Kriti Mehrotra
While there’s no denying the publically infamous tale of polygamous Mormon cult leader Ervil Morrell LeBaron is as baffling as it is haunting, the truth is we didn’t know half of it until recently. In fact, it’s only when some of his surviving children decided to come forward with their verity that the whole picture came into the limelight, eventually also leading to Hulu’s ‘Daughters of the Cult.’ Amongst them is actually Celia Kristina LeBaron — Ervil’s daughter, Anna LeBaron’s sister, faith-driven family woman, as well as one of the many ex-devouts to now speak out against the family cult.
Who is Celia LeBaron?
Since Celia was born on May 13, 1966, in Chihuahua, Mexico, to Anna Mae Marston and Ervil LeBaron as one of the latter’s over 50 kids from 14 wives, she unfortunately didn’t have the greatest upbringing. That’s because she was not just brainwashed into believing her father was God’s true Prophet from the second she came into this world but also conditioned to have no stability during her formative years. She didn’t know it at the time, but the reason she spent years traversing across the US and Mexico alongside a small part of her family without stopping at any place for too long was because members of her church were wanted by the FBI for murder.
In other words, Celia was on the run from the law without knowing so throughout her childhood, all the while also often having to endure brutal federal raids plus firearms/defense training for survival. “All my siblings were raised from birth with this very, very closed-minded way of thinking,” she said in the original. “We were indoctrinated from birth… ‘Our father is God’s mouthpiece here on Earth.'” However, she only insists on this narrative now — back then, she was a devout believer, and even losing her closest younger sister Anna to deviation following their father’s death in 1981 didn’t shake her.
Celia ostensibly truly accepted that the mantle of Prophet was passed on to her father’s right-hand man, Daniel “Dan” Jordan, despite his known cruelty towards the LeBaron kids, so she obeyed him. In fact, this 17-year-old senior went as far as to drop out of school at his behest to carry out missions even though she desired to complete her education, just for everything to soon turn upside down. She’d once sarcastically replied and rolled her eyes at a comment Dan had made during a meeting in front of others, leading her to be whipped a total of 29 times by her own mother plus one of Dan’s wives that night.
Celia was then told Dan had visions clarifying she wouldn’t be allowed to return to school the following year as promised and nor would she ever be able to achieve their topmost celestial level in heaven. This honestly shattered her heart into millions of pieces, so once someone suggested it would be best for her to leave their base in Denver, Colorado, while she still could, she quietly packed her bags. All she left behind were a handful of goodbye letters as well as gifts for 3 of her siblings before traveling to her deviated half-sister Lillian and her husband Mark Chynoweth loving home in Houston, Texas, to start anew, reconnect with Anna, plus graduate school in 1987.
Celia LeBaron is a Banker Now
Considering the fact Celia had not only grown up alongside the Chynoweths, but they’d also opened up their door for her after giving her an escape plane ticket made them a crucial part of her life. Thus, of course, she was devastated following Mark’s assassination and Lillian’s suicide owing to their cult past in 1988, yet she soon realized she had to move forward if she genuinely wished to honor their legacy. She hence enrolled in college, found herself a decent man, had her first kiss, happily tied the knot, and settled down, just to recently begin reclaiming her history, her last name, plus her actuality.
As for Celia’s current standing, from what we can tell, this 55-year-old is based in Dallas, Texas, at the moment, where she’s honestly proud to serve as a mother as well as a licensed banker. We purposefully didn’t mention “husband” since it appears as if she’s now single, yet it doesn’t seem to bother her one bit because her focus these days is solely on her three grown kids, great books, and even better stories. If you want, you can actually check out her public social media platforms for books, food, as well as local cafe recommendations.
Read More: Where is Rena Chynoweth Now?
