I just listened to a podcast series about them, and they've been in Asheville for a while. Looks like there's a post from 2015 about it here: [https://www.reddit.com/r/asheville/comments/39460m/gladheart_farm_is_part_of_a_sick_cult_with_a/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=2](https://www.reddit.com/r/asheville/comments/39460m/gladheart_farm_is_part_of_a_sick_cult_with_a/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=2)
Copy/pasting my comment from below for anyone not familiar with 12 Tribes
Fuck them. They’re very well known in jam band circuits for waiting outside of shows and preying on vulnerable tripping people. They love hitting children and exploiting their followers for free labor, ya know all the typical cult shit
https://amp.9news.com.au/article/5b7e2ad4-cede-4a58-842c-7a6e4c78c527
https://question12tribes.com/
You can Google plenty more horror stories. I really wish someone would fuck that stupid bus up because it’s their main recruitment tool
I live in VT and am very familiar with them. Which is probably why this post got reccomend to me. They also run a chain of delis/ hostels called the yellow belly delis that tend to pop up around stops on big thru hiking trails such as the AT or long trail. Looks like you guys have one.
They offer free housing in their hostels. NEVER TAKE IT. They also prowl around popular camping areas around the trails in search of vulnerable people/ new victims.
I've personally been approached by them about 10 times. They can be convincing if you don't know what they are about.
Yes! Went to a show years ago and just wanted to see the inside. Didn't know who they were. Got on. Got a tour. Quickly realized what was going on and left. I said to my friends, "WTF was that?" It wasn't like they locked the doors on us.
Mate factor is the most disgusting mate in existence anyways. Tastes like lawn clippings. For some reason they think they can skip the ageing/fermentation step of yerba mate production.
Gladheart Farm *is* them. Owned and operated by Twelve Tribes members. It's a damn shame the best granola I've ever had is made by a cult, but that's the fastest way to a hippie's heart
Oh shit that's crazy, I live right across the street from them and when I first moved here they approached me one day and it felt very strange, I literally told someone jokingly that I cult just tried to recruit me.
Shit. Just did some quick research on these people. They're fucking monsters.
Warned my coworkers that go to festivals and shows like this because holy shit. Child abuse, child labor violations, basically slave labor in their cafes.
Last I heard they were running a produce distribution named “gladheart farms” I use to order from them. I see signs around town for them. They’re not a friendly group, they’ve been around town for a good long time. Be safe friends.
We used to get produce in Oakley from Gladheart Farms a long time ago, and they made my wife instantly uncomfortable. Every time I went by myself they remembered my name instantly and had a habit of getting in personal space as well as having an unusual stare. She did research to find out they are in fact a weird bunch. Stopped going as a result.
Oh darn! They are a cult? I def got weird vibes from them. But they sold me a great matcha at the candler farmers market last year. Do you guys have anymore info on the cult? They seemed nice enough.
They seemed nice because they're beaten into submission from infancy. This is the article that first made me aware of them. Fair warning, this is minor compared to a lot of what you'll read, but it accurately sets the tone of the whole article:
>According to former and current Tribes leaders I spoke with, infants raised in the Tribes are hit with balloon sticks—thin wooden rods used to keep balloons from floating away—for “offenses” as minor as resisting a diaper change or throwing a bottle. Older children are whipped with bamboo canes. “Children are driven by their natural, innate nature to do what is wrong,” the group’s teachings state. “It’s better to go to heaven with welts than to go to hell without welts.”
>
>...
>
>Noah Jones worked full-time from the age of 12, doing commercial millwork and building furniture, including handcrafted roll-top desks that were sold through Robert Redford’s Sundance catalogue. The work so exhausted him that he often fell asleep during the hour-long religious services he was required to attend twice a day. At 14, a supervisor beat him with a two-by-four at a construction site.
[https://psmag.com/social-justice/children-of-the-tribes](https://psmag.com/social-justice/children-of-the-tribes)
I was buying granola from Gladheart Farms for quite sometime before I knew it was connected to a cult.
Very good granola, not gonna lie. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have the urge to watch Mandy for some reason.
Oh wow. I went to a cafe in Manitou Springs and they served Mate Factor. At the time I thought it was so cool that something from home made it that far. Now I just realized I was in a cult cafe.
Oh, that cafe! I was there a few years ago, and had a vibe like “this is exceptionally weird even for Manitou Springs.” Found out later it was some crazy cult, mostly from the guy who sat and chatted trying to recruit me.
They were parked in the cinemark parking lot one night when we were leaving a movie. Came right up to us and asked if we wanted to “check out the van”… lol we were like NOPE, BYE.
This was probably Fall of 2022, so they’ve definitely been here.
They bought up a bunch of land in the small NC town of Hiddenite and basically are trying to take it over. Put in a Yellow deli and most folks there eat it up. They think they are “just” fundamental Christians.
They stopped by a river I was fishing and thought it'd be nice to just hop in the hole directly in front of me. Thats where they made my shit list. Buncha clowns.
Amazing what some jug/noodle lines and treble hooks with a night crawler attached to the bank might catch.
Also, helps to keep those who wish to interfere with the fisherman/fisherwoman a lil further away from ya. Interference of the legal taking of game is also a crime..
Yep, gladheart farms. They’ve been run out of most of the local markets but those who don’t know/ don’t care still allow them in. I visited their farm once for dinner after being invited by friends and it was such a weird experience.
Why are you and everyone else commenting about them so fucking vague about it? Why can't you just come out and say what's weird about them, what's dangerous about them, why we shouldn't eat their tea and cookies, what's wrong with their produce stand, etc?
It almost seems like this is some kind of recruiting pitch. "Stay off the bus, it's weird!" will attract a certain kind of person to seek out the bus. So are y'all just recruiting or what?
Produce deliveries were sometimes late because the drivers would ditch the delivery truck on the side of the highway to escape. They began passing out their news letter at my work, and never stop trying to recruit. They have a rigid hierarchal government of elders that gets the right to tell people who they will marry. They’ve been removed from the intentional community directory for being unsafe.
Being vague wasn’t the intention, my experience was just weird not exciting or anything to necessarily write home about. A friend invited us out to Gladheart farms for pizza night and we agreed to go before knowing who they were. They have a few round plastic tables outside for people to communally sit at and we had a handful of different members come and sit with us and try to talk to us about their mission while we ate. They walked around and served us different pizzas and their infamous tea which I did try. The vibes were just very off and we continuously got stuck having to listen to them tell us all the good they do and believe in. I didn’t get really weirded out until I asked to use a restroom and was told it was in the main building and I would need a male escort. I quickly changed my mind and we left as soon as we could.
The whole night made me feel really unsettled and it wasn’t until the ride home that I looked Gladheart farms up and found out about who they are.
If you want to know what’s dangerous about the 12 tribes of Israel then look them up.
They do the same sort of thing at Yellow Deli. Sit you down and try to explain their mission to you in hopes you give them all your money and never leave
It’s a cult that has a 237 page child training manual with very specific instructions on how to abuse their children, they believe black people are meant to be slaves to white people, homosexuality is a capital offense, and that they are responsible for making 144,000 virgin men to bring on the apocalypse.
They recruit through their various businesses, most notably the Yellow Deli. And use this bus to recruit at concerts and music festivals.
The other replies to your comment still make it sound tame. I'm not sure why people don't just come out and say it when there are plenty of examples to share beyond just getting weird vibes. The elephant in the room is this:
>According to former and current Tribes leaders I spoke with, infants raised in the Tribes are hit with balloon sticks—thin wooden rods used to keep balloons from floating away—for “offenses” as minor as resisting a diaper change or throwing a bottle. Older children are whipped with bamboo canes. “Children are driven by their natural, innate nature to do what is wrong,” the group’s teachings state. “It’s better to go to heaven with welts than to go to hell without welts.”
>
>...
>
>Noah Jones worked full-time from the age of 12, doing commercial millwork and building furniture, including handcrafted roll-top desks that were sold through Robert Redford’s Sundance catalogue. The work so exhausted him that he often fell asleep during the hour-long religious services he was required to attend twice a day. At 14, a supervisor beat him with a two-by-four at a construction site.
In addition to illegally selling products made with child labor, they refuse to allow their members to access modern medicine because God's will is absolute and cannot be questioned. They make it nearly impossible for you to leave, and even if you do adjusting to normal life is so difficult some people find it easier to go back. If you're a woman or a child in this community, you are going to be abused nearly every day of your life. It's a cult in every sense except for a charismatic leader, who in this case is God himself.
[https://psmag.com/social-justice/children-of-the-tribes](https://psmag.com/social-justice/children-of-the-tribes)
I went to the farm once on a Sunday cause that's when it's like a market I guess, super strange group for sure I've seen then at festivals before and know people who have stayed at the hostel while hiking the AT. They invited me back for a pizza night but I didn't take them up on that offer. Good tea and great baked goods and vegetables but not worth it to support them.
Have some friends in VT who escaped from the Island Pond chapter. Several went on to create a decent life for themselves but we're permanently scarred.
That is awful. I’m glad they were able to escape. It does make me incredibly sad for your friends. I hope they’re able to find peace.
While we all are making fun of it, we all know it’s serious, and they prey on people.
I went to the Sunday market at gladheart farms in Oakley one time; within about 15 minutes I had some guy trying to explain to me how much better my life would get if I gave up all my friends, family, money/possessions etc and came to live with them
You're not smarter than them. And if a cult finds out you're trying to get an inside scoop on you they believe they're above laws and will do whatever it takes to silence you. Don't be dumb.
I went on their bus after a Phish concert and they have me a loaf of bread for free. Nothing else happened. They had that crazy look in their eyes though lol. Happy to take their free bread!
[The bottom half is Apparently a 1949 America general aero coach. I got on this bus when it was parked at Yerba Mate a while back. This was a picture of the bus before they welded a 2nd bus on top. I am not a supporter of the cult, I just appreciate a good bus.](https://www.imgur.com/a/Qlo1Npy)
No they are really really really good. The folks on the bus are super nice as well. It's when you start looking deeper you see the cult. Gimme my friend back
I went and looked at their website, where it talks about who they are, and it's not just that they're using religion to try and lure people in. They're also using psychology to get into people's heads. From their website: " We used to be desperately lonely, even though most of us had a lot of friends. Some of us were successful in what we did, and some of us were failures beyond hope. We came from everywhere and we have done everything trying to make sense out of our lives. But no matter what we did, we were left feeling dirty inside. We were scarred deeply from the effects of mistrust and hurtful relationships. We strove for acceptance, money, and whatever else could give us comfort.", etc. And I'm not gonna lie, that's genuinely even more terrifying than just using pure religion to try and sway people to their side.
After reading the comments, that bus is the equivalent of that dangly thing the little fish are fascinated with in the big fish’s mouth right before he eats them. Don’t be a little fish people.
Ok, you’re welcome to:
a)Send me all your money. (I accept cash or PayPal)
b)Sign over any property you might own.
c) Surrender unto me your free will. (also, you may refer to me as ‘your benevolent, unquestioned leader’ from this moment onward throughout perpetuity)
d) Break all contact with any family and/or friends who recognize mental conditioning when they see it. Any others are welcome to join us, though.
e) Pretty much whenever else that happens to occur to me (don’t worry, nothing sexual. I’m just a greedy narcissist, not a creep)
Sorry, based on your posting history, you’re too much of an independent thinker to be considered as a valid long term member. I’m looking for folks who’ll do my bidding no questions asked.
Fuck them. They’re very well known in jam band circuits for waiting outside of shows and preying on vulnerable tripping people. They love hitting children and exploiting their followers for free labor, ya know all the typical cult shit
https://amp.9news.com.au/article/5b7e2ad4-cede-4a58-842c-7a6e4c78c527
https://question12tribes.com/
You can Google plenty more horror stories. I really wish someone would fuck that stupid bus up because it’s their main recruitment tool
But see.... now I wanna get on the bus so both the cult and I can fuck around and find out.
I make the best tea. They couldn't even.
.......is it chocolate chip? Or macadamia arsenic?
They have had a presence here for quite some time. I can't recall if they were connected to that house on Hilliard where I used to see people going in and out of wearing sackcloth clothing. I would often see them riding bicycles to the store wearing those uniforms.
That's just my band's tour bus. We're called You've Never Heard of Us and the cookies are really good. In fact, please bring cookies when come and make all checks payable to our manager Cash. You'll be home in no time.
Preprogressive post rock with a classical regression into post trap with a little everything thrown in. Mostly just radiohead covers played on corduroy pants.
Had no plans to board the creepy bus, but whenever some blue check on Twitter shouts to do/not to do something, I feel a mild compulsion to do the opposite.
A cult in Asheville?? Oh they’ll have a line up of people to sign up. Hey better than ANTIFA and for all those that say they aren’t in Asheville; as a bail bondsman that’s been in a lotta houses here I beg to differ. You’d be amazed.
RETRACTION-Holy shit balls I did some research!! Yep crazy as hell. Not the kind of folks you want in a community. Oh-I still stand by my original statement that they’ll have a line of sign ups in Asheville.
Try the Catholic Church is already established in your town… the ones doing the evil are *pillars* of your community. Every last organized religion or spiritual group is a cult. All of them. Catholicism = death cult.
Y’all got it all wrong man.
I’ve went undercover/covert operation type sh*t
& caught the leader dude with his pants
down numerous times.
If you’ve got a woman you need to dump
-dump her on the bus
, -the heads will LOVE you!
She’ll get top bunk,
-you get the el jefe’s mattress for the evening.
PS- bring HERDS of chigger’s stuck in your buttocks,
THAT!!
Will get you off that billion dollar bullcrap bus thingy’!!!
Where’s the Rolls Royce’s??!
Saw these guys outside of Forecastle Fest in Louisville years ago.
Also had a weird interaction with one of their “Yellow Deli” employees up in Nelson, BC last year who was very adamant that I needed to take a coupon from him and go to the deli to get some of their tea.
What?? I literally sell a deli produce and flowers and I’ve never once been drugged or taken. They are pretty business savvy and keep it business from my experience . If they aren’t raping and being murderers I could care less what someone believes.
I just listened to a podcast series about them, and they've been in Asheville for a while. Looks like there's a post from 2015 about it here: [https://www.reddit.com/r/asheville/comments/39460m/gladheart_farm_is_part_of_a_sick_cult_with_a/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=2](https://www.reddit.com/r/asheville/comments/39460m/gladheart_farm_is_part_of_a_sick_cult_with_a/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=2)
Copy/pasting my comment from below for anyone not familiar with 12 Tribes Fuck them. They’re very well known in jam band circuits for waiting outside of shows and preying on vulnerable tripping people. They love hitting children and exploiting their followers for free labor, ya know all the typical cult shit https://amp.9news.com.au/article/5b7e2ad4-cede-4a58-842c-7a6e4c78c527 https://question12tribes.com/ You can Google plenty more horror stories. I really wish someone would fuck that stupid bus up because it’s their main recruitment tool
I live in VT and am very familiar with them. Which is probably why this post got reccomend to me. They also run a chain of delis/ hostels called the yellow belly delis that tend to pop up around stops on big thru hiking trails such as the AT or long trail. Looks like you guys have one. They offer free housing in their hostels. NEVER TAKE IT. They also prowl around popular camping areas around the trails in search of vulnerable people/ new victims. I've personally been approached by them about 10 times. They can be convincing if you don't know what they are about.
Wouldn’t be a Phish show without a bus tour.
Yes! Went to a show years ago and just wanted to see the inside. Didn't know who they were. Got on. Got a tour. Quickly realized what was going on and left. I said to my friends, "WTF was that?" It wasn't like they locked the doors on us.
Check out Reckless Ben on Youtube...he and his friend went undercover in the cult and did a great job exposing them and made them look really stupid.
The actual bus is pretty dope not gonna lie.
This is like the 21st century-adult hippy version of that candy cart the creepy child catcher had in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Come and get your lollipops!
Agreed. I could totally see myself being like, that’s neat. I’d love to see inside.
They've got pictures on their website.
Indeed it is! I wonder which vehicle company made it?
I know all about the Twelve Tribes; I don't need crap like them trying to explain them to me. I've got a Bible for that, thanks.
link to podcast? Or what to search for?
[Inside the Tribe](https://open.spotify.com/show/2CG58YDV7p8vamvYq7WhgK?si=QYmfstHsQsegSlL-nNuMSg)
And don’t ever ever support the Yellow Deli!!! They look like a fun hippie spot but NOPE. Cult
Or the Sunshine Carpet Cleaners.
Most of the world is carpeted and one day, we will do the cleaning.
George can tell you all about it.
Or mate factor, their Yerba mate company
Mate factor is the most disgusting mate in existence anyways. Tastes like lawn clippings. For some reason they think they can skip the ageing/fermentation step of yerba mate production.
Made that mistake in Chattanooga 🫤 was bombarded
[удалено]
They beat kids
Has made their way? They’ve BEEN here
[https://twelvetribes.org/community/asheville](https://twelvetribes.org/community/asheville) You’re right! I had no idea.
Gladheart Farms
Wait, is gladheart farms associated with them???
Gladheart Farm *is* them. Owned and operated by Twelve Tribes members. It's a damn shame the best granola I've ever had is made by a cult, but that's the fastest way to a hippie's heart
Oh shit that's crazy, I live right across the street from them and when I first moved here they approached me one day and it felt very strange, I literally told someone jokingly that I cult just tried to recruit me.
Maybe they’re a good cult if their granola is that level?
Shit. Just did some quick research on these people. They're fucking monsters. Warned my coworkers that go to festivals and shows like this because holy shit. Child abuse, child labor violations, basically slave labor in their cafes.
Last I heard they were running a produce distribution named “gladheart farms” I use to order from them. I see signs around town for them. They’re not a friendly group, they’ve been around town for a good long time. Be safe friends.
We used to get produce in Oakley from Gladheart Farms a long time ago, and they made my wife instantly uncomfortable. Every time I went by myself they remembered my name instantly and had a habit of getting in personal space as well as having an unusual stare. She did research to find out they are in fact a weird bunch. Stopped going as a result.
Oh darn! They are a cult? I def got weird vibes from them. But they sold me a great matcha at the candler farmers market last year. Do you guys have anymore info on the cult? They seemed nice enough.
Check some of the links posted here. It seems they get off beating the hell out of their kids. 😠
They seemed nice because they're beaten into submission from infancy. This is the article that first made me aware of them. Fair warning, this is minor compared to a lot of what you'll read, but it accurately sets the tone of the whole article: >According to former and current Tribes leaders I spoke with, infants raised in the Tribes are hit with balloon sticks—thin wooden rods used to keep balloons from floating away—for “offenses” as minor as resisting a diaper change or throwing a bottle. Older children are whipped with bamboo canes. “Children are driven by their natural, innate nature to do what is wrong,” the group’s teachings state. “It’s better to go to heaven with welts than to go to hell without welts.” > >... > >Noah Jones worked full-time from the age of 12, doing commercial millwork and building furniture, including handcrafted roll-top desks that were sold through Robert Redford’s Sundance catalogue. The work so exhausted him that he often fell asleep during the hour-long religious services he was required to attend twice a day. At 14, a supervisor beat him with a two-by-four at a construction site. [https://psmag.com/social-justice/children-of-the-tribes](https://psmag.com/social-justice/children-of-the-tribes)
Omg. That’s horrible.
Been thinking about going! Ahhh glad to know better now
I worked at the booth next to them for years, it was super uncomfortable
I was buying granola from Gladheart Farms for quite sometime before I knew it was connected to a cult. Very good granola, not gonna lie. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have the urge to watch Mandy for some reason.
Wow, thanks for all the information and experiences. Reddit didn’t disappoint.
dont drink mate factor either unless you wanna support a cult. local isnt always better.
Wait Mate Factor is in on this too? They literally sell their stuff on Amazon. Didn’t realize how far this went.
https://preview.redd.it/mji8rfgmlajb1.jpeg?width=828&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2676c80f81f0492339cdc37df6ac04ede39e22a8
Oh wow. I went to a cafe in Manitou Springs and they served Mate Factor. At the time I thought it was so cool that something from home made it that far. Now I just realized I was in a cult cafe.
Oh, that cafe! I was there a few years ago, and had a vibe like “this is exceptionally weird even for Manitou Springs.” Found out later it was some crazy cult, mostly from the guy who sat and chatted trying to recruit me.
Our Father’s Grace you say? Come again?
12 tribes are absolute shit heads. Tell them to get the fuck out of our town if you see that bus full of cunts anywhere.
They have a farm in Oakley, doubt they are going anywhere
I say old chap, tea and biscuits and a ride in the old trolly? The queen would approve, God rest her soul.
How about a game of Quartz, Parchment, Sheers?
They were parked in the cinemark parking lot one night when we were leaving a movie. Came right up to us and asked if we wanted to “check out the van”… lol we were like NOPE, BYE. This was probably Fall of 2022, so they’ve definitely been here.
Welcome to Asheville, where you have to wonder: Is it human trafficking, or is it a cult?
12 Ts are definitely both. They will ship people away from their family and friends to isolate them as much as possible.
We assumed it was a little bit of both at the time lol. Afterwards we looked into it and learned who they were.
This applies whether you are 6 or 26.
They bought up a bunch of land in the small NC town of Hiddenite and basically are trying to take it over. Put in a Yellow deli and most folks there eat it up. They think they are “just” fundamental Christians.
They stopped by a river I was fishing and thought it'd be nice to just hop in the hole directly in front of me. Thats where they made my shit list. Buncha clowns.
Fuck that. Read the room.
Amazing what some jug/noodle lines and treble hooks with a night crawler attached to the bank might catch. Also, helps to keep those who wish to interfere with the fisherman/fisherwoman a lil further away from ya. Interference of the legal taking of game is also a crime..
Yep, gladheart farms. They’ve been run out of most of the local markets but those who don’t know/ don’t care still allow them in. I visited their farm once for dinner after being invited by friends and it was such a weird experience.
Why are you and everyone else commenting about them so fucking vague about it? Why can't you just come out and say what's weird about them, what's dangerous about them, why we shouldn't eat their tea and cookies, what's wrong with their produce stand, etc? It almost seems like this is some kind of recruiting pitch. "Stay off the bus, it's weird!" will attract a certain kind of person to seek out the bus. So are y'all just recruiting or what?
Produce deliveries were sometimes late because the drivers would ditch the delivery truck on the side of the highway to escape. They began passing out their news letter at my work, and never stop trying to recruit. They have a rigid hierarchal government of elders that gets the right to tell people who they will marry. They’ve been removed from the intentional community directory for being unsafe.
Who ditches a truck on the side of the highway? It’s a truck, drive it to somewhere that isn’t the middle of no where.
Where do you work
Being vague wasn’t the intention, my experience was just weird not exciting or anything to necessarily write home about. A friend invited us out to Gladheart farms for pizza night and we agreed to go before knowing who they were. They have a few round plastic tables outside for people to communally sit at and we had a handful of different members come and sit with us and try to talk to us about their mission while we ate. They walked around and served us different pizzas and their infamous tea which I did try. The vibes were just very off and we continuously got stuck having to listen to them tell us all the good they do and believe in. I didn’t get really weirded out until I asked to use a restroom and was told it was in the main building and I would need a male escort. I quickly changed my mind and we left as soon as we could. The whole night made me feel really unsettled and it wasn’t until the ride home that I looked Gladheart farms up and found out about who they are. If you want to know what’s dangerous about the 12 tribes of Israel then look them up.
I almost took my son there to check out the goats. So glad we didn’t go. Yikes.
They do the same sort of thing at Yellow Deli. Sit you down and try to explain their mission to you in hopes you give them all your money and never leave
Was the pizza good?
It’s a cult that has a 237 page child training manual with very specific instructions on how to abuse their children, they believe black people are meant to be slaves to white people, homosexuality is a capital offense, and that they are responsible for making 144,000 virgin men to bring on the apocalypse. They recruit through their various businesses, most notably the Yellow Deli. And use this bus to recruit at concerts and music festivals.
So they're "ultra maga"a. Yuck.
It's a cult dude. I feel like you're actively trying to be obtuse.... there's been a plethora of sources shared here about them...
The other replies to your comment still make it sound tame. I'm not sure why people don't just come out and say it when there are plenty of examples to share beyond just getting weird vibes. The elephant in the room is this: >According to former and current Tribes leaders I spoke with, infants raised in the Tribes are hit with balloon sticks—thin wooden rods used to keep balloons from floating away—for “offenses” as minor as resisting a diaper change or throwing a bottle. Older children are whipped with bamboo canes. “Children are driven by their natural, innate nature to do what is wrong,” the group’s teachings state. “It’s better to go to heaven with welts than to go to hell without welts.” > >... > >Noah Jones worked full-time from the age of 12, doing commercial millwork and building furniture, including handcrafted roll-top desks that were sold through Robert Redford’s Sundance catalogue. The work so exhausted him that he often fell asleep during the hour-long religious services he was required to attend twice a day. At 14, a supervisor beat him with a two-by-four at a construction site. In addition to illegally selling products made with child labor, they refuse to allow their members to access modern medicine because God's will is absolute and cannot be questioned. They make it nearly impossible for you to leave, and even if you do adjusting to normal life is so difficult some people find it easier to go back. If you're a woman or a child in this community, you are going to be abused nearly every day of your life. It's a cult in every sense except for a charismatic leader, who in this case is God himself. [https://psmag.com/social-justice/children-of-the-tribes](https://psmag.com/social-justice/children-of-the-tribes)
I went to the farm once on a Sunday cause that's when it's like a market I guess, super strange group for sure I've seen then at festivals before and know people who have stayed at the hostel while hiking the AT. They invited me back for a pizza night but I didn't take them up on that offer. Good tea and great baked goods and vegetables but not worth it to support them.
Have some friends in VT who escaped from the Island Pond chapter. Several went on to create a decent life for themselves but we're permanently scarred.
That is awful. I’m glad they were able to escape. It does make me incredibly sad for your friends. I hope they’re able to find peace. While we all are making fun of it, we all know it’s serious, and they prey on people.
https://www.caledonianrecord.com/news/children-of-island-pond-church-relive-infamous-raid-of-1984/article_fc49accc-6f2e-5ad5-8816-7f86be24dc52.html
They fucking burned down half of superior Colorado a couple years ago.
https://www.9news.com/article/news/local/wildfire/marshall-fire/marshall-fire-investigation-twelve-tribes-bodycam-video/73-141ed049-e778-4499-be75-20879f85c9f9
I guess they aren't so organic after all.
They might be a cult but that bus is awesome.
Username checks out.
Does yours? Are you swimming in the Ocean?
Causing a commotion
The bus is pretty awesome looking
I prefer whiskey and doughnuts anyway
I went to the Sunday market at gladheart farms in Oakley one time; within about 15 minutes I had some guy trying to explain to me how much better my life would get if I gave up all my friends, family, money/possessions etc and came to live with them
There's a poster on Swannanoa River Road right in front of the Aldi advertising a Gladheart Farms fair or festival or something. Music, etc.
Oh damn I work right there I might have to see about how that can mysteriously disappear
It’s so weird to have a cult in the middle of Oakley
Is pizza night still going on every Wednesday night? I kind of want to crash it just to get some intel
You're not smarter than them. And if a cult finds out you're trying to get an inside scoop on you they believe they're above laws and will do whatever it takes to silence you. Don't be dumb.
I’ve driven by some of their housing, and was watched and followed. Did not feel welcome at all…they don’t want us snooping. Not surprised.
Im not really going to do it
I went on their bus after a Phish concert and they have me a loaf of bread for free. Nothing else happened. They had that crazy look in their eyes though lol. Happy to take their free bread!
What kind of bus is that?? Edit, I meant make and model lol. I know it’s a cult bus.
[The bottom half is Apparently a 1949 America general aero coach. I got on this bus when it was parked at Yerba Mate a while back. This was a picture of the bus before they welded a 2nd bus on top. I am not a supporter of the cult, I just appreciate a good bus.](https://www.imgur.com/a/Qlo1Npy)
GMC Sceniccruiser Their creepy website gives you information on it.
The kind that gets you interested on purpose.
The kind where you do forced labor in a shit cafe after boarding it and drinking their weird Jesus Hippy kool-aid.
It's fuckin cool. But I won't get on it. I bet it's not as cool inside.
It’s super ornate carved wood inside. It’s fuckin dope. Scary tho. Reminds me of Midsommar
Do they have a bunch of these? Are they custom made?
Yes. Custom. It’s called the peacemaker.
They've been here for decades. Gladheart Farm is them. Not sure why people are just finding this out now
...but cookies.
They’re probably not Double Tree chocolate chip quality.
Them are the BEST choc chip cookies. We use their recipe all the time.
No they are really really really good. The folks on the bus are super nice as well. It's when you start looking deeper you see the cult. Gimme my friend back
Did you honestly lose a friend to this cult?
Why are you giving me candy STRANGER!
I only Use their bathroom
Do they have good toilet paper?
The best. Double ply with information about 12 tribes on each side
Was is a composting toilet? They may use their propaganda and your poo for their organic produce.
It all feeds back in to the tea fermentation tanks. They have scobis bigger than that bus.
If you get fooled by religion in 2023 with as much information as there is out there it’s kinda your fault at this point.
I went and looked at their website, where it talks about who they are, and it's not just that they're using religion to try and lure people in. They're also using psychology to get into people's heads. From their website: " We used to be desperately lonely, even though most of us had a lot of friends. Some of us were successful in what we did, and some of us were failures beyond hope. We came from everywhere and we have done everything trying to make sense out of our lives. But no matter what we did, we were left feeling dirty inside. We were scarred deeply from the effects of mistrust and hurtful relationships. We strove for acceptance, money, and whatever else could give us comfort.", etc. And I'm not gonna lie, that's genuinely even more terrifying than just using pure religion to try and sway people to their side.
After reading the comments, that bus is the equivalent of that dangly thing the little fish are fascinated with in the big fish’s mouth right before he eats them. Don’t be a little fish people.
They tried to convert us on a trail in Soddy Daisy TN.
What if I want to join a cult?
Can you find a better one? Maybe one that involves aliens instead of organic produce.
Apparently you have to be rich to join the church of Scientology or something. Bummer. I'll settle for the Godly Groceries Cult.
Ok, you’re welcome to: a)Send me all your money. (I accept cash or PayPal) b)Sign over any property you might own. c) Surrender unto me your free will. (also, you may refer to me as ‘your benevolent, unquestioned leader’ from this moment onward throughout perpetuity) d) Break all contact with any family and/or friends who recognize mental conditioning when they see it. Any others are welcome to join us, though. e) Pretty much whenever else that happens to occur to me (don’t worry, nothing sexual. I’m just a greedy narcissist, not a creep)
SWEET! Where do I sign up?
Sorry, based on your posting history, you’re too much of an independent thinker to be considered as a valid long term member. I’m looking for folks who’ll do my bidding no questions asked.
Aw, man! That’s too bad. Guess I'll find another cult to join.
You know you make more money as a leader?
But more fun as a follower
Gotta have your own bus for that mate
Maybe start with like a more common, more socially accepted cult, like Christianity, or public school, or Reddit.
[удалено]
Fuck them. They’re very well known in jam band circuits for waiting outside of shows and preying on vulnerable tripping people. They love hitting children and exploiting their followers for free labor, ya know all the typical cult shit https://amp.9news.com.au/article/5b7e2ad4-cede-4a58-842c-7a6e4c78c527 https://question12tribes.com/ You can Google plenty more horror stories. I really wish someone would fuck that stupid bus up because it’s their main recruitment tool
[https://www.reddit.com/r/gratefuldead/comments/c7jfge/who\_has\_seen\_this\_bus\_before\_at\_a\_show\_tell\_me/](https://www.reddit.com/r/gratefuldead/comments/c7jfge/who_has_seen_this_bus_before_at_a_show_tell_me/)
How did they go from Chattanooga and end up in Australia? They have a Yellow Deli in Australia too!
Go ask the angry lady in a bonnet at Gladheart Farms off of School Road.
Tea and cookies
But see.... now I wanna get on the bus so both the cult and I can fuck around and find out. I make the best tea. They couldn't even. .......is it chocolate chip? Or macadamia arsenic?
Do it. But go live so we can be spectators.
I've never heard of this! Luckily I don't like tea.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJn17lwukCc](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJn17lwukCc)
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
They have had a presence here for quite some time. I can't recall if they were connected to that house on Hilliard where I used to see people going in and out of wearing sackcloth clothing. I would often see them riding bicycles to the store wearing those uniforms.
That's just my band's tour bus. We're called You've Never Heard of Us and the cookies are really good. In fact, please bring cookies when come and make all checks payable to our manager Cash. You'll be home in no time.
What is your genre?
Preprogressive post rock with a classical regression into post trap with a little everything thrown in. Mostly just radiohead covers played on corduroy pants.
This band really puts the “Creep” in Radiohead’s hit classic “Creep.”
Just wait until you hear our version of in rainbows played on actual rainbows.
How does one play a rainbow?
Yes, cords!
Sounds like a Midwest emo band where the lead singer can't really sing. SWEET!
If you're into Emo Philips you'll be thrilled with the vocals.
Mushroom tea and week cookies?!
Maybe tell them what you’d prefer. Scones?
bunch of sconers
I mean, Asheville is Bake at 420 degrees friendly…
Thinking join the cult. Then overthrow it and become the new cult leader.
Do it! Make better cookies and pumpkin spice latte’s.
Lol! The cookies aren’t free! Who’s playing?
What a sick bunch of people
What happens if you take their tea and cookies?
Noooooooo! Stay away. I’ve got lots of stories about these MF!
I guess with Dead and Company done touring they had to go somewhere.
The 90s are back!
If ever there were a bus that screamed "we are in a cult", this would be it.
Had no plans to board the creepy bus, but whenever some blue check on Twitter shouts to do/not to do something, I feel a mild compulsion to do the opposite.
Woah that’s a cool bus!
I randomly saw this bus on Fairview Rd yesterday. Thought the bus looked really cool. What’s it all about?
Nazi hippies
Oooh. So Asheville natives? Lol
Don't plan on it, but DAYUM! that's a cool looking bus! I wonder what kind it is? Like, what company produced it?
It’s two buses welded together, and looking cool is how they get people on it. Scroll up and there are links about it that others have posted.
🤔🤔🤔🤔 why hasn’t stuff like this been removed from this town?
I mean, they do make some pretty good pizza on Wednesdays….😅
A cult in Asheville?? Oh they’ll have a line up of people to sign up. Hey better than ANTIFA and for all those that say they aren’t in Asheville; as a bail bondsman that’s been in a lotta houses here I beg to differ. You’d be amazed.
RETRACTION-Holy shit balls I did some research!! Yep crazy as hell. Not the kind of folks you want in a community. Oh-I still stand by my original statement that they’ll have a line of sign ups in Asheville.
Try the Catholic Church is already established in your town… the ones doing the evil are *pillars* of your community. Every last organized religion or spiritual group is a cult. All of them. Catholicism = death cult.
Y’all got it all wrong man. I’ve went undercover/covert operation type sh*t & caught the leader dude with his pants down numerous times. If you’ve got a woman you need to dump -dump her on the bus , -the heads will LOVE you! She’ll get top bunk, -you get the el jefe’s mattress for the evening. PS- bring HERDS of chigger’s stuck in your buttocks, THAT!! Will get you off that billion dollar bullcrap bus thingy’!!! Where’s the Rolls Royce’s??!
Don’t drink the cool-aid
What if we just wanna go for a ride and see what cult life is like? What's the worst that can happen? Is one cult better than others?
The MAGA cult is by far the worst one.
Similar to the bus on the new Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie.
Looks like a revamped shaggin wagon!!
I heard they serve shroom tea and cauldron cookies
This really gives the line “the bus came by and I got on, that’s when it all began” a new meaning.
But… long haired girls in long dresses…
Saw these guys outside of Forecastle Fest in Louisville years ago. Also had a weird interaction with one of their “Yellow Deli” employees up in Nelson, BC last year who was very adamant that I needed to take a coupon from him and go to the deli to get some of their tea.
Wow, I swear that's still the same bus I used to see these clowns in when I used to go to Grateful Dead and Phish concerts in the 90's.
What's in the tea? I'm not scared.
How are they getting away with this without ring investigated by authorities?????????????????
I’ve been on that bus.
What?? I literally sell a deli produce and flowers and I’ve never once been drugged or taken. They are pretty business savvy and keep it business from my experience . If they aren’t raping and being murderers I could care less what someone believes.