Dugard makes first public appearance since 2009 homecoming
By Emily Christianson, Los Angeles Times
Jaycee Dugard stepped out publicly on Friday for the first time since her rescue in 2009. The kidnapping survivor was in good company at the United Nations in New York for Diane von Furstenberg’s DVF Awards ceremony, where she met fellow honorees like Oprah Winfrey.
Dugard received the Inspiration Award for her JAYC Foundation, which aims to help families “recovering from abduction and the aftermath of other traumatic experiences.”
People reports that, taking the microphone, Dugard told the crowd: “My name is Jaycee Dugard and I want to say that, because for a long time I wasn’t able to say my name and so it feels good. I am truly honored to be here tonight with these amazing women who have done and been through so much more than me.”
Despite her horrific experience, she said it was her mother’s hope that helped her go on. “And I did live. I have two beautiful daughters who I love with all my heart,” she said.
Dugard, 31, made headlines first when she was abducted at age 11 as she walked to bus stop from her South Lake Tahoe-area home, and again 18 years later when she was rescued with her daughters from her kidnappers, Phillip and Nancy Garrido.
