APPLETON (NBC 26) — A new non-profit, Sexual Assault Survivors Monument Corp., is raising funds to build a monument in Appleton that will shed light on the issue of sexual assault.
"Doing this for 11 years, and the stories that I've heard, I really just wanted to do more," said Chelsea Bongert, president of SASM. "I thought I could speak for the next 40 years, which I will, but what more can I do? What kind of place can I create for these survivors to go and say, 'I’m not alone, I matter'?"
They have until December to raise $65,000 for the cost of the project. If the campaign is successful, the Sexual Assault Survivors Monument will be located in Ellen Kort Peace Park, 337 W. Water St., Appleton.
"Knowing that I’ll have students and former students who can come and say, 'Wow! Thank you, Mrs. Bongert, now I know I really a matter here, too' will be life changing," Bongert said. "God has really blessed me in all of this already, so I’m feeling very blessed with all of this as we move forward and just very prayerful and hopefully that we’ll make our goal, and this here will be a reality in about a year in a half or so."
People interesting in donating to the project can visit the SASM Facebook page.
