Building Trust and Experiencing Growth

Kim Westfall, Founder of Uncaged told us, "As I think back to my time recently in Romania, I am filled with gratitude and joy. It’s always wonderful to spend time with our incredible team on the ground—Romanian nationals with a passion to see their nation transformed. They work every single day to bring healing and transformation to women and children who have lived through the horrors and abuse of trafficking."

Our Chief Clinical Officer, Dr. Vanessa Snyder, and a team of experts joined our team in Romania. They had the opportunity to train individuals in Trauma-Informed Therapies. They got to do more than just talk about therapeutic interventions; they got to see them in action. The team was able to see our brand new ropes course in use, just one of the many tools we are using for holistic care at The Sanctuary.

Here is A Word from Our Experts on our Ropes Course:

At the Sanctuary, we utilize a low elements ropes course for therapeutic interventions that allows our survivors to build trust with others as well as experience interpersonal growth. Individually, the course allows our survivors the opportunity to boost confidence and build self-esteem. They are able to develop both emotional and physical strength as well as trust in self. As a team, they are able to work together and communicate effectively to get through each challenge. Teams will experience conflict and will have to engage in conflict resolution and proper decision making to get through the course. Our survivors are also developing leadership skills such as problem-solving, goal-setting and strategic risk-taking. Research shows short and long-term benefits from ropes course participation including reduction of anxiety, overcoming fear, an increase in self-awareness and self-esteem, as well as building of self and relational trust.

The reality of this experience—there is nothing more impactful than to see a 14-year-old survivor overcome fear to lead a group with courage and power.

Now that you've heard more about our low elements ropes course, see it for yourself! Watch this short video for an introduction to our course. Click here to see a team experience on the course.

Tools like these, in the hands of our experts, are going to bring transformation for hundreds and thousands of precious souls. Thank you for supporting Uncaged and being a part of unlocking healing for shattered hearts!

Adelina's Story: Another Step Toward Full Freedom

Adelina attended a Survivor's Retreat at The Sanctuary. It was another step toward full freedom on what has already been long journey for her.

Reflecting back on her time at The Sanctuary, she said, “I liked the place, the landscape was amazing—right in the middle of the nature. The team is very well trained and full of love.”

The beautiful grounds and that team full of love are a far cry from Adelina’s past. I met Adelina earlier this year in Romania and she shared her story with me. I have carried it close to my heart. It is painful and hard to hear, but it helps explain why our mission is to be able to say, “Slavery no more!”

Adelina was rescued 7 years before we met from one of the most horrific situations you could imagine. She was trafficked to politicians and VIPs in Romania. Her trafficker then extorted her clients by threatening to make their encounters with her public, unless they paid him large sums of money.

Her trafficker used a typical ploy of convincing her he loved her. He told her he was buying them an apartment in another country in Europe and had many “business friends” who would

come to the apartment with many girls. One day he asked her to go with one of the businessmen for lunch and she believed she was helping in his work.

“You are mine now until you die,” the businessman told her when they entered his car and he locked the door. The man took her to a compound with tall walls, a fence, security cameras, and dogs. Politicians and police officers came to party every night. Adelina was just one of twelve girls who had to dance for the guests and sleep with many of them.

“No one should go through what we went through, day after day,” Adelina told me.She says she lost track of time and space and threats were made against her family if she didn't comply to demands. “I hated my bed so much that I would rather sleep on the floor. I would shower all the time just because I always felt dirty,” she recalled.

Her life changed when one of the guards showed kindness to her. “Instead of abusing me, he asked me my story,” she said. “He was told that we choose this life. I told him the truth. He thought I made lots of money from the rich businessman and politicians coming to us every day. He felt compassion and believed me.”

He devised a plan to help her and another of the girls out. He said they were infected with a disease and got them to the hospital, where they got a nurse involved. She was able to take them to a Catholic church clinic and then to a small monastery across the border where Adelina was able to call her parents. The girls received medical care, food, and safety.

“I am reborn, washed of dirt, loved again,” Adelina said when recalling how she escaped. She went on to tell me that she’s been looking for a way to get involved with anti-trafficking but never felt comfortable with anyone until she met our team at Uncaged. “I want to see more people lifted up, encouraged, and healed,” she told me. The next time I saw her she had a necklace with a key and butterfly on it, a reminder of the healing she’s received and that she wants to help other survivors gain.

We’re so excited because we know that survivors can bring light into the life of others like no one else. Seeing Adelina at The Sanctuary and knowing this freedom will continue to ripple outward to so many others is priceless, like each precious soul that will come to this place and be transformed.

You are the key that allows our team to come alongside survivors like Adelina.

We're Stepping It Up at The Sanctuary!

It's hard to communicate in a single email all the exciting things that are happening at The Sanctuary! Your support of our mission is unlocking the cage today. All of this is possible through donations, big and small. Here are just a few ways we've been stepping it up in Romania this summer.

The list of projects being done at The Sanctuary is long, and upgrades and essential changes are happening almost daily:

• New showers

• New flooring

• Kitchen upgrades

• New audiovisual equipment for trainings

• A brand new ropes course

• New mower and equipment for gardening and property care

• And much more is in the works, like new pens and barn for the ponies

One other big way we have stepped things up is by receiving our official certification! In order to provide care and protection to survivors of human trafficking, we needed to apply for a specific license. We underwent evaluations of our buildings, program, personnel, and strategies by the Ministry of Labor and Social Justice. This license allows us to receive survivors of trafficking from any country (minors and adults) and offer care and therapy at The Sanctuary. It was really exciting finding out we are the first center licensed for such activities!

In recent weeks we have been putting all the new facilities to work as our Chief Clinical Officer, Dr. Vanessa Snyder, and two visiting therapists training local people and friends of Uncaged in trauma-informed therapies. These trainings will impact the work with survivors here at The Sanctuary and be taken back to many other places. We are elated to see The Sanctuary become a hub of anti-trafficking training and networks that will throw open the doors for survivors all over the world!

Finally, in HUGE news, our team recently drove onto The Sanctuary grounds with our first survivor! Read what she said and make sure to follow us on social media in coming days for more highlights and updates as we keep taking steps toward freedom! We are ready to shower so many more precious souls with comfort, care, and healing in this place. We can hardly contain our excitement in seeing each of these steps taken. You can be a part of walking alongside us as we work towards ending human trafficking once and for all.