how lindsey got here

Attorney, Army Veteran, and Accidental Activist

As the middle of five kids from outside of Chicago, Lindsey had a bit of a rough time growing up.

She was sexually assaulted at various points in her life, starting from age 5 until her late thirties where some middle school teacher thought it would be fun to grab her rear end on a Sunday morning at the grocery store.

Growing up, Lindsey's oldest sister (Cortney) was a drug dealer and sold her yougest sister (Megan) to pay a debt. As a result, Megan was kidnapped, tortured, and raped. After that, Megan was brutally beaten by her boyfriend who put her on life support. The police underscored Megan's injuries and it took years to get justice. In the meantime, her abuser would break into their home and stalk her nearly everyday.

Lindsey's advocacy for others started early in life. As a teenager she found herself trying to find Megan resources and get law enforcement to take their claims seriously.

Over time, Lindsey was struggling to find a way out, so she decided to join the military. Her goal was to leave a path for her younger brother and sister so they could also get out alive.

But as time wore on, things got worse and more complicated.

Lindsey's next older sister (Natalie) killed herself, their Dad died, their brother (Jimmy) died, and finally, the oldest sister (Cortney) died.

This left Lindsey and Megan (the baby sister).

delta force covering up rape

When Lindsey got out of the military, she began working for Special Operations Command as a Victim Advocate in their Sexual Assault & Response Program. While there, she discovered that Delta Force was covering up rape. When she whistleblew, she was fired.

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death threats from extremists

After Lindsey's kiddo came out as Trans during the pandemic, she started an LGBTQ Kids Hangout at the yoga studio she owned to create a space for him to meet more people. From there, adults in the community reached out and asked if Lindsey could expand and provide resources for whole family. Thus, Sanford's LGBTQ+ Resource Center was born. Overtime, Lindsey began hosting Drag Brunches to raise funding for the Center. After that, Lindsey began getting death threats and protested by extremists.

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empowering others

Processing her own PTSD

Unpacking the decades of trauma, Lindsey experiences took her to the brink. She tried everything to put the pieces back together again. Traditional talk therapy was helping, but she still felt stuck.

Then she learned the missing link. As we process trauma in the mind, we have to process it through the body. As renowned author Dr. Bessel van der Kolk said, "The Body Keeps the Score."

Helping others do the same

Once she discovered how to unwind the hundreds of traumatic events that she experiened, she wanted nothing more than to show others how to do the same.

Creating Partnerships to Build Momentum

In Lindsey's view, the reason why women's rights (and other important issues) are lagging is because there are not enough healed people in the fight. If you've been held back, kicked, beaten, and gas lit, its hard to advocate for yourself, let alone anyone else.

Lindsey has made it her mission to build partnerships and inspire hope and healing to those who may feel overlooked and forgotten.