Would you believe it if we say that survivors are some of the most hopeful people we’ve met? They’ve experienced unimaginable cruelty, but they still find good all around them.
We are celebrating that we recently “repositioned” 8 women in Romania. After 18-24 months of healing with a host family, they have moved on to begin their independent new lives. Even through tears of sadness over leaving their host families, they beamed. Each of them has a job, a dream, and newfound confidence.
“I learned to care for people and help as much as I can. I have tears of joy because I will see my family and live a new life,” Mihaela shared. As you know, she started her own booming sewing business during the pandemic.
Mihaela’s joy, and the other survivors' joy, fills our hearts with gratitude and resolve. Near the first Sanctuary, floods have damaged infrastructure and local gardens. The pandemic rages in Romania. But rain can’t wash away transformation, and even a pandemic cannot slow restoration. These renewed survivors aren't going to let anything stop them. Neither will we!
I cannot emphasize enough how crucial this moment is. COVID-19 has given us an unprecedented opportunity to scoop survivors out of traffickers’ clutches. Survivors are being abandoned by traffickers. They're raising their voices. Finally, governments across the world are reckoning with the realities of this other pandemic.
We are uniquely poised to fill the gap and unlock transformation for these precious souls. Uncaged already has local support from the government, community, and universities in Romania. We’re building a coalition of NGOs across Europe. Together, we're identifying freed survivors and planning for them to come to the first Sanctuary as soon as travel bans are lifted.
Your support and encouragement fuels this global movement. To capitalize on our momentum, can I ask you to consider investing in the first Sanctuary again? We can secure our impact across Europe and own the first Sanctuary if we raise $410,000 in additional funds.
We hold the keys to freedom. And the time for freedom has come.
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