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Hargitay is the founder and former president of the Joyful Heart Foundation, an organization established in 2004 to provide support to survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse, elder abuse and human trafficking. According to Hargitay, she was inspired by an encounter with a pod of dolphins that surrounded her while she was swimming off the coast of Hawaii at the age of 15. The encounter, which had ignited profound spiritual feelings within her, was one that Hargitay hoped to share with others.

In November 2009, Hargitay and the Joyful Heart Foundation built healing and wellness kits for women who suffered domestic violence and were living in the Los Angeles County's domestic violence shelters. They created enough kits to give one to each of about 600 women. In California, the domestic violence services budget was in a major crisis, and shelters were forced to turn women away. Hargitay and her foundation donated money to the cause. Hargitay has worked with Michigan Police and Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy to raise awareness about the statistics of untested rape kits. Hargitay appeared in the 17th season of NBC's The More You Know public service announcements in 2006, and again in the spring of 2009. She is an honorary board member director of the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation.

As of November 2010, the Joyful Heart Foundation had sent over 5,000 women and children on therapeutic programs in New York, Los Angeles, and Hawaii, which combine yoga, meditation, massage, journaling, and swimming with dolphins. According to Hargitay, the Foundation had raised $20 million as of April 2011. Reference to the Joyful Heart Foundation was worked into episodes of Special Victims Unit, via a necklace containing two pendants representing the Foundation that Hargitay's character began wearing in the show's 13th season. The Foundation works with several brands to create products supporting the cause, including Me&Ro, Michael Stars, and AZIAM's Wife Lover Tanks.

Continued activism

=================

On September 27, 2011, Hargitay donated $100,000 to her alma mater, the UCLA School of Theater Film and Television for scholarship. In 2012, Hargitay campaigned for the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). In 2025, Hargitay was included on the inaugural TIME100 Philanthropy list for her work.

Rape counseling

=================

Hargitay is a certified rape counselor, as reported in 2004. As a rape survivor, she has called for an end to the stigma surrounding sexual assault. In a 2024 essay for People, she wrote, "Tell someone you've survived cancer, and you're celebrated. I want the same response for sexual assault survivors. I want no shame with the victim."

Personal life

=================

On August 28, 2004, in Santa Barbara, California, Hargitay married Peter Hermann, an actor she met on the set of Law & Order: SVU. Hermann plays the recurring role of defense attorney Trevor Langan on Law & Order: SVU. On June 28, 2006, Hargitay gave birth to their son by an emergency caesarean section. In April 2011, she and her husband adopted a baby girl. In October 2011, she and her husband adopted a son.

Hargitay speaks five languages: English, French, Hungarian, Spanish, and Italian. She is the godmother to Sophia, one of co-star Christopher Meloni's children. Actress Hilary Swank is her daughter's godmother. In a 2010 interview with Good Housekeeping, Hargitay stated that she considers herself a Christian.

Television

=================

Film

=================

Video games

=================

Music videos

=================

Awards and nominations

=================

References

=================

Citations

=================

Bibliography

=================

-
D'Arminio, Aubry. "Mariska Hargitay Biography". Allrovi. Archived from the original on January 16, 2013. Retrieved January 24, 2010.

-
Ryzik, Melena (June 19, 2025). "Mariska Hargitay Comes to Terms With a Lifetime of Family Secrets". The New York Times. Retrieved June 24, 2025.

External links

=================

-
Joyful Heart Foundation Archived December 12, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, founded by Hargitay

-
Mariska Hargitay at IMDb
--------------------------------------------------

Hargitay is the founder and former president of the Joyful Heart Foundation, an organization established in 2004 to provide support to survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse, elder abuse and human trafficking. According to Hargitay, she was inspired by an encounter with a pod of dolphins that surrounded her while she was swimming off the coast of Hawaii at the age of 15. The encounter, which had ignited profound spiritual feelings within her, was one that Hargitay hoped to share with others.

In November 2009, Hargitay and the Joyful Heart Foundation built healing and wellness kits for women who suffered domestic violence and were living in the Los Angeles County's domestic violence shelters. They created enough kits to give one to each of about 600 women. In California, the domestic violence services budget was in a major crisis, and shelters were forced to turn women away. Hargitay and her foundation donated money to the cause. Hargitay has worked with Michigan Police and Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy to raise awareness about the statistics of untested rape kits. Hargitay appeared in the 17th season of NBC's The More You Know public service announcements in 2006, and again in the spring of 2009. She is an honorary board member director of the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation.

As of November 2010, the Joyful Heart Foundation had sent over 5,000 women and children on therapeutic programs in New York, Los Angeles, and Hawaii, which combine yoga, meditation, massage, journaling, and swimming with dolphins. According to Hargitay, the Foundation had raised $20 million as of April 2011. Reference to the Joyful Heart Foundation was worked into episodes of Special Victims Unit, via a necklace containing two pendants representing the Foundation that Hargitay's character began wearing in the show's 13th season. The Foundation works with several brands to create products supporting the cause, including Me&Ro, Michael Stars, and AZIAM's Wife Lover Tanks.

Continued activism

=================

On September 27, 2011, Hargitay donated $100,000 to her alma mater, the UCLA School of Theater Film and Television for scholarship. In 2012, Hargitay campaigned for the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). In 2025, Hargitay was included on the inaugural TIME100 Philanthropy list for her work.

Rape counseling

=================

Hargitay is a certified rape counselor, as reported in 2004. As a rape survivor, she has called for an end to the stigma surrounding sexual assault. In a 2024 essay for People, she wrote, "Tell someone you've survived cancer, and you're celebrated. I want the same response for sexual assault survivors. I want no shame with the victim."

Personal life

=================

On August 28, 2004, in Santa Barbara, California, Hargitay married Peter Hermann, an actor she met on the set of Law & Order: SVU. Hermann plays the recurring role of defense attorney Trevor Langan on Law & Order: SVU. On June 28, 2006, Hargitay gave birth to their son by an emergency caesarean section. In April 2011, she and her husband adopted a baby girl. In October 2011, she and her husband adopted a son.

Hargitay speaks five languages: English, French, Hungarian, Spanish, and Italian. She is the godmother to Sophia, one of co-star Christopher Meloni's children. Actress Hilary Swank is her daughter's godmother. In a 2010 interview with Good Housekeeping, Hargitay stated that she considers herself a Christian.

Television

=================

Film

=================

Video games

=================

Music videos

=================

Awards and nominations

=================

References

=================

Citations

=================

Bibliography

=================

-

D'Arminio, Aubry. "Mariska Hargitay Biography". Allrovi. Archived from the original on January 16, 2013. Retrieved January 24, 2010.

-

Ryzik, Melena (June 19, 2025). "Mariska Hargitay Comes to Terms With a Lifetime of Family Secrets". The New York Times. Retrieved June 24, 2025.

External links

=================

-

Joyful Heart Foundation Archived December 12, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, founded by Hargitay

-

Mariska Hargitay at IMDb

--------------------------------------------------