Memories of the Branch Davidians

Bonnie Haldeman was the mother of David Koresh and a surviving Branch Davidian. She lived, traveled, and worked with the Branch Davidians in Texas, California, and Hawaii from 1985 until 1991.Catherine Wessinger (Ph.D. University of Iowa) is the Rev. H. James Yamauchi, S.J. Professor in Arts and Sciences, and she is Professor of the History of Religions in the Religious Studies Department, Loyola University, New Orleans. She is the author of How the Millennium Comes Violently: From Jonestown to Heaven's Gate, editor of Millennialism, Persecution and Violence: Historical Cases, and co-general editor of Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions.

In Memories of the Branch Davidians , Catherine Wessinger's insightful interviews with Bonnie Haldeman provide a rare glimpse into David Koresh's childhood and his emergence as the spiritual leader of the Branch Davidians. In this plain-spoken account of her life and her son's life, Bonnie Haldeman puts a human face on David Koresh and his followers, offering a needed corrective to the predominantly stereotypical portrayals of the Branch Davidians. Dr. David G. Bromley, Professor of Religious Studies and Sociology, School of World Studies, Virginia Commonwealth University

• Foreword, Catherine Wessinger1 Purpose of This Autobiography2 Bonnie Clark3 The Haldeman Family4 Vernon Howell Becomes a Branch Davidian5 Bonnie Haldeman Becomes a Branch Davidian6 David Koresh's Shootout with George Roden at Mount Carmel7 Resettling at Mount Carmel8 Bonnie and Roy Leave Mount Carmel9 Visits Back and Forth with Folks at Mount Carmel10 The ATF Raid, February 28, 199311 The Siege12 The Fire, April 19, 199313 1994 Criminal Trial14 2000 Civil Trial15 Life after the Fire16 Going Back to Mount Carmel17 Remembering the People and Lifestyle at Mount Carmel18 Remembering the Children19 Remembering DavidAppendix: Poems by David KoreshWorks CitedNotes