The man who founded Hope for Wholeness, one of the most prominent conversion therapy groups in the United States, has come out as gay.

McKrae Game, the founder of the South Carolina-based conversion therapy ministry Hope for Wholeness, came out as gay this summer, nearly two years after being fired from the organization he founded.

Game said in an interview with The Post and Courier published Friday that his organization, founded nearly 20 years ago, "harmed generations of people." He was ousted by the organization's board of directors in November 2017.

He recounted his experiences as a conversion therapy minister in a Facebook post published Aug. 25. "Please forgive me!" the post began.

"I certainly regret where I caused harm. I know that creating the organization that still lives was in a large way causing harm," he continued. "People reported to attempt suicide because of me and these teachings and ideals. I told people they were going to Hell if they didn’t stop, and these were professing Christians!"

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The organization operates across at least fifteen states. Hope for Wholeness did not respond to multiple requests for comment from USA TODAY.

“Conversion therapy is not just a lie, but it’s very harmful,” Game told The Post and Courier.

Game, now 51, is one of several former conversion therapy advocates who have come out as LGBTQ and condemned the practice of conversion therapy.

More than a dozen states have banned gay conversion therapy, which seeks to change a person's sexual orientation or gender identity. The practice has been repeatedly condemned by the American Psychological Association.

Maine is the latest state to prohibit the practice, becoming the seventeenth state to do so in May.

Contributing: The Associated Press. Follow Joshua Bote on Twitter: @joshua_bote