A Survivor’s Voice: George Severson on the Power of Prevention Education 

George Severson is the lifestyle director for ABC4/CW30 and a familiar face to many Utahns. He is also a survivor of childhood sexual abuse and is choosing to share his story so that children today have something he never did: the tools to recognize, resist, and report abuse.

“Yes, I am a survivor.” George’s words are simple and direct, and they carry the full weight of a journey that began far too early. Abuse started when he was around seven or eight years old and continued for roughly three years. 

Why Education Is Prevention

George’s story is a powerful illustration of what is at stake when prevention education is absent. Children should not have to rely solely on gut instinct to protect themselves. They deserve to grow up with clear, age-appropriate information about body safety, boundaries, and who they can turn to when something feels wrong.

Prevent Child Abuse Utah works in schools and communities across Utah to make sure children have access to exactly that. No child should have to look back on their childhood and wonder what might have been different if only they had known.

A Loving Family, and Still a Secret

George acknowledges how impactful the support he had at home. His parents were loving, attentive, and did what they could to protect him in the aftermath of what he experienced. And yet, even in a household full of care, the abuse was kept secret.

“We kept it a secret. The prevention education just was not there.”

This is a reality that many families face, even today. Love and good intentions are not always enough on their own. Without shared language, education, and community awareness, children and families are left to process trauma in silence. Keeping abuse a secret, even with the best intentions, can prevent children from getting the support they need and allow harm to continue.

The Vocabulary That Changes Everything

What George wishes he had was simple: words. Specifically, the words at the heart of Prevent Child Abuse Utah’s prevention messaging: “Listen to the Uh-Oh Feeling, Say No, Go Tell,” and for older children, “Recognize, Resist, and Report.”

“I wish that our messaging at PCAU, ‘Recognize, Resist, and Report’, had been part of my vocabulary.”

When children understand what abuse is, know that it is never their fault, and have the language to name what is happening to them, everything changes. They are more likely to tell a trusted adult. They are more likely to get help sooner. Additionally, the adults around them are better equipped to respond.

George did not have that awareness as a child. Prevention education, as he describes it, simply did not exist in the way it does today. That is exactly why the work of Prevent Child Abuse Utah matters so much.

How You Can Help
George’s courage in sharing his story is an invitation for all of us to take action.

• Learn more about PCAU’s prevention education programs and bring them to your school or community at https://pcautah.org/curriculum.
• Take Boundary Town, a one hour, online training for parents and adults. Learn about emotional, physical and sexual abuse, child neglect, human trafficking, and how to protect the children in your life from experiencing childhood trauma.
• If you suspect a child is being abused, do not wait. Call Utah’s Child Abuse Reporting Hotline: 1-855-323-3237.
• Donate to Prevent Child Abuse Utah to help prevention efforts in your community.