Letter from the CEO: Winter 2023
Chief Executive Officer
It was an incredible 2023! As we were focused on The WellHouse mission that includes honoring God as we assist in the recovery of sex trafficking victims and offer meaningful restoration services, we were continually humbled at God’s amazing protection and provision. There is simply no other explanation!
This year, more than ever, we have come to realize that all of us are better than one of us. We could not have effectively served the survivors who found a home with The WellHouse without so many partners coming alongside us. I would love to name them all, but I would likely miss some; nevertheless, we are very grateful for all of the service providers, donors, volunteers, and selfless staff who served with an unmatched measure of commitment and dedication.
There were several notable highlights including the expansion of ShopWell, Therapy services, and WellHouse Child.
ShopWell, the social enterprise endeavor at The WellHouse, grew exponentially with increased events, wholesale businesses, and opportunities for residents to be employed. With the addition of a Glowforge machine, new products were added to the line already being produced. All of this has improved the business and we very quickly outgrew our space. Thankfully, once again through the generosity of fabulous donors, we have begun construction on the building for what we affectionately call “The Barn” to house ShopWell, a multipurpose room, an office for the Facilities Director, and offices for the therapy staff. If all goes as planned, we will be utilizing this fabulous space in early 2024!
During Trauma Therapy, our therapists have bathed the sessions in prayer as they have sought to provide the right level of care that corresponds to the severity of the condition of the survivor. Addressing the complex trauma that our survivors carry also brings improvement to what was once rapidly deteriorating health concerns as well as decreases the level of crisis experienced by all survivors of human trafficking. A favorite therapy tool among the adult residents is MicroCurrent Neurofeedback which reduces stress, depressions, and aids sleep. The progress has been phenomenal as we have seen an increase in the nights of safety with survivors remaining for longer lengths of stay. We thank God for our counseling professionals who have dedicated their lives to providing opportunities for healing to so many.
In 2023, WellHouse Child provided faith-growing opportunities as the team leading this program gave their all serving youth who came to us with a level of crisis and trauma unlike any we have dealt with before. A core group of minors have remained over this year while others were not able or ready to receive the healing offered. Even still, the beds at WellHouse Child remained full. We have heard stories that brought us automatically into a spirit of prayer as we have called out to God to provide strength and wisdom to serve. The resilience of these young girls is amazing as they have worked hard to catch up in school after years of falling behind, participated in extracurricular activities, and worked closely with their therapist to resolve trauma that has been their story all of their young lives. We are beyond grateful to the dedicated staff, the wonderful volunteers, as well as the school system and others in this fight with us. It is worth it all, and we thank God for the opportunity!
As we look to a new year, there appears to be no end to the growth opportunities for service. This newsletter only contains a few highlights of what is happening. As God leads, we will keep going and growing as unfortunately the issue of human trafficking is not going to be eradicated any time soon, if ever. We believe it is more important than ever to lock arms, collaborate, and trust God to provide and protect.