous Cubans who were of child marriages. A Yemeni-Palestinian girl who was forced to beg on streets by gangs in Saudi Arabia. An Indian girl who was rescued from her abusive parents who were part of Banchada tribe. A Pakistani girl who was freed of Ahmadiyya's manipulations, scams and gaslighting done by that leading madman. A Roma girl who was attacked shit heads in Hungary. Two Irish girls of Cornish descent who were homeless and abandoned by her adoptive parents. And lastly a Hāní girl from China who had no name which I gave her one.
The public should not have to pay for PLANNED polygamy (which is illegal) and the massive child reproduction that comes with it. Since this is a religious practice, the church should be paying for that.
I don't understand why taxpayers are forced to pay for other people's kids, especially if those people are straight up irresponsible and have more kids than they can afford. I think that you should only be able to have one when claiming welfare, any others don't get anything. People would stop having kids for welfare money.
@@bonniestingfellow734 kids have parents, parents shouldn't breed when they know they aren't able to afford the new child. Also there's plenty of food banks and soup kitchens as well as food at school. Kids won't die of starvation. Stop with this nonsense.
@@ms.anonymousinformer242 WHAT? Can you explain your position a bit more clearly? Are you supporting tax evasion? And what does it have to do with welfare that's paid for by taxes (because governments don't make their own money, it's all money taken from citizens)? How can one both support welfare and be against taxation? 🤔 Or are you agreeing and believe that everyone should be supporting themselves? I actually think that some taxation is neccesary for a secure large society, the tax money should however be spent wisely (like on public schools, maintaining of roads, public transport in big cities, etc) but the taxed percentage should be equal for all, not of that "you pay 10% and you 30%" bs
If Sam and Melissa are even in the LDS church they too are still in a cult . A lot of people don’t like to believe that Mormonism is a cult but it is sorry to say ..
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy you are the product of how they raised you ,and I can quite clearly see you are a mentally strong successful person with amazing family values,that reflects back on your parents.
@@kathyt3959 To be sure, I find how FLDS practice polygyny to be improper, but ONLY because they take advantage of government welfare and employ children in jobs that they are probably too young for. Of course there are other aspects of Mormonsim that are harmful to those who are involved in that cult. I wouldn't have an issue though with someone who is loaded and is able to afford a bunch of wives, to marry them with everyone's consent. It is a line that is hard to discern between when a woman is raised to be open to accepting polygyny, vs. when they are designated to a certain man in the church.
(This is Melissa responding) Haha totally understand. Some videos are more interactive than others where I am speaking and when I'm not it feels so odd to stare blankly into a camera! And then if he is speaking it feels rude to not look at him, so I have to figure out a better balance. hahahaha =) I will definitely work on switching it up more!
1. When Sam says "his family", is he referring to his biological mother and his biological siblings or is he referring to all of the wives and all of their children? 2. No disrespect, but Sam really can't speak for "the family" because he was a child and he have so many siblings born before and after him that he can account for every moment of that entire timeline AND with all the lies and secrets the church have the women telling & keeping, he wouldn't know the truth anyways.
I’m sorry, but everyone abused the system. It’s not for very much not single women to claim their biological children and their sister wives children also. It’s also sad to see 14 or 15 year old boys expected to pay get a job and pay their father; mostly if a kid does work that young they’re forced to save it. I think saying “oh we all just chipped in” when it’s many young teenagers doing it is very disingenuous to the actual situation going on.
You said the church owned all the property and land, who is "the church"??? SomeBODY or group of people owned all that property and land. I'm Black, I recognize slavery when I hear it. Polygamy is slavery by another name.
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I have cousins who had twelve children. He was an engineering instructor at a college and his wife was a nurse and worked until they had their sixth child when he insisted she stay home. The family was amazing, the children all had chores and were well behaved.
I'm happy to hear that you weren't physically abused, but there are child labor laws in this country. Children shouldn't have to support their own families. I'm sure you didn't see it that way, but it's not how it works in the outside world. I will say that you had skills that allowed you to end up living a regular life.
I just found your channel and I’ve been obsessed with your story. You have such kind hearts and spirits. Thanks for sharing and educating us about polygamy etc. I can’t imagine sharing my husband! 🤨. You both are beautiful and I’m so happy you got out and are thriving. Blessings ❤️
Thank you so much!
Melissa, it looks like you changed up your hair color a bit and it looks so great!
Thank you guys for the videos. I, like many, have a weird fascination with learning about the FLDS, and your videos are an incredible resource! You two are wonderful 💜
(Melissa writing) Thank you sooo much! I did change my hair up and it is soo sweet of you to notice and comment!
I KNEW something was different! 😂 I agree, Melissa it looks gorgeous 💛
Thank you so much!
I find your story so intriguing! I’ve been binge watching your videos haha...I’m curious, does Melissa learn the answers to all of these questions with us? She seems so interested in all of the questions/answers, but I know she’s said that she knew a lot of your story before you were married. You seem like a great couple & I think it’s so awesome you’re so open with your past, & you’re able to dive into it all together 💕
(Melissa Answering) I know most of the answers before we film, although sometimes I think of new questions to ask while we are filming and get new answers myself as well! haha For me, I love this channel so much because it is a way for Sam to not only share his story with others, but for us to preserve it for our posterity. I love getting to be a part of these videos, and I feel like the more we talk about his past, the more I understand how he came to be the amazing man that he is now.
Hi! I'm a new sub. I watched the first video late Wednesday and binged the rest yesterday. Coming from a non denominational Christian upbringing. I find this so fascinating. Thank you for sharing and have a fabulous Friday! 😀
Hi Aimee!!! Welcome Welcome! We are so happy you found us! Thank you for watching, and we hope you have a wonderful weekend as well! =)
This is great! I’ve thought about making a channel like this just never had the courage !!
You should! It is hard to put yourself out there for the world, but everyone has their own journey to share, and I am sure yours would be just as interesting!
Thank you for sharing. I am starting to binge watch all your videos :)
Awesome! Thank you!
New viewer who just found your channel. This is so interesting and I actually love hearing the positive side and happy memories, a lot of negative is portrayed on the media. I’m wondering if the boys got any preparation for becoming household leaders and how to have multiple wives? I’ve watched almost all your videos now and I saw that Sam said his father did a great job making each wife feel equal and not showing any sort of favorite and was curious if that’s something they are taught is important? As a teenager did you imagine you would have multiple wives and was it at all weird to consider leaving and only having one at the time? Thanks for posting these, love learning about different ways of life.
Welcome welcome! We are so glad you found us! My father never sat us down and talked to us about becoming a polygamous husband and father ourselves, but I think he set a good example that we would have followed. I never thought I would get married out there because I was kinda a rebel and wouldn't have been deemed "worthy" of any wives let alone multiple! haha =) As soon as I left and started dating, I realized very quickly that I would only ever be interested in monogamy. Thanks for all the great questions! =)
I love these videos thank you so much for sharing your story with us
Thank you for being such a Rockstar subscriber! We both get so excited when we see comments from you, because you are such a positive and uplifting person! We are so grateful to have you as a part of our RUclips family!
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy thank you so much for the kind words. I’m so glad I stumbled upon this channel and get to watch you tell make amazing videos that are so educational
Just found you guys! You are awesome. I'm currently reading a book by a lady who left also, and was curious about a specific question and found you guys. This is all so interesting from an outsider perspective.
Y’all are amazing! I’m a very lapsed Catholic, who is not a fan of organized religion anymore. Have you ever thought about writing a book Sam?
I’m very intrigued by your story. Keep sharing videos, you don’t know who you could reach! ❤️
I am currently working on a book, though I'll admit it is going rather slowly haha.
That’s good to hear! I like to read a lot. I read Escape by Carolyn Jessop years go! Keep us up to date! Much love to you Sam and of course Melissa!
I love that you guys are doing this! I love that you are sharing how you grew up Sam!
Thank you so much for watching!
Hello
I'm a black woman from Brooklyn NY. We come from completely different worlds.
I'm so intrigued with your story, Im so happy you got out and living a happy life.
Which FLDS practice hurt you the most?
I worked all my life but hubby and I couldn't have kids. It's disgusting that my hard work paid for people who just kept having more children than they could afford to raise. Welfare is only supposed to be for short term issue, not a permanent way of life.
Love you guys!
Very awesome I have watch everyone of your videos 💖💖💖💖💖💖
I recently went on a road trip and stopped in Colorado City, Utah. I saw a gal leave the store in her Sunday dress ( on a Saturday) with 5 gallons of milk in her cart (among other things)
That sounds about right. =)
Multiple wives and then public assistance...no.
I am not supportive of multiple wives...but IF a man is going that route he better be able to financially support ALL his wives and children! If not he has no business getting over his head like that. Same for a man who marry 1 wife.
Wow congratulations!your channel is growing fast
Thank you so much! Couldn't have done it without amazing supporters like you! =)
Loved this! I know you said later when Warren Jeffs became the leader you didn’t celebrate holidays, but does that include birthdays? No special dinner or anything to celebrate? I can’t imagine keeping up with 36 birthdays!
Birthdays were a family by family case. My family didn't "celebrate" it with parties or presents, but sometimes our Mother would bake a special cake and they would sing.
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy good thing it was family by family. You all would be diabetic if you ate 36 birthday cakes a year. LoL.
@@ginadelsasso288 A lot of people still get their fair share of poor nutrition, even despite not eating cake. But good point.
I wondered about finances, thank you for sharing. 😊
Hi Sam. My wife & I travel through Colorado City/Hilldale on the highway often. When we are on the highway toward SG and a white lifted pickup is overtaking us at a high rate of speed (usually around early morning or late afternoon) I would say to my wife “here comes a polyg there goes a polyg”. They always drive fast and pass whenever they catch up to you, double line or not. I’m usually/always right.
Thanks for posting! I’m not sure what the issue is, but maybe there was some audio feedback on this one. Maybe just a mic issue? Anyway, just a heads up
Thank you for the input. I was having the same thing on my computer and then when I checked it on my phone it wasn't there, so I was hoping it was just my computer. I'm sorry that it wasn't. I will definitely be doing a sound check before the next video! Thank you for reaching out! =)
Considering that it's inflation and many families are struggling, it would be nice to see some of those recipes
I get so excited every time you guys post a new video, really enjoy watching them and learning :)
I have a question about hair. I've never seen an FLDS man with facial hair or long hair, so I assume that wasn't allowed? And also, for the women's hair: when did they start doing the poufy style, and is there any particular reason for it? Is it something that men in the church find to be attractive? It's soo distinctive looking and unique, I've always wondered about it haha!
I actually saw some FLDS folks here in Grand Jct CO about a year ago or so in the doctors office . It was the VERY distinct hairstyle that made me notice them. Plus many children lol.
Men were required to be clean shaven and have clean haircuts. The women were required to keep their hair up at all times, even around the home. The poufy hair was considered to be a respectful way to show your obedience.
I just found your channel because I was interested in on how the FLDS does there hair.
Interesting Sam. I have always wondered how the heck do polygamy families support that many kids.
I would love to know how this has effected your faith and or if what you believe
My 3 brothers and I had to buy our own cars and pay for insurance on our own too. Nothing like that given to us. If we wanted it we had to work and pay for it on our own. Nothing wrong with that.
My grandmother had 18 children. Did not believe in birth control. Did clothes on a wringer washer, no inside plumbing. And only had one husband and no other wives. She did it all alone. After some of the older children got bigger they were able to help with the smaller kids. And only 2 sets of twins.
I wonder what Christmas Day , with the tree and gifts looked like? 😳😁
They didn’t celebrate it! I’ve been binge watching their videos hahah but can you imagine how crazy it would’ve been w 40+ people 😮
We weren't allowed to celebrate most holidays. Sometimes I wonder if it really was because they were "Pagan" or if it was to save money on Christmas hahaha =)
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy ah I see.
Imagine how much the electricity bill would've been with a family that large all watching television.... So not having media was a good thing in more ways than one. I kind of agree with the negative influence television and the internet can have on impressionable children, on the other hand I think kids need to be aware of what's going on in the world outside of their immediate surroundings.
Hahahaha sooo true! That bill would have been crazy!
Around 2007, wasn't there issues in some communities in regards to church ownership of properties and non payment of tax? Didn't this lead to some unpleasant evictions?
It absolutely did. The people were told that they needed to pay their property taxes or be kicked out of their homes. Then the prophet told them to not pay their taxes, so they didn't, and tons of families were evicted from their homes. It was incredibly sad to see them lose their homes over listening to the prophet.
💜from Oklahoma
I’m a retired Social Worker and in the states where I worked, a mother has to name the father of the children when applying for Welfare. That’s so the state can hold the father financially responsible for his kids. Marriage status has no bearing on naming the kids’ father when applying for benefits.
YES THEY DO HAVE TO PUT THE NAME OF FATHER ON PAPERWORK. I DUNNO HOW THESE POLYGAMOUS LADIES GOT AROUND THAT.
🔴I really like you both, so please don't take this offensively. But you should be made aware that: *Every person who claims "single parent status" and receives government assistance, while living with the father of those children, or knowing his whereabouts, is actively defrauding the government and performing a criminal offense.* On the forms, the mothers would have had to lie and say they do NOT know the father, or his whereabouts, every single time they had to refill out those forms, which is regularly! Otherwise, the government would have gone after your father for not paying child support. Again, I don't want to offend you, *but if we are being truthful and honest, which God calls us to do,* this is absolutely against the law!
*Every person receiving government assistance in the FLDS movement, who knew, or knows, WHO and WHERE the father of their child was, is actively COMMITTING A CRIME and stealing money from the government and all of us, the taxpayers.* If your mom is doing this, she risks going to prison! Does she know this?! It doesn't matter that "everyone was doing it" in that group. Wrong is wrong. Sin is sin. And even moreso, breaking the law is serious business to the US government. If your dad is filling out those forms on behalf of your mom, he risks going to prison, risks your mom going to prison, and is putting your mom and the whole family in jeopardy.
*That alone should be reason to see that the church was false.* Jesus clearly preached against defrauding others, and "Thou shall not steal" and "Thou shall not lie" is right there in the 10 Commandments. If any church is conducting any activities that go against the Bible, or somehow justify their actions, *they certainly wouldn't be "The one true church," now would they?!*
I don't believe that my family was doing this, but it was done by other families and they were definitely committing crimes. Many of the church leaders were caught and imprisoned for these crimes.
Thanks for telling the truth!
I just found your videos last night . Together you tackle this subject with honesty, candor and Sam I admire your respect for your family even though you no longer believe in their "religion". My question is what religion or religious beliefs do you both follow now and Melissa what church did you belong to growing up or before marrying Sam.
(Melissa Responding) We are so glad you found us! Thank you so much! I was raised LDS, and we are actually going to do a video in the next few weeks to share Sam's spiritual journey since leaving the FLDS and our spiritual journey we've taken together since being married. So stay tuned! =)
I remembered when I was teenager and one of my ex-brother in law he worked for Skywest airline in Cedar city, Utah and one of his co-worker who was FLDS. Both worked together for mechanical. I met him. He was very nice guy. I was some questions about his family as FLDS. He told me his dad have only one wife. He didn’t want more wives. I was confused. I thought the FLDS prophets demands to have more wives. But I learned more later. I believe he left FLDS. it’s interesting about money. It make me wondering how they can afford for Christmas gifts. Both of you are awesome couple:) 💙💙
Your story is so cool. I have a question though, what was your experience with religion after you left? Like do you still believe in a God, or a prophet? know when some kids completely reject any form of religion when it was pushed so firmly on them. I am super curious to hear your experience on it.
Great question! We are actually going to be doing our next video on this, so stay tuned! =)
Did the church have its own bank or did you use a traditional one? Could people use credit cards? What is the view on debt?
Great question! Yes, most of the adult men I knew had a bank account and debit cards, check books, and credit cards from regular banks. There is a lot more to this topic, would make for a good video.
Another great video! What were some really difficult adjustments you had to make once you left polygamy?
Thank you soo much! Check out my video on some major culture shocks! ruclips.net/video/Rq35zjI8dZU/видео.html
They start answering the titles question at 4:44 if anyone's looking for it
Just wondering what the female siblings would do before they got married would they have a job or stay home and help with the younger children?
Great question! I am hoping to have one of my sisters join me in a video soon. I will just say that some of them had jobs and some stayed home to help raise the babies. One of my older sisters was one of my primary caretakers as a young boy. It just depended on the sister and family. =)
I'm basing these questions off of your previous videos, and assuming there was little to no sex education or discussions of sex once there was an appropriate age to discuss it. Was there any biology or anatomy lessons for the older children? At 18, was it a culture shock to see sex in the media and possibly people you knew talking about sex and sexuality in relationships?
Great questions. Sex was just not talked about. There was no education about it in school, and they would not discuss it with us at all. I had even heard stories about couples that even after getting married weren't aware of how to have sexual relationships.
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy Thank you for answering my question. I happened upon your channel one day and have been following ever since. Thank you Sam and Melissa for being open and honest (even when it's uncomfortable) and I look forward to more videos.
So when you were able to keep a portion of your pay check was that money still monitored?
No, the money we kept was ours and we could do what we wanted with it. =)
So, if the girls weren’t working outside of the home, how did they earn spending money?
@@rosegroatfischer2383 good question??
Do you know anything about the FLDS group that allows the women to choose their husband? I’ve seen a few older documentaries on it. I wondered how accurate a presentation that was?
I've never heard of that, and it definitely wasn't from the group I grew up in. But it might be a newer break off from my group. Sounds interesting!
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy It is not part of any FLDS sect, but rather AUB.
I believe you are thinking of Centennial Park. They live near to Colorado City/Hildale but are a seperate group. Still wear long sleeves/dresses and braided hair but usually more modern looking or purchased from normal stores, rather than the homemade prairie dresses of the FLDS. From what I understand in that community the women choose their husband (or pray for God to reveal which man is to be their husband).
What were the rules of your house growing up. I know you said there were many and then what were some stories of you or your siblings breaking these rules and what were your guys punishments like. We’re they normal like you’re grounded go to your room or just what was that like growing up.
Check out this fun video ruclips.net/video/F5KcirhQD84/видео.html
What was life like for the girls/daughters? Did they get drivers' licences? Could they get jobs to save up money to buy a car if they wanted one? Were there any girls who independently left the community or did they just follow husbands/fathers who left?
Also, had anyone ever told you that Sam looks like a way better version of James Kennedy from Vanderpump Rules? I'd be shocked if you've never heard that before.
I've never heard that before, but I just looked him up and THANK YOU! That is super sweet! haha =)
I can see that! Both are handsome men.
Since girls had to work inside the house were any if them able to get their own cats or even a driver's license?
Can you talk about your life since meeting Melissa ?
We will definitely do a video on this! That's a great idea! =)
I just saw the video about the electric bills I laughed so hard !! I have 2 kids and I was always yelling to turn the lights off !! I still tell my married daughter to shut her lights off . Hahaha
Several years ago ( the 90's ?) there was a case brought before Judge Judy. I believe it was from Utah and I am unsure of who the plaintiff was but the defendants were a polygamist family. So in trotted an older man with quite a few women young enough to be his granddaughters. During the case it was told that the ladies were not married to him legally but the plaintiff who may have been from the state, stated they received welfare, food stamps and other benefits lying on paperwork as to who the children's father was so that he would not be
financially held accountable for all the children. It was interesting and she really gave it to the polygamist as to how he was letting his kids down and brainwashing these young women. I remember they all smirked and when accussed of committing welfare fraud they swore to her they sold " magazine subscriptions" to earn money.
No wool pulled over her eyes. However, I believe she said ahe could do nothing except bring the information to national attention.
The man 's name may have ;even Tom Green.
Sam can you tk about your schooling ? Since your schooling ended at age 12 how were you able to get into college ? Did you go to high school upon leaving g ? Or, did you take night classes then work on your GED ? Wss college difficult?
If you can’t learn a foreign language at the missionary place how do you go on a mission ?
Great question. Basically you learn as much as you can (which is never fully proficient) and then you are sent out and learn by being immersed in it.
Thanks for the video- little question, who was in charge of the finances? Was it the husband or just who ever had earn it?♥️
Thank you so much for watching! The husbands were in charge of the finances. Even if a mother did work, she would just give the money to the husband and he would take care of everything.
Very interesting. Not too different in some ways from here in the UK where I don't think most parents can afford to buy their child a car! ( people are richer in the US than UK so that is probably part of the reason) and I certainly go round putting lights off if people leave them on around the house.
Window open in one son's room and heating on is my current annoyance. I am not paying to heat the outside I say.....
I have family in the UK, and I think part of the reason kids don’t get a car from the parents, is that your public transportation system is a million times better than what we have in the US, so it’s not as necessary
Most families in the US do not buy cars for their children & turn all the lights off to save money as well
Why have so many wives and kids if you can’t comfortable support them all?
They believe that having multiple wives and as many children as possible is their purpose in this life.
Imagine how much it would cost to heat or cool a house built in a day/week built by people with a 6th grade education! How did they not have more house fires?!? When I saw the houses there they were sooo sad and never completed or finished, many had painted plywood on the outside as the finished wall.
What makes you think they only had a 6th grade education?
@@vjs4539 I've met them. It's not uncommon there to only educate the kids about religion... and pull the boys out of school at about 12 to have them help make money. It's not a judgment it's just how it was there. Additionally they are being educated by others who were pulled out of school young too.
I've stayed in one of the nicest houses the built (in 90 days) in the community and it had major issues!
I’m not in agreement with polygamy, but it sounds like there were values like hard work, and being smart with money and helping the family, that were instilled in the kids. I know there were a lot of negative things as well, but there were some positive things too
Did you feel like you had a crisis of morality when you left and questioned every single thing you had learnt in your life or could you figure out what was okay and what was not straight away? I can’t imagine what it would be like to have such a culture shift after leaving!
I feel like it was easy to be a good person. My parents had taught me how to have good judgement, even outside of religion, so it wasn't too bad. There was definitely a sense of wanting to experience things that I wasn't "allowed" to out there, but it didn't take long to figure out which of those things were good, bad, or just choices.
I always wondered how anyone had Financials besides the leaders ..
What about health insurance?
Imagin a 12 year old provideing free full time labour. Maby you did not earn money your self but you did contribute!
Yes, everyone contributed to running the household. =)
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy but I think that children as young are exploited by doing so
Malisa what was it like for you when you realised Sam was from a Polygamy family
Question: Did you work on a construction site under the age of 18? Wasn't that child endangerment? What's about child labor laws? What about insurance?
I did work full time construction under 18 and I was told that if anyone asked, I was to tell them I was 18. I was 6' 4" by the time I was 14 so no one ever questioned my age.
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy Thanks for responding! I saw your vid about working today! Glad you are living a happy life!
Do you ever help others that want to get out of the religion? I have seen some scary lengths the community would go to try to prevent people from leaving. Where you hunted down or messed with? Have you seen others be captured and returned etc.? Could you address how they handled medical situations? What if someone needed a transfusion what would they do? Did they vote? I have heard that there were communities of flds in Mexico, are you aware of this?
I have helped many siblings leave, and siblings that are still out there have my number and know that I would help them leave if they wanted to as well. There were people to be on "watch duty" to run people out of town that weren't part of the faith. I have heard of families that took drastic measures to keep their children there, but my family was not like that. After we were 18 we were allowed to choose what we wanted, even though it was considered a huge deal and made them very sad.
As far as medical situations, they weren't as quick to run to the ER as most people in the normal world, but they did not reject modern medicine when it was necessary. For example, multiple brothers and I were in a bad car accident and I was in a coma for 4 days and two of my brothers were in one for a whole month, and any and all medical help to keep us alive was provided.
I have heard of the group in Mexico but don't know much about them.
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy thank you for explaining.
I wish there were some way for people to band together and support the ones who want to leave in various ways! I've already got two kids, but I'd definitely be willing to become a foster family or something! I imagine the idea of not having family that's safe and worth enjoying life with, could make it very scary for the children who have left or those who consider leaving...
What I was wondering, was didn’t mother Mildred’s grown children, take her in?
I honestly don't know. I think it is "because the prophet said so". The prophet assigned her to my father, and so that is what happened. But I am grateful that we had her as a part of our family and got to know her. =)
That is so messed up that children have to go get jobs to financially compensate for Adults PLANNED decisions. They didn't ask to be born 😡 I'm sorry. This touched a nerve.
I'm now starting to understand why child labor laws had to be in acted.
The first wives HAVE to be resentful.
Was it normal for kids to go “out” into the non flds world? To purchase cars, food, what about hanging out with non flds teens? Very interesting!
100% not allowed. You'd only go out for work related things
Just curious, what kind of government benefits would the “single mothers” be entitled to and what benefits wouldn’t they be entitled to?
Wait, your telling me that your dad had kids for almost 50 years?!? That’s crazy
The mechanical buzzing in the background makes this vid really difficult to watch 😞
So I am a very curious person so hier are the things that I am interested in : if it's not intrusive what are your religion now?
Do you celebrete the mayor holiday's? What are your favorite things in this " free world"? Any regrets? What do you think about the polygamist series like "sister viwes"? Are they thrutfull? Your thoughts on LGBTQ+ community. How du you look on the different races. Then and now?
These are fantastic questions! Where my wife and I are now spiritually is a video that we will be doing very soon, so stay tuned! And some of these other questions I would love to answer more in depth with some videos as well. =) I will say for now, my wife and I celebrate every holiday now, and love it haha. One thing that I love now that I was not allowed to do before is watch movies! I absolutely love movies! haha I have no regrets leaving at all, especially now that my life has led to my wife and children.
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy dude you should do a book on this and write a novel on the lifestyle. You can inform more people who may be curious to know more. Just saying. Maybe you didnt think about it.
In your videos you have mentioned how when you started working with your brothers you started meeting people that were not FLDS. You said that you were surprised that these people seemed like really good people that were happy and that made you start to question the “truth” that you had been taught that no one outside FLDS was good or happy. I was wondering:
Were any of the good/happy people you met LDS/Mormon (the current main stream Mormon religion)?
Was the family that let you stay on their couch the night you left home Mormon?
Do you belong to a church/religion now?
I assume the area you lived in was mainly Mormon. What religion was Melissa when you met her?
Did learning that you had been in what most consider a cult make you start to question all religion?
I am a former JW (Jehovahs Witness) so I understand what it feels like to wake up to realize your religion was a lie. When I left the JWs I started to question everything and came to the realization that every religion is man-made in that at some point men put together writings and then used them to develop rules /guidelines for the various forms of Religion that we know today.
I used to laugh at how ridiculous it was that Muslims believed that the Quran is a holy book written by Muhammad who, as the Quran has it, took a night trip to heaven aboard a trusty winged pony-horse-mule-ish creature called Buraq and then came back and wrote the Quran.
Then I realized that Christians believe Jesus was magically transported to heaven by God from a tomb after he had been dead for 3 days so it made me feel a little foolish to have judged them for believing unbelievable things.
Heck we have the garden of Eden, a talking snake and an apple that caused the downfall of humanity (seems like a harsh punishment) sure wish God would’ve used the naughty corner like your Dad and made them sit and think about it for a day instead 😂😂😂
As a parent who loves my kids, I can’t imagine punishing my kids so harshly. Kind of made me wonder what kind of loving parent would do that....seems like child abuse.
Anyway, I enjoy your videos and if you have already answered the above questions could you tell me which video? I’m binge watching your vids now
Thanks! Alison
Were the women looked down upon or viewed as less than once they passed the age to bear children??
Did your family celebrate birthday parties for all the children?
No parties, but sometimes our mothers would recognize us and give us birthday cakes.
do you guys have an instagram?
No we don't! Sorry! If we get one in the future, we will let everyone know! =)
Growing up i had a dad whom yelled at us for wasting electricity or heating fuel
( don't dare leave the door open while unloading the car)
Another reason to legalize plural marriage... says the Christian wife of a dedicated single marriage. The government allows same sex marriage and therefore should allow plural marriage.
Gave the father's more incentive to marry their daughters off young.
$80,000 trucks or cars but they got welfare! 🙁
A male producing more children than the male intended to provide is not abusing " the system"?
O....right..
Awesome video :) but that’s disgusting to claim “single” yet be a spiritual wife. Because your still married. No truly single...
Thank you for watching! Yah, there were a lot of people out there getting in trouble with the law over how it was being handled.
Since you couldn't date were boys and girls kept separate ? How did girls earn money ?
Typically the girls were provided for, but some women had jobs at local grocery stores, restaurants or offices. We were not allowed to interact with girls outside of our family as a way of preventing us from falling in love with someone who we weren't going to be assigned to.
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy how were the men assigned there women to marry? And did the man have to be assigned each time he wanted a new wife?
Looking at this vid is just how I, a British Muslim have married girls and I did this out of pity for them and love them.
- One Bulgarian Lev Tahor who was bullied at the same school where I went due to her being meek, shy and for her chador. I stood up for her.
- One Solomon Islander- Namibian who was neglected by her parents in Solomon Islands. I've always loved her life of simplicity and the food of Solomon Islands plus Ghanaian and Jamaican foods too. She is the tallest of all my wives.
- A Belarusian-Russian girl who was freed from prostitution in Thailand. I've always wanted to marry a Belarusian or a Russian. She was second tallest to my Solomon Islander wife.
- A Rohingya rescued from forced marriage and domestic slavery. I wish I could rescue all Rohingya girls and children from forced marriage set up by their damn parents.
- A Tajik Lyuli girl who was said to have been rescued from bride kidnapping.
Different cuisines from different wives and the foods that I prepare are of Pakistani and Turkish origins. The difference between me and this man from this vid is that I adopted several girls who are mainly three years old.
Again, I did this out of pity. No one should be a slave or live in poverty.
One Bhutanese Sharchop girl.
A Cambodian Hakka girl who lost her stepfather.
Two Malawian sisters who were under pressure by Nyakyusa tribe and forced labour.
Two Venezuelan sisters along with their neighbours who were four Indigenous Cubans who were of child marriages.
A Yemeni-Palestinian girl who was forced to beg on streets by gangs in Saudi Arabia.
An Indian girl who was rescued from her abusive parents who were part of Banchada tribe.
A Pakistani girl who was freed of Ahmadiyya's manipulations, scams and gaslighting done by that leading madman.
A Roma girl who was attacked shit heads in Hungary.
Two Irish girls of Cornish descent who were homeless and abandoned by her adoptive parents.
And lastly a Hāní girl from China who had no name which I gave her one.
They don't. Lol
The public should not have to pay for PLANNED polygamy (which is illegal) and the massive child reproduction that comes with it.
Since this is a religious practice, the church should be paying for that.
Again, the girls were limited.
I don't understand why taxpayers are forced to pay for other people's kids, especially if those people are straight up irresponsible and have more kids than they can afford.
I think that you should only be able to have one when claiming welfare, any others don't get anything.
People would stop having kids for welfare money.
So you want kids to go hungry?
Taxation is THEFT , period! Don't talk about theft until you look at yourself participating in theft by condoning it ( by paying ).
@@bonniestingfellow734 kids have parents, parents shouldn't breed when they know they aren't able to afford the new child.
Also there's plenty of food banks and soup kitchens as well as food at school. Kids won't die of starvation.
Stop with this nonsense.
@@ms.anonymousinformer242 WHAT?
Can you explain your position a bit more clearly?
Are you supporting tax evasion?
And what does it have to do with welfare that's paid for by taxes (because governments don't make their own money, it's all money taken from citizens)?
How can one both support welfare and be against taxation? 🤔
Or are you agreeing and believe that everyone should be supporting themselves?
I actually think that some taxation is neccesary for a secure large society, the tax money should however be spent wisely (like on public schools, maintaining of roads, public transport in big cities, etc) but the taxed percentage should be equal for all, not of that "you pay 10% and you 30%" bs
Sams family sound like they are really good decent people ,such a shame they are still in the cult
If Sam and Melissa are even in the LDS church they too are still in a cult . A lot of people don’t like to believe that Mormonism is a cult but it is sorry to say ..
My family are wonderful people. It is hard to watch people believe differently than you, but I respect their devotion to what they believe.
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy you are the product of how they raised you ,and I can quite clearly see you are a mentally strong successful person with amazing family values,that reflects back on your parents.
@@kathyt3959 To be sure, I find how FLDS practice polygyny to be improper, but ONLY because they take advantage of government welfare and employ children in jobs that they are probably too young for. Of course there are other aspects of Mormonsim that are harmful to those who are involved in that cult. I wouldn't have an issue though with someone who is loaded and is able to afford a bunch of wives, to marry them with everyone's consent. It is a line that is hard to discern between when a woman is raised to be open to accepting polygyny, vs. when they are designated to a certain man in the church.
Welfare. No need to watch this. LOL.
Such judgment.
@@lifewithjessieb4930 it's not judgment, it's common sense and experience.
Why do you say "Father" instead of "Sams Father"? it sounds kinda culty, hes not your father.
(Melissa answering) Sam calls my parents Mom and Dad, so I have never felt odd calling his Father, Father haha.
What is that awful noise?
That discusting so sleep and get loads woman pregnant then make the taxpayer's pay for them
They don't make tqx payers pay anything. Each tax payer ignorantly chooses to be stolen from themselves. Taxation is THEFT.
I enjoy your videos, but I find it a bit odd for Melissa to stare at him for the entirety of the video. Hopefully helpful criticism
(This is Melissa responding) Haha totally understand. Some videos are more interactive than others where I am speaking and when I'm not it feels so odd to stare blankly into a camera! And then if he is speaking it feels rude to not look at him, so I have to figure out a better balance. hahahaha =) I will definitely work on switching it up more!
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy I don't mind that you look at him...in fact I think it is very sweet and shows that you are interested in what he is saying.
She's so sweet. ❤️
Is it not part of your culture to look at the person speaking?
Ridiculous 'helpful criticism'. She's paying attention to him, its lovely.
I am very pro-polygamy for those who can afford to do so, WITHOUT government assistance.
1. When Sam says "his family", is he referring to his biological mother and his biological siblings or is he referring to all of the wives and all of their children?
2. No disrespect, but Sam really can't speak for "the family" because he was a child and he have so many siblings born before and after him that he can account for every moment of that entire timeline AND with all the lies and secrets the church have the women telling & keeping, he wouldn't know the truth anyways.
I’m sorry, but everyone abused the system. It’s not for very much not single women to claim their biological children and their sister wives children also.
It’s also sad to see 14 or 15 year old boys expected to pay get a job and pay their father; mostly if a kid does work that young they’re forced to save it. I think saying “oh we all just chipped in” when it’s many young teenagers doing it is very disingenuous to the actual situation going on.
You said the church owned all the property and land, who is "the church"??? SomeBODY or group of people owned all that property and land.
I'm Black, I recognize slavery when I hear it. Polygamy is slavery by another name.