KOKOMO, Ind. — Tickets are available at Indiana University Kokomo for speaker Elizabeth Smart, who survived being kidnapped and sexually assaulted for nine months. The event will take place on Tuesday, April 10, at 4 p.m. in Havens Auditorium.
Smart advocates on behalf of survivors of kidnapping, as well as children who have been the victims of sexual abuse and violence. Her talk will precede the Angel Walk, a fundraiser for the Family Services Association of Howard County, scheduled for April 17.
Tickets are free and can be obtained at the Office of Student Life and Campus Diversity, Kelley Student Center, Room 210, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Smart was just 14 years old when she was kidnapped at knifepoint from her Salt Lake City home in 2002. She was held captive for nine months and forced to act as Brian David Mitchell's second wife. He raped her nearly every day and told her that the ordeal was ordained by God. Fortunately, the police safely returned Smart back to her family on March 12, 2003.
Through this traumatic experience, she has become an advocate for change related to child abduction, recovery programs, and national legislation. Smart triumphantly testified before her captor and the world about the very private nightmare she suffered during her abduction, which led to conviction.
Smart’s talk will be live-streamed to Kresge Auditorium for any overflow.
Indiana University Kokomo serves north central Indiana.