ROCHESTER (NY)
WHEC TV
Sept. 13, 2019
By Andrew Hyman
Carol DuPre says she was molested by a priest while serving at St Gregory’s Catholic Church in Marion when she was just 14 or 15 years old.
“You know it happened, and it lives in the back of your mind,” DuPre said.
She says speaking these words are freeing, but at one time, were words only her mother believed. According to DuPre, her parents were going through a divorce, which she says, was uncommon in the 1960s. She says the situation left her vulnerable and a priest took advantage of that.
“It just shatters your image of a good, and loving God,” DuPre said.
Abuse survivors hope to have voice heard following diocese’s bankruptcy filing
So when she saw that New York State passed the Child Victim’s Act, she says, it gave her and other survivors the power to speak up.
But now, with the Catholic Diocese of Rochester’s decision to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, fellow child sex abuse survivor Pete Saracino says, a survivor’s voice could be robbed.
“That was a profound betrayal of children, catholic families, and their very mission to be the face of God on earth,” Saracino said.
Saracino says he was sexually abused by a priest in the Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary in Geneva, New York. The location is now a resort called Geneva on the Lake.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.