Survivor headlines Human Trafficking Awareness series

January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month, and Heidelberg is planning a series of presentations the week of Jan. 22-25 to bring light to the issue, including a keynote talk by a long-term survivor or human trafficking who now works with rescued victims and families.

Ann Marie Babb, vice president of business operations for the We Care So We’re There Center in southwestern Ohio, is one of two keynote speakers for Heidelberg’s Human Trafficking Awareness Week. Babb will share her story as a 10-year survivor of human trafficking during a presentation at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 24, in Wickham Great Hall.

Through her work with the We Care So We’re There Center, Babb is involved the center’s approach to providing a holistic approach to sex trafficking victims and their families through four programs: a mobile ministry/food distribution and assistance program, a trauma-informed care program that works with inmates due to be released from prison, a youth sports program for at-risk children and Springhaven Home, a safe house for women who have been rescued from the sex trafficking industry. Babb, who is the founder and executive director of Springhaven Homes, is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati and also works for New Life Community Church in Middletown.

Kicking off Human Trafficking Awareness week will be a keynote address from Aaron Brown, the national director of operations for Destiny Rescue, an organization dedicated to rescuing children trapped in the sex trade, restoring the abused, protecting the vulnerable, empowering the poor and giving a voice to those who can’t speak for themselves. His presentation will be Monday, Jan. 22, at 6 p.m. in Wickham Great Hall.

After spending 14 years in the corporate world with Coca Cola, Brown spent three years assisting orphaned and vulnerable children at Forgotten Children Worldwide before joining Destiny Rescue in 2016. He is a children’s book author and founder of Impact 52, a service project that inspires individuals to change the world through kindness, love and service.

Heidelberg will host two additional events to bring awareness to the human trafficking issue:

• Screening of BuyCott – Ending Human Trafficking (a TEDx event). This event includes a digital simulation, “How Many Slaves Work for You?, followed by a discussion led by HU graduate counseling students, 6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 23, in The University Commons.

• Lily’s Shadow, a one-act play performed by the Bowling Green High School Drama Club, 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 25, in Gundlach Theatre. This performance is geared toward middle school and high school students.

Sponsors of Human Trafficking Awareness Week include the Master of Arts in Counseling Program, the Master of Arts in Education Program, Partners in Academic Coaching for Excellence (PACE)  the Community Engagement Committee.