Quest for Freedom is a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating awareness and support for people who are bound through forms of abuse, sexual assault, addiction, mental illness, and homelessness into freedom by discovering their greatest treasure: themselves.

My name is Colene and I am a victim. I was born to a victim, grew up as a victim, and spent way too much of my adult life living as a victim. I also am an overcomer, single mom of five amazing humans, listed #8 on YAHOO'S Top 20 People to Follow in 2020, a writer, actress, property manager, mentor, and public speaker.

I have experienced many different types of abuse, beginning with religious abuse when I was born into a cult. Growing up I was sexually molested to the point where I drank water out of a toilet at night so there would be no noise. The sexual victimization continued into high school where I was gang raped and later into my adult relationships, including rapes from my ex multiple times following a complicated surgery.

The religion I grew up in didn’t value females. My stepdad took this devaluation to criminal levels. Physically, he slapped me repeatedly in the face and kicked me in my tailbone. Emotionally, he was demeaning and cruel telling me, “You’re so ugly the only way we can marry you off is to put a bag over your head and sing who’s that doggie in the window” as he barked at me like a dog.

My ex picked up where my stepdad left off. During our relationship he threw things at me, pointed a loaded handgun at my head, and said, “Why don’t you do the world a favor, put this in your mouth, and pull the trigger.” When I thought about leaving, he threatened to kill my family and smear my face with their blood.

I stayed with him as long as I could, trying to protect my family, and then finally, on July 12, 2006, I called 911 after six hours of fighting, six hours of him throwing a blender at my head, pinning me in the corner with knives, and threatening to slit my throat. I stayed on the phone with the 911 operator until the police finally arrived. The officer who responded patted my hand when I told him what had happened and said, “I believe you.”

I support Marsy's Law because I know what it feels like to be a victim of crime and to not have a voice. I am speaking out for National Crime Victims’ Rights Week because all of us need to be a voice for the voiceless and the defenders of the defenseless.

This year is the 40th Anniversary of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week. Rights for crime victims have certainly been strengthened and imported over time, but for tens of thousands of Idahoans, work remains to be done. You can help by supporting Marsy’s Law for Idaho and victim service providers in your community.

Together we can free every scared little girl trapped inside a victimized adult. It’s not the abuse that kills, it’s the silence. #marsyslaw#freeus

Colene Brewer

Abuse Survivor

Written for National Crime Victims' Rights Week