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	Victims Creating Safe House for Sexually Assaulted By Jason Hibbs WPSD February 4, 2011 http://www.wpsdlocal6.com/news/local/Sexual-assault-victims-creating-safe-house-114618969.html [with video] A group of local sexual assault victims want to change things when it comes to sexual assault. They're speaking out about what happened to them when they were younger and they're looking to create a safe place for area children. A church group in Marshall County is behind the project. They're calling it "Safe House." It's still in the planning stages but organizers said they have faith it will work and will provide victims of sexual assault, children and adults alike, a safe and secret place to go. Victims will enroll in a 12-month program, where they'd learn to overcome the past, re-enter society and hopefully never be victimized again. "When I was a child, I guess I worked so hard to hide it. I was told if I ever told anyone it would break up our family," pastor's wife Tiffany Gaboriault said. The loving mother knows the pain associated with sexual abuse. "It first started when I was 6 and that was really tough," Gaboriault said. Multiple family members took advantage of her when she was helpless. "I never told anyone, no one. It happened to me at a young age, till I was a teenager." And if that wasn't bad enough, years later, as an adult, just when she thought the terror was over, the unthinkable happened. This time, one of her daughters was victimized. "I never thought it would happen with my kids and my family again but it did." But in the midst of their own family tragedy, this family, along with others in the Sanctuary Church of God, are stepping out on faith. April Montgomery has become the spokesperson for the safe house project. She said she felt led by God because she too was sexually assaulted. "I was a young child. I was 8. There was nowhere to go. You just move on with it," Montgomery said. She wants to provide victims a place to go, a sanctuary if you will, a place for healing. "That is the main thing we want is to help other women, to show them there is a life after this, that they can overcome it." Gaboriault, who is still working on overcoming her past, said she's blessed to take part in a divine opportunity, helping others heal. The pastor and his wife said they'd like to have six homes in secret locations throughout Marshall County where victims could temporarily live. The church still faces lots of obstacles, like how to fund the project, but they said one home was already handed over for the cause. To find out more about Sanctuary Church Of God's "Safe House" Project, or to donate to the cause, click here. Pastor Albert Gaboriault can be reached at (270) 703-7986. The project coordinator, April Montgomery, can be reached at (270) 703-8066.
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