The Preacher's Daughter

Elsa Garcia was kidnapped at 4-months-old by a family who claimed God chose her to be their “servant.” Joe and Evangeline sexually and physically abused Elsa for 19 years until the truth finally came out after Elsa attempted suicide.

Couple Kidnap Elsa

Joseph and Evangeline Combs were the parents of five kids when they claimed God told them to adopt a baby to act as their servant. In 1978, Joe and Evagaline began the adoption process but never finished the paperwork. Instead, the couple kidnapped 4-month-old Elsa Garcia from the Baptist Children’s Home. The family then relocated from Valparaiso, Indiana, to Bristol, Tennessee.

Joe, the minister of a Baptist church and Evangeline, a stay-at-home mother who homeschooled the kids and worked alongside her husband with church duties, began the abuse almost immediately after kidnapping Elsa, whom they renamed Esther Combs. Elsa never received any sort of education.

Evangeline beat Esther for the first time (that she remembers) at age 3 after she overslept. An infuriated Evangeline grabbed Elsa by the hair, dragged her to the bedroom, and strapped her in a high chair where she’d sit facing the wall for hours. She then pushed the high chair down the stairs with Elsa strapped inside.

A Life Filled With Abuse

Joe was not the loving father, husband, and God-abiding preacher he portrayed himself to be. He brutally physically and sexually assaulted Elsa nearly every day of her life. Elsa said the sexual abuse started at age 11. Joe beat her with a hose, whipping it across her back with all his power. He burned her with curling irons, pulled out chunks of her flesh using pliers, and forced her to wait on the family hand and foot.

Elsa never received an education from Evangeline. The Combs’ never taught her how to read or write, yet they did imprison her in the home. The abuse continued even when Elsa reached age 18.

Life with the Combs’ was all that Elsa knew. Visitors were not allowed to visit the family -who lived in the fellowship hall of the church-nor could the children have other friends aside from their siblings.

Church members and family did see Elsa, often black and blue and covered in bruises, however, yet none of them spoke up to help her.

Attempted Suicide

By age 19, Elsa wanted it to end. The pain and daily abuse were too much to bear. She decided to kill herself by drinking antifreeze. Instead of killing the girl, the antifreeze made her violently ill. The Combs’ called an ambulance.

During the ambulance ride, a delirious Elsa repeated the phrase, “Please don’t hurt me. I’ll make the coffee right this time.”

Little did Elsa know that attempting suicide would actually save her life.

When doctors examined Elsa, they discovered evidence of the horrific abuse she had sustained over the years. Doctors counted 410 total injuries on her body in various stages of healing.

Since the Combs never allowed Elsa to look in a full-size mirror, she also had never seen her injuries until she was admitted into the hospital. The sight of the marks, cuts, and bruises frightened Elsa.

Elsa Opens Up

It took a few weeks for Elsa to reveal the details of the torture she endured her entire life. After Joe and Evangeline sent her to Georgia to live with an aunt and uncle, Elsa began to see things from a new perspective.

As Elsa began to open up about what she had experienced, she realized for the first time she had been abused by her “parents” and that it was not her fault. Until this point, she thought it was normal for parents to sexually and physically abuse their kids if they behaved “bad.” How could she know any better?

Elsa also learned that the Combs’ had kidnapped her 19 years ago. She thought her name was Esther and didn’t know she was not the daughter of Joe and Evangeline.

Elsa was eventually reunited with her birth parents. She changed her name, learned how to drive, and even went on to earn her high school diploma. She’s now a mother and advocates for victims of sexual and physical abuse.

Combs' Charged

The Combs’ were charged with several crimes related to the kidnapping and abuse of Elsa. In 1998, Joseph was sentenced to 114-years in prison on convictions of rape, kidnapping, assault, and perjury. The court sentenced Evangeline to 65-years behind bars on convictions of child abuse and kidnapping.

Resources & More Information:

https://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/story?id=132186&page=1

https://caclapeer.org/a-survivors-story/