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	Clergy Abuse Survivors to Speak at Child Maltreatment Conference By Megan Baldino KTUU November 16, 2010 http://articles.ktuu.com/2010-11-16/abuse-survivors_24835692 ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Across Alaska hundreds of men and woman, victims of clergy sex abuse, continue to deal with the lingering effects of their abuse. This week as health professionals gather at the Child Maltreatment Conference, one lecture will focus on this topic. She was just a child before the abuse started, since then Elsie Boudreau has become a leading advocate for fellow clergy sex abuse survivors in Alaska. "I think what we've done for so long is held it in and it stifled us and what we are doing now is moving it," said Boudreau. Boudreau will address professionals at the conference that will be held at the Anchorage Hilton, and there's something she wants them to know. "So it would be important for people to understand when they meet with individuals that have history with sexual abuse, that it may not be just that one specific trauma, that they are carrying other traumas with them," said Boudreau. Now that many victims have taken the first step of filing lawsuits acknowledging their abuse, Boudreau is urging survivors, their families and communities to continue to heal. But she encourages them to do so in a way that honors their lives and culture. "And that would be important for professionals to understand our history as Native people," said Boudreau. Attorney and fellow advocate Patrick Wall will join her to address the conference. "It has to be a specific Alaska method. It has to be an Alaska solution," said Wall. Wall, also a former priest, says the western model of one-on-one talk therapy isn't working. "It doesn't use the language. It doesn't use the culture. It doesn't use the experience of people here in Alaska to heal," Wall said. Both Boudreau and Wall agree that with most of the lawsuits nearing an end, the next part of the journey begins. Wednesday afternoon, Boudreau and Wall will present their talk at the Hilton Hotel downtown from noon until 1:45 p.m.
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