By Laurel Neufeld Weaver MSW LISW-S
Rape Crisis and Anti-Human Trafficking Program Coordinator
Crime Victim Services of Allen and Putnam Counties

A movie documentary Sex+Money: A National Search for Human Worth is playing at the Shannon Theater Saturday morning April 21st at 10 a.m. Admission is free but donations will be accepted at the door for NW Ohio Human Trafficking Rescue and Restore Coalition. A short talk back will follow the movie showing. This movie is recommended for late teens or adults.

Last week the author, Jane Kurtz came to the Bluffton community and our elementary students were given the option to purchase an autographed version of one of the authors' books.

My young daughter chose a story, The Storyteller's Beads. In this short novel, Jane writes a moving story of the unexpected friendship that develops between two girls from different religions who courageously move through difficulties including death and destruction when faced with famine and war in Ethiopia.

On the inside cover, Jane not only signed her name but wrote "May your stories keep strong". My daughter read quickly being pulled into the human story based on a true global happening in Northeast Africa. This provided her with a glimpse of the story of pain, hardship and later resilience through the unfolding events experienced by the two young heroines.

This story with pain, crisis,and courage has parallels with the work I do as a Rape Crisis Coordinator at Crime Victim Services. Sexual violence impacts the lives of children, women, and men everyday and can be devastating for individuals, families and communities. I've had the privilege to accompany many of these individuals and families through the healing process. But yet, as a larger society we often are reluctant to talk about the prevalence of sexual violence.

When my daughter finished reading the book she looked at me with tears in her eyes and said, "Mom, I get it. I understand what Jane meant when she wrote in my book. "May your stories keep strong" We're not supposed to just feel sad about the pain in the world but we also need to have courage and strength to stop the violence."

You are invited to keep the real life stories of survivors of sexual violence alive by speaking out against sexual violence. The month of April is nationally dedicated as a month to raise awareness about this issue.

Rape Crisis of Crime Victim services in partnership with a large host of community organizations is sponsoring a series of events to get people talking about sexual violence and taking action together to stop it. The first step is listening to the stories.

A movie documentary Sex+Money: A National Search for Human Worth is playing at the Shannon Theater Saturday morning April 21st at 10 AM. Admission is free but donations will be accepted at the door for NW Ohio Human Trafficking Rescue and Restore Coalition. A short talk back will follow the movie showing. This movie is recommended for late teens or adults.

This documentary provides a camera eyewitness to the reality of a modern day form of slavery. If you don't think this happens in our zip code- look again -there are 1, 078 American born youth in Ohio who have been trafficked into the sex trade over the course of this past year and another 2,879 are at-risk for sex trafficking.

The next step is action planning. We need you there to create a community response. Join us so the strong stories can be heard and we can protect children and teens from this growing menance.

If you need information please send an e-mail to [email protected] or call 419-222-8666 Crime Victim Services office.

SUMMARY:

Date: Saturday, April 21, at 10 a.m.
Event: Sex & Money: A National Search for Human Worth
Sponsor: Northwest Ohio Human Trafficking Rescue & Restore Coalition, Allen County Rape Crisis Coalition, and Shannon Theatre of Bluffton,
Location: Shannon Theatre 119 S. Main St., Bluffton
Event Information: Sex & Money: A National Search for Human Worth is a documentary about domestic minor sex trafficking and the modern-day abolitionist movement fighting to stop it. Since September 2009, the crew has traveled to over 30 politicians, activists, psychologists, porn stars, among others. This event is being held in honor of Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Entrance is free with donations being accepted at the door to benefit the Northwest Ohio Human Trafficking Rescue & Restore Coalition.

Date: Friday, April 27, 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Event: Waiting for Us to Care: Responding to Human Trafficking in Our Communities
Sponsor: Northwest Ohio Human Trafficking Rescue & Restore Coalition, Allen County Rape Crisis Coalition, Bradfield Community Center Lima, Ohio, Crime Victim Services, and Lima Memorial Hospital.
Location: Bradfield Community Center 550 South Collett, Lima
Website: Go to www.CrimeVictimServices.org : Upcoming Events, or http://www.crimevictimservices.org/page/contact/13
Event Information: Registration required, deadline 4/24/12. Space is limited to 70 participants, $10 fee to cover lunch and workshop costs. CEU's pending for EMT, Social Work, and Nurses.

Topics covered include: Human Trafficking 101, Community Response: Partnering with Law Enforcement; Legislative Advocacy to End Trafficking; Survivor Recovery; and Strengthening Enforcement Collaborations.

Contact Laurel Neufeld Weaver at Crime Victim Services for more information and registration form at: (419) 222-8666, or [email protected].