29-04-2025
People gather at Crystal Coast to support survivors of sexual assault
CARTERET COUNTY, N.C. (WNCT) — April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month and Monday, Apr. 28, 2025, people gathered in Morehead City to take part in a Take Back the Night walk to support survivors of sexual assault.
The walk went through Morehead City with people holding up signs to show support for survivors of sexual assault.
'This is our fourth-annual Tack Back the Night Walk. We hold those walks to bring awareness to sexual assault in our communities and it's a good way to let people know who we are and what we do,' Carteret Speak Director Vicki Wank said. 'Sexual assault does happen in every community and so, this is a great way to bring it to light and with our new name of Carter Speak, remind people that we speak up for survivors and speak out against sexual violence.'
The Carteret Speak Program provides a number of resources.
'All of our services are completely free and confidential. There's no insurance, no eligibility. Everything is free and confidential,' Wank said. 'We provide licensed clinical therapy sessions for survivors of sexual assault. We have victim advocates who will assist victims at the hospital through court proceedings, interviews with law enforcement and we also have support groups for survivors of sexual assault. Our support groups meet on the first and third Monday evenings of each month from 6 p.m. to 7:30.'
Wank said anyone can become a victim of sexual assault and it can happen in many ways.
'But it knows no socioeconomic class, race, sex, religion, it's everybody who experiences some form of sexual assault in their families, in their communities,' she said. 'And we want people to know it's okay to reach out to us. If anybody needs our services, they can reach us at (252)-504-3668.'
Carteret SPEAK also has advocacy and volunteer opportunities available.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
