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WEST HAVEN, Utah (AP) -- A then-12-year-old girl who kept hitting her kidnapper until he let her go will receive a bravery award from a national organization.
Mickenzie Smith, now 13, will receive the National Courage Award from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at a congressional breakfast in Washington on May 10.
"I feel very honored to be receiving this award," Mickenzie said Wednesday. "It's a big thing."
She said she is excited to visit the nation's capital, but not to miss school.
On July 26, Mickenzie and her 10-year-old brother, Kaidan, were riding their bikes in West Haven when they were approached by Damon Victor Crist. He asked them to help him look for a missing dog, but they declined.
As they began to ride away, Crist grabbed Mickenzie, forcing her into his truck.
The girl told police she repeatedly punched her kidnapper until he ordered her out of the pickup.
Crist was sentenced in February to 10 years to life for kidnapping.
Mickenzie tries to help others with her experience.
"You never think it's going to happen in your area and to your friends," Mickenzie said. "When it does, it's a learning experience for everyone."
She said a child in New York was approached by a stranger only a few weeks after her abduction. "They had heard my story, and so they turned around and ran," she said.
John Smith, Mickenzie's father, said he and his wife, Laurie, encourage their daughter to share her experience.
"We try to explain to her that she has an opportunity to make something really good from a terrible experience that turned out well for her," he said.
In the past year, the family has traveled to New York City and Chicago for Mickenzie to tell her story.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
