'I'm Grateful to Have Had the Opportunity to Fulfill My Civic Duty,' Says Christine Blasey Ford

The organizers behind the online fundraiser for Dr. Christine Blasey Ford have posted an update from Ford herself, the first such update since she testified at Supreme Court justice Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination hearings nearly two months ago.

Ford—who, The Cut notes, has kept a pretty low profile since testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee that then-nominee Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her at a house party when they were both in high school—begins the GoFundMe update by thanking those who have supported her.

“Words are not adequate to thank all of you who supported me since I came forward to tell the Senate that I had been sexually assaulted by Brett Kavanaugh. Your tremendous outpouring of support and kind letters have made it possible for us to cope with the immeasurable stress, particularly the disruption to our safety and privacy. Because of your support, I feel hopeful that our lives will return to normal,” she writes.

Ford says that the donations she’s received by way of the GoFundMe have been “a godsend,” helping her family afford all of the necessary “security expenditures” needed to protect them. (Ford has had to hire a security detail and move at least four times on account of death threats, and she hadn’t been able to return to work as recent as early November.) She also says that, after raising nearly $650,000, she has decided to close the fundraiser, donating all excess funds to “organizations that support trauma survivors.”

“Although coming forward was terrifying, and caused disruption to our lives, I am grateful to have had the opportunity to fulfill my civic duty. Having done so, I am in awe of the many women and men who have written me to share similar life experiences, and now have bravely shared their experience with friends and family, many for the first time. I send you my heartfelt love and support,” writes Ford. “I wish I could thank each and every one of you individually. Thank you.”