MVNU raises awareness of human trafficking
Last week MVNU partnered with several active ministries seeking to raise awareness of human trafficking.
Catie Hayes, director of Community and International Ministries at MVNU, said the events brought an increased understanding of human trafficking to the MVNU campus community. She hopes they challenged those who attended to take action against the injustice.
“People’s lives are being stolen from them, and we act like that’s no big deal,” Hayes said.
On Wednesday, the MVNU women’s basketball team partnered with Destiny Rescue as part of a league-wide awareness and fundraising night. Representatives from the organization spoke to those who attended about the impact of human trafficking in our society.
The combined total from around the Crossroads League was $23,000 enough to rescue 15 girls trapped in human trafficking. $3,500 of the league total came from the home double-header against Grace.
Friday morning, Kim Berry Jones, a professor at Point Loma Nazarene and the program director at the Center for Justice and Reconciliation in San Diego, California, spoke during MVNU’s chapel service.
Her message focused on human trafficking and its impact in our communities. She shared stories from her work at the Center for Justice and Reconciliation of those who have escaped the culture.
To wrap up the week, MVNU hosted an anti-human trafficking workshop.
The workshop served as a time to educate the student body about research and data collected by the Center for Justice and Reconciliation.
Those who attended received information about human trafficking and what is being done to prevent it.
Brandy Zachariah of Out of Darkness Ministries in Columbus, Ohio, also attend the event to talk specifically about human trafficking in Ohio.
The presentation included clips from documentaries on human trafficking and information about how MVNU students can stay engaged in raising awarenesses and prevention on campus and in the community.
Hayes recognizes the difficulty people have with helping others and she hopes the events brought awareness to that as well. She stressed the importance of action, not just awareness.
“When it comes next door, we are not as willing to do the hard work of making a difference, human to human,” Hayes said.
Hayes, Jones and Zachariah encourage all students, faculty and staff to be proactive in raising awareness about Human Trafficking as it affects all communities in every state.
MVNU CoSMo group, Traffic Jam, is one way to get involved right away. The group meets every other Tuesday at 9 p.m. in Central Complex. They work to raise awareness, assist local organizations and plan events to educate the student body.
For more information contact the group leader, Kristen Halloran.
To find out more about Destiny Rescue, click here.
For more information on guest speaker Kim Berry Jones and the Center for Justice & Reconciliation, click here.
The full chapel service featuring Jones can be found here.
For more information on guest speaker Brandy Zachariah of Out of Darkness Ministries, click here.
