“At age 16, I was sexually assaulted by my cousin. Nervous and a bit reluctant, I took the huge step to report the sexual assault incident. I held on to this pain, heartache, misery, and yes embarrassment for three months before I could finally gain strength to come forward. Having the police come to my house and ask me the same questions over and over again made me almost regret this new found strength, until I was introduced to the team at Child Protect. I had passed by this building on so many different occasions, but it never once crossed my mind that I would be a part of their family. Meeting the staff and my counselor Emily was a breath of fresh air. I was very timid around new people and having to talk about what had happened to me was a hard pill to swallow, but my father assured me that one day, I would thank them. Emily and the Child Protect team were there for me every step of the way. Even after the legal aspect of everything was over, I continued counseling sessions there. Some days, I would look forward to getting out of school so that I could go to counseling, while other days I didn’t think I had enough strength to address the situations at hand. Either way, each session was successful. I felt comfortable and safe while at my counseling sessions. I don’t think I would have made it through that rough season of my life without my extended family at Child Protect and I am forever grateful.”