Stronger Than The Silence

Kalyx Cantu is a junior in high school, Miss Northeast Texas Outstanding Teen – and a sexual assault survivor.

Beginning when she was only seven years old, she was continuously abused by a distant relative whom many trusted. Thankfully, he is now spending the rest of his life in prison – largely thanks to the efforts of Detective Tabitha Smith and Bowie County First Assistant District Attorney Kelly Crisp. Kalyx recently started “Stronger than the Silence”, an organization that works to spread awareness about sexual assault by speaking to kids in an age appropriate way on speaking out, prevention, and consent for all ages.

Kalyx and her mom stopped by the police department today to honor Tabitha, Kelly, and Carly Rhyne, the therapist who worked with her at the Texarkana Children’s Advocacy Center. She credits these three women with her ability to heal and go on to help others.