ROSEDALE, MD—The Community College of Baltimore County will be welcoming a very special guest later this month.

Elizabeth Smart will host “Persevering in the Face of Unimaginable Adversity” at CCBC Essex, 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, September 20, 2022.

Elizabeth Smart was kidnapped at age fourteen on June 5, 2002, by Brian David Mitchell from her home in Salt Lake City, Utah. She was held captive by Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Barzee, on the outskirts of Salt Lake City, and later, in San Diego County, California. Her captivity lasted approximately nine months before she was discovered in Sandy, Utah, approximately 18 miles from her home.

Smart was abducted from her home at knife-point by Mitchell, who claimed to be a religious preacher.  He held Smart at a camp in the woods with Barzee, where he repeatedly raped her. During her captivity, Smart accompanied her captors in public on various occasions dressed head-to-toe in white robes and went largely unrecognized by those with whom she came into contact.

The event, which will be held at the CCBC Essex Romadka College Center Theatre, is free, but tickets are required.

Tickets are available online here.