By Tatyana Ferguson | Executive Director
REWRITING STOLEN STORIES
Total raised for this project in 2019: $4,748 ($83,882 remaining until we reach our goal!)
Total Donors: 45
Monthly Donors: 5
“Do for one child what we wish we could do for all”
Our organization has strived to make every decision, starting at the top, with this concept in mind. When we decided to join the fight in the anti-trafficking efforts back in 2014, we knew that it was crucial that we remember who is in the center, the survivors.
2019 has been a year of milestones so far, with increasing the strength of our Board of Directors, to increasing our community of support and getting one step closer to breaking ground and start planting seeds.
Growing our efforts each quarter is important to us, and we are pleased to announce that our Board of Directors has expanded to welcome our newest member, Lara Stout. Her experience with corporate partnerships, healthcare IT efficacy and committed community engagement, made her involvement an absolute necessity to push the needle in our groundbreaking.
We have also expanded our team to include 2 brilliant and hardworking individuals that have a passion for the survivors. Brittany Hassell was originally one of Silver ambassadors, and exemplified being a “Voice for the Voiceless”. May 2019, she joined the team and is using her skills as a Relationships Officer. Julia Zuzanskaya also joined the team in May 2019 and has brought her proficient understanding of programming to Hands United as a Resource Developer.
September brings our second annual #VulnerabilityAwareness campaign for the entire month. With such an incredible outpour of support back in 2018, specifically from parents, we have made it an annual campaign, rolling out just in time for Back to School. Reaching over 1,500 individuals, we provide multiple resources for parents and children to practice Cyber Safety, understand different social platforms, be aware of which platforms traffickers/recruiters commonly use, address vulnerabilities, and highlight the multiple options that provide hope.
The journey to the groundbreaking of our first home is well under way. We are currently in the process of working with the community to achieve a unified acceptance of our programming. A “Special Use” permit is the first step to allow us to begin construction, and we are hopeful that with the support of the city and a group of passionate professionals, we will be successful in this preliminary milestone.
One of our newest additions to our programming is our online training available to the public. Market research shows that digital platforms are the most common ways that the general public is accessing their information and education when it comes to social issues. We wanted to step into that space with evidence-based research and confirmed statistics, in collaboration with our partnering organizations, providing a way for all ages to interact and connect. Our courses, equipped with multiple lessons and tests, will be rolled out in the next quarter. This will allow our volunteers, and ambassadors to undergo training prior to their participation, increasing time management and ensuring proper education. Parents and children can interact with the courses to start the conversations on the red flags of human trafficking, and best practices for a responsible online presence. Businesses and professionals will be able to educate themselves with tailored resources and trauma-informed partners on human trafficking in the state of Georgia and the current climate of solutions and resources.
We are continuing to build a formidable community of anti-trafficking organizations that are fighting for the voiceless. Working together makes us stronger and more efficient, and the result of that is an overpouring of love that is evident in our work.
We are so grateful for every single one of our donors, and the generous support you have all shown us. A special thank you to the growing 5 donors that have committed to being monthly supporters! This allows us to continue providing services on a constant basis, consistently improve our standards, and increase the strong partnerships we create.
If you haven’t already become a monthly donor, please consider doing so as we are currently in a monthly matching campaign where 100% of your monthly contribution will be matched!
Thank you for being #Allin with #HandsUnited!
Gratefully,
Tatyana Ferguson and the Hands United team
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