In high school, I remember sitting at my kitchen table with two of my best friends reading this statistic: 1 in 3 women will experience sexual or physical violence by an intimate partner.

That meant one of us, statistically, would become that number.

Six years later, I have more than one friend who is a survivor of sexual assault. And whether you know it or not, there is likely someone in your life who is a survivor of sexual assault, too.

In spring of 2023, I am leaving Wisconsin to walk 2,650 miles alone on the Pacific Crest Trail. I am hiking to raise money to support survivors of sexual assault.

My fundraising goal is $2,650, or $1 per mile, which will be donated to the Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Assault. 100 percent of the money raised will be given to this nonprofit organization.

There is no doubt that hiking as a solo female or non-binary hiker is more dangerous than hiking in a group or hiking as a solo male hiker. I want to prove to female and non-binary hikers that while we acknowledge the risks we face by simply existing, we can’t be stopped from achieving our dreams.

Please help me in supporting survivors across the state of Wisconsin by donating to the Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Assault.

You can follow along on my journey, which officially begins April 14th, on Instagram @_emilie_explores, on Facebook at Emilie Explores, or on YouTube.

For more information on WCASA visit https://www.wcasa.org/

If you or someone you know is a survivor of sexual assault and in need of support, you can contact the confidential National Sexual Assault Hotline, available 24/7, at 1-800-656-4673.

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*Taken from the WCASA website: “In 2017, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released the 2010-12 State Report from the National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS). The report provides insight into the prevalence and characteristics of sexual violence, stalking, and intimate partner violence across the county, and in Wisconsin. The survey shows that more than 1 in 3 women and more than 1 in 4 men have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime.”