Prevention

Prevention. It's vital to our well being in every area of life. Health, relationships, mental and spiritual strength... it all takes consistent prevention efforts or we will be trying to fix issues that are often too big to ever repair.

This is why I've chosen to stand behind two organizations who specialize in prevention work; one is local, the other is global. I wanted to take a little bit of time and share who they are, what they do, and my current involvement with them.

Most of you know that I am involved with Remember Nhu which is an organization that focuses on ending child sex slavery through prevention. While I know they aren't the only organization doing prevention work globally, I will say that they are the only ones I've personally come across so far in my researching and interactions overseas. Some organizations (such as International Justice Mission) do some prevention work, but Remember Nhu is unique in that it's ALL they do. 

A quick recap of Remember Nhu for those who might be new to it:

Remember Nhu identifies children who are at-risk for being sold into child sex slavery. They then offer their children's home to families as another option for their child. Their physical, emotional, mental, educational, and spiritual needs are met through these homes and their childhood innocence is protected. 

This accomplishes a few things:

First, It stops child sex slavery village by village because Remember Nhu is effectively cutting off the supply to the trafficker. A trafficker would come to the village and not be able to find any children to buy because they are in Remember Nhu homes. If you are like I was, you might be skeptical that you can actually end sex trafficking in an entire village. That seems a little impossible. However, as Justin and I were able to travel in Thailand and see some of these villages, we were informed that when parents have another choice, they will take that choice. They don't want to sell their children but it's all they know how to do, it's the only hope they have for survival, and they feel like there's no other option. When Remember Nhu gives them another option, they will take it 9 times out of 10. The rest of the village will often follow suit and seek out Remember Nhu's help when they are in a tight spot, rather than turning to selling their child into the sex trade.

 The second thing it accomplishes is breaking generational cycles of abuse, sex trafficking, and despair. 

The children who live in a Remember Nhu's children how are given a fresh start in life. They are able to gain an education that can extend beyond high school and into college. They are then able to provide for their future children and their grandchildren and so on. They are given a new way to look at life and the ability to pursue their dreams. 

This literally breaks the cycle of poverty and trafficking in their family.

Lastly, but most importantly, these children are given a spiritual opportunity to know Jesus. While I know that isn't significant to everyone reading this, it is something close to my heart as a Christian. The houseparents are strong spiritual leaders in the home and impart their sincere love for Jesus to the children. They pray for and with these children on a daily basis. Not only are the children coming to know Jesus, but the children often return home for school breaks and tell their families and villages about Jesus. What a joy to be a part of! If you would like to learn more about what Remember Nhu does in regards to prevention work, you can click on the link: https://remembernhu.org/prevention/

As far as a personal update on how I'm involved with Remember Nhu. I am their Child Sponsorship Coordinator and I am now also overseeing the Family Home Coordinators. The family home coordinators are volunteers who take on a Remember Nhu home and mediate communication between the sponsors and the children of that home. This is a very helpful role and I'm blessed to be the go-to person to help the family home coordinators do their job. 

I have become more and more busy in my staff role with Remember Nhu. I love that I am able to communicate with houseparents, country workers, sponsors, and family home coordinators and assist them in their work. It's extremely satisfying and fulfilling. 

It's EXACTLY what I want to be doing right now. It's where I feel called to be and it's where I plan to stay until God makes it obvious to me that He wants me elsewhere. 

Moment of honesty: being a work from home mom is not easy. I know there are a lot of moms who understand that! It's always a blessing to be able to stay home with your baby and meet their needs. It's just a balancing act between taking care of your baby and getting work done. Sometimes I feel like I can't do either very well. But we make it happen, even though some days that means staying up until midnight or not going back to sleep in the early morning when she goes back down for a nap.

 Another challenge is that I raise my own financial support for Remember Nhu (as do all of Remember Nhu staff, including the founder.) As I hate asking people for money, that means I'm mostly volunteering my time for Remember Nhu. (I have a few wonderful financial sponsors that I really appreciate!)

At first this wasn't really an issue for me as Justin makes enough to pay our bills. However as I have gotten busier with Remember Nhu, I've come to realize that our income needs to increase a bit to cover the value of my time. Since I am busier with work, I would like to spend my free time with family and focusing on some personal goals rather than housecleaning on the side to raise extra income. If you would be interested in joining the financial support team, you can click to see my personal staff link on the Remember Nhu website: https://remembernhu.org/staff/henrick-breanna/            

If you have a connection to a church or organization that would like to learn more about Remember Nhu, please email or call me and I would love to come share!

Now for the local organization. I was compelled to share about them as I've had MANY people ask why Remember Nhu doesn't do prevention work in the United States. The short answer to that is because their structure of children's homes is not applicable to the sex trafficking issue here. First of all, in the States, you typically won't see the level of poverty that Remember Nhu works with globally. The extreme poverty is often what causes people to consider selling their children in the first place. (This is a blanket statement of course. Some other causes are: drugs and alcohol, child marriage, abuse in the home, and rocky home life). These families often don't have an alternative for their children. They don't have a way to give their child a new life. Remember Nhu is that lifeline and they readily take it and often seek it out.  It would be quite rare to find parents in the States that are selling their children into sex trafficking. What you will find more often is teenagers getting duped into sex trafficking through their "boyfriend" or getting caught up in a sticky situation due to drug and alcohol addiction, which leads to a willingness to do just about anything to get their next fix. So much of this boils down to a non-existent or messed up home life. The solution to this is not children's homes, but a coming alongside children of broken homes and being the consistent example and friend they need.

Enter in "Friends of the Children". 

"Research has shown that the single most important factor for building resiliency in children who face the highest risks is a long-term, consistent, relationship with a caring adult".

Their model:

1. They select the children facing the highest risks.

Their children are statistically at serious risk of continuing the cycle of poverty in their own lives.

• 60% have parents who did not graduate high school.
• 50% of our youth have parents who were incarcerated.
• 85% of our youth were born to a teen parent.

2. They employ and train salaried, professional mentors called Friends.

By paying their mentors, they move out of the inconsistent realm of volunteers, and into a committed mentor who is willing to stick with these children for the long-haul. Some have been with their children from kindergarten through high school!

3.They commit for the long term.

They commit to every child for the long term, from kindergarten through high school graduation. 12 ½ years. No matter what.

4. They focus on the complete transformation of each child.

The friends commit to spending at least 16 hours a month individually with their children. (Typically friends commit to 8 children at a time). From first hand experience, I know that friends often spend many more hours than 16 with their children. They involve them in so many life experiences and adventures, focusing on what that particular child needs at the time.

5. They work in and with the child's community.

Friends spend time in each child’s home, school, neighborhood, and community. They are able to provide continuity in these often unstable environments and to serve as a link between the different facets of the child’s life. This means they advocate for children at their school and become someone their family trusts in emergencies.

The outcome has been impressive- you can see that they are breaking generational cycles of abuse, poverty, and broken homes in our community. One of their stats from tracking their successes is that 98 percent of the children that have gone through their program have avoided early parenting. This is amazing by itself, but astonishing when you take in that 85 percent of them were born to a teen parent themselves. That is proof that what they are doing is working. 

I pulled most of this information from their website directly. They have loads of interesting statistics and information about what they do on their website at http://www.friendsklamath.org/. (This link is to our local chapter here in Klamath Falls, Oregon. I'm a little biased perhaps, but I think they have something special here.)

Some of you attended the "Thin Blue Line Charity Run" in May of 2017. I created that event originally for law enforcement but decided it would be best to pull in a local charity to donate the money towards. I immediately thought of "Friends of the Children" and was so glad I had them participate. Not only did we help raise money for the local chapter, but we also saw them in action firsthand. We had friends come participate with their children they mentor. It's the day in and day out commitment that makes the difference. It's a personal sacrifice for these friends to involve their kids with them on their weekends and fun events. It's not always easy, but you can see the selfless love so clearly displayed. It's very compelling, and it's extremely effective.

So there you go! Those are the 2 top organizations I've been standing behind for a few years now. I'm always happy to chat more about how to get more involved if you have any questions! 

Be blessed this week and enjoy the start to summer!