PARK CITY, Utah, Nov. 19, 2018 (Gephardt Daily) — Elizabeth Smart has announced the birth of her third child, a little girl named Olivia, who made her Instagram debut wearing a tiny red University of Utah beanie.
“So happy to welcome Olivia to our family!” Smart posted on Monday, adding five hearts to the caption. The post has received more than 30,000 likes and 1,400 comments.
Smart, who turned 31 years old earlier this month, lives in Park City with her husband Matthew Gilmour and their children — a boy, James, and two girls, Chloé and now Olivia.
She announced on Instagram in June that she was expecting her third child this month.
Smart works as a victim’s advocate, and speaks widely on the topic. Earlier this year, she was nominated for a Daytime Emmy for her work as a special correspondent on “Crime Watch Daily.” She also runs a foundation dedicated to helping kidnap victims and their recovery.
In June, she posted on Instagram:
“There is nothing so important in recovery as support. It’s finding the people who love you, care about you, and want the very best for you no matter what. Each of us will meet so many people in life, many of them will be kind, lovely people but at the end of the day you want to surround yourself with the ones who will stick by you. And you know you can lean on them, and they on you in return because we all experience pain in this life and we all deserve to be loved. For me these are the people that I care about most. I am one of the lucky ones to have a kind and loving biological family. However not every family is made up of people who have similar DNA. Families can include friends, teachers, counselors, therapists, coworkers, basically anyone who you love, trust, and they have your back.”
Smart and her husband met while each served a France-Paris mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
In June, she posted on Instagram about her husband:
“When I finally met Matthew (my husband) we were friends first, we were both serving Mormon missions in France, so for two years our relationship was platonic. He invited me to visit him in Scotland when he had completed his time in France and returned to his family in Scotland.
“When I walked off the plane in Aberdeen, Scotland and he was waiting for me I knew I had come home (not the country), I knew he was immediately my best friend, and everything I could ever want in a spouse. With him nothing was ever scary or uncomfortable, I never have felt pressured or dealt with flashbacks while being with him. I can’t say what will work for anyone else but for me it was allowing for time after I was rescued, making friends, growing up, figuring out who I was and what I wanted, and ultimately finding the right person.”
In 2002, Brian David Mitchell, and Mitchell’s then wife, Wanda Barzee snatched the then 14-year-old Smart out of her bed. The couple held the teen captive for nine months.
Mitchell, now 64, was convicted in 2010 of aggravated kidnapping and illegally transporting a minor across state lines for sexual purposes. He is serving a life sentence in a federal prison in Arizona.
Barzee, now 72, was released from Utah State Prison in September. Barzee will now commence five years of supervised release under her federal sentence.
Congratulations Elizabeth’s and Matthew! Your family is beautiful and give us all hope. Terrible things can happen in life, but you are living proof that God is with us and if we just have faith and let Gods love lead us, there is also unending joy. Carry on!!!