Kristin's Story- A Guest Lecture Hosted by Alpha Chi Omega

            Walking into Kristin’s Story last night, I honestly did not know what to expect. I had no idea the impact that it was going to have on my life. I was truly blown away by the courage and strength Andrea (Kristin’s mother) showed while giving her presentation.

           

            For starters, I was impressed by the amount of people that actually attended this event. I did not think that many girls (and guys!) would attend. I was amazed at how attentive and focused people were during the presentation. Secondly, I had no idea Mrs. Cooper would be that calm. Granted, she has been telling the story for the last 17 years, so I am not surprised. She recalled the horrific scene with such grace and elegance and I admired her so much for being so strong.

            For those of you that do not know what Kristin’s Story is, let me sum up. Kristin Cooper was an Alpha Chi Omega at Baker University back in the mid-90’s. Just before she went back to school for her sophomore year, she was raped by a friend. She did not tell her mother Andrea, a Tri Delta, or her father. She entered a dark depression and on New Year’s Eve 1995, her parents found her dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Hearing this made me think just how precious life truly is.

            Let me share with you some statistics that Andrea shared with us last night. Approximately 1 in 4 college women are raped. Let me say that again. 1 in 4 college women will be raped. In addition to that, every two minutes around the world, someone is raped. 90% of the women raped know their rapist and 78% of the men identified as rapists are an acquaintance, friend, or boyfriend. This doesn’t just happen to women, it happens to men too. About 1 in 33 men will experience rape in their lifetime (all statistics are from rainn.org)

            I realize that some of these statistics may shock you and some may not come as a surprise at all. I strongly encourage anyone who has been raped or is just depressed and feeling like there is no way out to GET HELP. There are countless numbers for crisis hotlines and websites you can go to in order to get the help that you need. You are not alone.

                                            Written by Emily Lucht, Alpha Chi Omega