As we approach
Mother’s Day, we wanted to share one mom’s journey to India to see first hand
the work being done there by one of our partner ministries, Freedom Firm. Becky
Morris is a “soccer mom” who also works part time at Freedom Firm. She
graciously agreed to allow us to post excerpts from her own journaling about
the trip, which we are sharing in three installments. This week, in the 2 installment, she shares
about her trip to an aftercare home:
PUNE
Traveling from Ooty to Pune is anything but quick or
efficient. Evan Henck, the director of
our western region for Freedom Firm, has graciously offered to have me travel
back to Pune with him, his wife and 2 young daughters. It takes us 2 days of travel that
includes: 3.5 hours in a taxi, a 2 hour
train ride, another taxi ride, an overnight stay in Bangalore, 2 more taxi rides
and one flight. It’s an exhausting trip,
but we make it to their home in Pune safely.
I find out that I will be spending the day with Shital (a
case worker) and Natasha (director of Aftercare) visiting a government
aftercare home, the Ruhamah workshop and the Red Light District. I’m excited for today. I know a lot about these places. Surely I’m prepared for this day. Right?
We arrive at the government aftercare home and go up the
stairs of a building that looks like a prison. I never would have imagined what
I see in front of me now: a long narrow hallway with doors to large bedrooms
lining the left side and prison-like windows (open air, no glass) with bars
lining the right side. And that’s
it. Nothing else. No activity rooms. No classrooms. They sleep 15 to a room I’m told. “What do they do all day?” I ask. Shital looks at me and says “Eat and sleep.” My heart can’t bear to take in all that my
eyes are seeing. How can they live like
this?
I meet several young women who have been here for 2 months,
another just got here last week. The
most petite of the girls has a bold and feisty personality and tells me she has
been here 11 long months. Something is
holding up her case. Eleven months? I don’t know if I’d be strong enough to last
11 days here.
After spending time talking with the girls and looking
around, we head back over to the office building. I turn back to see the girls all lined up
along the windows with their arms stretching out through the bars waving at us.
I turn around and wipe tears away, determined not to cry here. The Parole Officer wants to know what I
thought of the home. What do I say? Do I tell her I feel like sitting on the
floor, hugging my knees and crying for the girls in her care? “The girls were wonderful to meet. I really enjoyed my time with them.”
I pepper Shital and Natasha with questions, and I learn
about the reality of the situation. Is
it sad? Yes. Would it be great if the girls could go
outside and run and play? Yes, but they
would run away and most likely be trafficked to the Red Light District
again. Can’t they have classes or
activities? Freedom Firm has come in and
offered some hobby and literacy classes for the girls. We are doing what we can. Why don’t local churches get involved? People in the churches work during the week
and the home is closed to visitors on the weekend. Can we get them released quicker? We have to work within the legal system and
we don’t want them released hastily because that will lead to danger. There are no simple answers here. None.
I ask Shital and Natasha about their jobs. They share with me how difficult it can be to
do this work. “What is the best part of your job?” They look across the table at each other and
make eye contact. They look at me and
both say “What I do matters. I get to
see lives changed.”
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Becky's story will continue next week with the final installment as she shares her experience of visiting a Red Light District and another Freedom Firm workshop.
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Get Connected:
Contact Cheryl Csiky at: ccsiky@willowcreek.org
Upcoming Events:
New Name Call Center – Pray for women as we offer resources and outreach over the phone to women posted on online ads. June 3rd, 7:30-8:15 pm at Willow Creek Community Church in the Link (F Lot Parking)
Book Discussion Group: We will be discussing God in a Brothel: An Undercover Journey Into Sex Trafficking and Rescue, by Daniel Walker. Join us on Saturday, June 13th, 9:30-11:30 at Willow Creek Community Church (room to be determined). Please contact Holly at: hkoehler@ameritech.net for further details.
Scarves for Outreach: Do you knit or crochet? Help us meet our goal of 200 hand-made scarves by August for our out-reach teams to distribute in the fall. We have had 44 scarves donated so far! Please contact Holly at hkoehler@ameritech.net for more information.
Save the Date:
June 17th Forum at Willow Creek Community Church – Guest speaker Tom Dart will be speaking on victim rights.
June 27th “Guts and Glory” Awareness Challenge: Participate in the largest community awareness movement. Register here for free.
Click on the Calendar of Events tab for the full year calendar!
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