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In honor of V-Day, we have a candid story from MSU student, Shiva Thompson. Click here to learn more about Shiva's story and help her reach her Opperation Freefall goals.

Philanthropy comes naturally to most people. In some way, shape or form, we all want to give a helping hand to those afflicted by illness, pain, or suffering. Some people run a marathon, some people give away their spare change. I decided to jump out of a plane for a fundraiser called Operation Freefall: the two-mile high stand against sexual assault!

This fundraiser is certainly unique, in the fact that all participants will skydive on April 24^th 2010. I’ve had many friends and family ask me why I’ve decided to take such drastic measures and participate in this kind of fundraiser. My answer is painful, but sharing it not only helps me in my healing process, but also those who are afraid to speak.

At the fragile age of 8, a man three times by age sexually molested me. While my parents went to work, I stayed with my grandmother. She had hired this man to do some maintenance work around the house. My grandmother was chatting away on the phone while I sat by her, listening intently to all the gossip being exchanged.

 “Pssst” I hear the man say, “pssst”. I look down the narrow hallway leading to the kitchen and see the man eating his lunch, gesturing ‘come here’. Just like any other obedient child I left the safety of my grandmother’s side and went to see what the man urgently needed to tell me. He explained that he was very poor and needed extra money, convincing me to steal from my grandmother’s jewelry box. Being naïve, among other things, I was absolutely clueless about where my grandmother’s jewelry box was.  I attempted to take my grandmother’s gold rings right off of her fingers while she continued to talk on the phone.

“Could you hold on a moment?” she fussed as she tried to pry away my hands away from her rings. She thought I was trying to play a game and get her attention. I finally gave up and went back to the man explaining that I had failed in my mission to bring him any jewelry. That’s when everything took a different turn. He had finished his lunch at this point and asked me to help him with the dishes. As a child, I always had a need to feel like a ‘big kid’ so I loved to complete chores assigned to me by my elders. This situation was no different for me, but little did I know, this man had other intentions. Once we entered the kitchen, the man had created the perfect opportunity to prey on an innocent little 8-year-old girl. He cornered me, undoing his pants in the process and forced me to touch him. I was confused and knew that it was wrong. He became aroused and began touching me in ways I knew were inappropriate. I tried to scream, only to be muffled by his palm over my mouth.

Your psyche has an interesting way of protecting you. I cannot recall the span of time that passed as this man molested me before I escaped his grip. As mortifying as this despicable crime was, I survived. The sequence of events I recall after the incident are hazy, but to some extent justice was served. I told my mother what had happened. She immediately scrubbed me down in the shower, weeping; trying to get the filth and shame of this man off of my little body. Shortly after, I heard about how the man was arrested and shoved into the trunk of a police car, because he was not considered human enough to have the privilege to sit in the car itself. 

They say time heals all wounds, and I am a firm believer in this, but only if you, as a victim, are proactive about your healing process. Years may pass and you may not utter so much as two words about an abusive episode that has become part of your life’s story. As unfortunate as it is, my story is all too common, not in its details, but rather in the fact that many children are sexually molested every day. This is exactly why Operation Freefall’s mission to help and support victims of sexual assault really resonated with me.

As a proactive healer I have made a commitment to raise $1000 by March 15^th 2010, because I want victims and their loved ones, to know that they are not alone. Speaking allows you to release all of that accumulated anger, hate, pain and shame that result from such heinous crimes. As a survivor I urge victims of sexual assault to stand up, speak up, and hold your head high, because you too, are a survivor!

• If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, call the Sexual Assault Crisis Hotline: (517) 372-6666 (24 Hours) or visit www.endrape.msu.edu
• If you would like to get involved, the Sexual Assault & Relationship Violence Prevention Program is always looking for interested candidates to become Peer Educators. Find more info here.