Happy new year to our amazing Reclaiming Hope family! We are so excited for what this year has in store! As we drew plans for being good stewards to our Mentees and Survivors in 2022, we surveyed our city and found one recurring theme: The cost of living in Colorado, lack of job history and poor credit history makes it difficult for Survivors to find their footing after surviving a trafficking situation. This year, we have opened new housing options to our Mentees. One resident has already moved in! Please join us in praying for wisdom and discernment as additional housing opportunities arise in future months. 

We aren’t the only ones surveying Colorado. The Colorado Human Trafficking Council released their 2021 annual report and it reveals initiatives accomplished, data from 2018-2020 and trends of human trafficking in Colorado. 

In the last year, the Colorado Human Trafficking Council’s Equitable Access Task Force worked to examine the intersections of identity and experience⁠—and how those intersections relate to services rendered to human trafficking Survivors. Human trafficking services often focus on very specific populations, leaving many of the most vulnerable populations underserved. It’s up to all of us to support the Council’s findings and work and continue looking for ways to support all women, girls, men and boys in their restoration journeys. 

We’re grateful for your continued partnership and prayer as we find creative solutions for serving the real needs⁠—housing, career guidance, finance education and reintegration⁠—of our Survivors and Mentees in Colorado. Thank you for making this place a home to so many seeking new community and hope this year. 

In prayers and in Christ, 
Sues Hess
Executive Director

WHAT DOES FOCUSING ON HUMAN TRAFFICKING LOOK LIKE? 
In 2014, the Colorado Human Trafficking Council was established. Since then, the organization has educated the people of Colorado about all types of human trafficking and what is overlooked. The video above is just one example of what it means to focus peoples’ attention on human trafficking.

CONVICTING A HUMAN TRAFFICKER IN COLORADO
The Colorado Human Trafficking Council is hosting three different Facebook Live events that will dive into the details and complexities of what it takes to bring a human trafficker to justice in this state. The panels will consist of four experts who were each involved in the first prosecution of involuntary servitude in Denver County. The first two options are on 1/31 at 12 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. and the third option is on 2/1 at 7:30 a.m. 

WHAT IS HUMAN TRAFFICKING AND WHO DOES IT IMPACT? 
A 2019 FBI study found that 80% of human trafficking cases from 2015 to 2017 involved sex-trafficking victims. Nineteen percent were victims of labor trafficking, and 1% involved both forms.

COUNTRY MUSIC ARTIST SUPPORTS COLORADO SPRINGS NONPROFIT
Country music star Craig Morgan is partnering with nonprofit Exodus Road to step in and help raise awareness to fight human trafficking.

PRAYER REQUESTS

Below are just a few prayer requests we’d love our prayer warriors thinking on this month. This year’s Super Bowl is on February 13. It is the most-watched sporting event in America, and draws hundreds of human traffickers every year. More than 70 people were arrested during an investigation into sexual exploitation during Super Bowl week in Tampa in 2021. Please pray for the men and women who will be impacted by the game this year. May God cover Inglewood, California with His protecting hand. Pray also for: 
  • Pray that all our Mentees can find a sense of peace and not jump to new ideas too quickly. Several have recently moved; may they feel safe, and develop healthy relationships with their neighbors.
  • Praise! We have new Mentees in our program! May they make smooth connections with their Mentors! 
  • Pray our Mentees all find jobs that propel them toward financial independence.
  • Ask that the Lord would grant Godly wisdom and clear communication to our Mentors as they interact with their Mentees.
  • Pray the Hope Bags bring hope to those trafficked during the Super Bowl.
We now make a daily prayer calendar (by the month) available on our website. You can find it on our Home Page as well as under the tab “What Can I Do?”
 

MENTOR TRAINING

We need more Mentors! Is God calling you to walk with a Survivor? If you want to find out more, check out our website (“What Can I Do?”), and mark your calendar for the next Mentor Training on Saturday, February 26.
 

THANK YOU

In the past few months, we’re grateful for the following groups and organizations that have worked with us! Thank you!

DONATE HERE