Sexual Assault Survivor Dedicated To Comforting Other Victims
Feb 19, 2021, 6:53 PM | Updated: 9:14 pm
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – After one Utah woman recovered from a sexual assault, she committed to turning her trauma into comfort for other victims.
Sex crimes are a problem in Utah where one in three women say they were sexually assaulted, and one in six say they were raped.
Jennifer Pagnanelli was raped 14 years ago. These days she reaches out to other survivors by giving away her comfort kits.
“It’s just like a Christmas time kind of thing,” Pagnanelli said while she packed a gift bag. “You have to do a lot of shopping.”
A table is full of the items that Jennifer Pagnanelli includes in bags for sexual assault victims. (KSL TV)
Her kits are full of bath salts, journals and treats.
“I’m trying to buy stuff that people will actually use, and considering what I would want in that situation,” she said.
She does not know who these goody bags go to, but she knows what it’s like to be in their shoes.
“It was probably one of the most terrifying experiences. I mean I just froze. My body just froze, I couldn’t move.”
Pagnanelli was sexually assaulted by a man who posed as a licensed massage therapist.
“It pulls the rug out from underneath you basically,” she said. “You feel like what’s going to happen?”
Pagnanelli then found herself reliving her trauma when police used a rape kit to gather evidence of the attack.
“The rape kit part of it was probably the most traumatizing after the rape itself,” she said. “The process with rape kits is very sterile, it’s almost retraumatizing to you because they have to collect the evidence and they take your clothes.”
Pagnanelli didn’t give up. “It’s not going to go away totally, but at least I’m not keeping it like a piece of a ball of shame inside of me. It’s outside of me now,” she said.
She discovered her own strength and is using it to help others, one gift at a time. They are part of what she called “Project Comfort.”
Aside from the goodies, the kits include a fresh set of clothes for the survivors to take home after going through the rape kit ordeal.
“There’s people out there that do understand, that do care and want to help you,” Pagnanelli said. “You don’t have to do it alone, you are never alone. That’s the main thing that I want those silent victims to know.”
Pagnanelli is accepting supplies and donations through a GoFundMe* page. She plans on donating them to the Rape Recovery Center in Salt Lake City.
Leftover monetary donations will be given to the center to provide services to survivors including counseling, hospital response team advocacy and crisis line advocacy services.
