Download Report

Minnesota Man Reveals a Deep, Dark Secret in Hopes of Helping Others
By Rachel M. Anderson, Contributing Writer
(St.Paul) – Pastor R. Kevin Kline is on a mission; but it’s not the kind of endeavor you would expect of a
Lutheran minister. “I want to raise awareness about the need for resources for young men who have been
victimized by prostitution. They need help to recover from what happened to them,” said Kline.
According to the article published in the Boston Edge, “Do HIV/AIDS Service Organizations Effectively Reach
Male Sex Workers?” there are few resources and little support readily available for male sex workers working
and/or living on the streets.
Kline says it’s a shame there are not resources available to this segment of society. He suspects a large
percentage of male prostitutes did not become sex workers of their own volition. Kevin should know—he
speaks from his own experience.
In Faraway: A Suburban Boy’s Story as a Victim of Sex Trafficking (Two Harbors Press, 2015, $13.95), Kline
and co-author Daniel Maurer share the story of what happened to Kline when he was just 14-years-old.
The book begins with Kline sharing memories from his childhood. He describes his friendship with a boy from
school named Tim, who like Kline was gay. Then he shares how Tim introduced him to an older man named
Ray.
As Ray talked, I thought to myself, Wow, he really is a nice guy, and he looks real cool!
It wasn’t long, however, before Kline’s opinion of Ray changed.
It turned out [Tim] was essentially delivering me to Ray to be trained.
Ray trained Kevin as a male hustler who would trade sex with men for money. What Kline describes as the
darkest days in his life happened between May and August of 1975 in Tower Grove Park in St. Louis, Mo.
After he broke free and returned to his life as a suburban kid, Kline tried to forget everything that had happened.
“I thought I had done a good job recovering from the trauma until one night in 2008,” he said.
“After Christmas and right before New Year, I was living in Hawaii and there was an island-wide blackout. I
was walking home with my son and a gang of kids jumped us. We fought them off without getting hurt, but
after that happened, I started having terrible nightmares,” said Kline.
FA R AWAY
R.K. KLINE and
DANIEL D. MAURER
Feature
Article
These nightmares took him back to the time he was victimized over and over again by the men Ray sent him to
service. “I knew I had to do something about it so I started seeing a psychologist,” said Kline.
As part of his therapy for what was diagnosed as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Kline was urged to
journal about what had happened to him. He wrote about things he hadn’t thought about in years. Around the
same time, he shared his story with Maurer, who he had met in seminary.
“Kevin called me up one night and said he wanted to tell me something. He said that I would never think of him
in the same way again. I thought maybe he was going to share that he was a CIA spy, an ax murderer or
something,” said Maurer laughing. “When he shared his story with me, it didn’t change my opinion of him at
all. I really saw it as an act of courage.”
Soon after that conversation, Maurer started searching on the Web to see if anyone had written a story about a
similar ordeal. Under his “Dan the Story Man” brand, Maurer specializes in writing transformative stories, and
Kevin’s was one that intrigued him.
“I found a lot of books out there about girls who had been victimized, but nothing about guys,” he said. Maurer
proposed writing a book. At first Kline wasn’t sure he wanted to do it, but realizing sharing his story had the
potential to help others, he agreed to the project.
Not only is Faraway Kline’s story, it is the story of Stevie and Squirrel, two friends he made during the ordeal.
They also worked for Ray. Shortly after Kline met the boys back in ‘75, Squirrel was hit by a van and killed.
Stevie died of exposure on the streets a few weeks later.
“If they had lived, Squirrel would have been an awesome theater kid. Stevie, he would have grown to be a good
man. They just weren’t given a chance. This book is for them, and kids like them,” said Kline, who is currently
in the process of starting up a support group for an underserved segment of society.
The reviews for the book have been very favorable. “This book, with its authentic, searing story of hope in the
midst of the tragedy of sexual trafficking of boys is a must-read! There are so many people unaware of the
crimes being perpetrated against our children. This book is for everyone committed to building a just society
in which persons of all orientations are honored as in the image of the God who created them,” said Dr. Gwen
Sayler, Wartburg Theological Seminary, Dubuque, Iowa.
In the Afterword for the book titled, “The Crisis of Adolescence: Then and Now,” Dr. Ric Curtis and Dr.
Anthony Marcus of the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City, said, “Kevin’s story compels us,
the readers, to understand the stories of all those touched by teen sex trafficking; whether their experiences
occurred in the past or present day.”
“What drew me to Kevin’s story is how he transformed himself from that scared kid on the street to someone
brave enough to dig up his past and share his story to help others,” said Maurer.
FA R AWAY
R.K. KLINE and DANIEL D. MAURER
Feature Article
Copies of Faraway: A Suburban Boy’s Story as a Victim of Sex Trafficking are available for purchase online at
Barnes and Noble.com and Amazon.com. Signed copies can be purchased on the author website, www.farawaybook.com. The book retails for $13.95. The e-book retails for $6.95.
About the Authors
R. Kevin Kline is a rostered, ordained parish pastor in the ELCA (Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America). He recently received approval as a mission developer
and plans to foster relationships with other organizations to raise awareness about the
ongoing issues of justice in the LGBTQ community. He is a huge fan of proto-punk,
the West Coast punk scene and grunge music. He enjoys traveling and marathon
running, and is a proud parent to his son, Scott. He currently resides in St. Paul,
Minnesota.
Daniel D. Maurer was an ELCA pastor for 11 years, serving parishes in western
North Dakota. He is now a freelance writer and writes under the “Dan the Story
Man,” his non-fiction brand. Hazelden Publishing published his first book, Sobriety:
A Graphic Novel, in 2014. Two Harbor’s Press released Faraway: A Suburban Boy’s
Story as a Victim of Sex Trafficking in early 2015. Maurer creates curricula for
Sparkhouse, the ecumenical division of Augsburg Fortress, the official publishing
house of the ECLA. He also writes content for children’s science books with Amicus
Publishing. He enjoys reading, writing, gardening and playing his bagpipes. Maurer
lives with his wife and family in St. Paul, Minnesota.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This story is being offered to you copyright free and cost-free. High-resolution photography
is also available for free upon request. If you prefer to arrange your own interview with Maurer and Kline,
contact Rachel M. Anderson, Publicist, at 952-240-2513 or [email protected].
Title: Faraway: A Suburban Boy’s Story as a Victim of Sex Trafficking
Authors: R. Kevin Kline & Daniel D. Maurer
Paperback ISBN: 978-0692-2509-2-1
Book size: 5” x 8”
Pages: 147
Copyright: 2015
Retail price $13.95
EBook ASIN: B00T6P6V30
Retail Price (eBook): $6.95
Category: Nonfiction, Memoir
Publisher: Two Harbors Press, Minneapolis, MN
Publicist: Rachel M. Anderson / RMA Publicity
(952) 240-2513 [email protected]
FA R AWAY
R.K. KLINE and DANIEL D. MAURER
Feature Article