Courage House speaker Tara Siegal at our February meeting

We were pleased to welcome Tara Siegal to our February 2011 meeting from Courage 2 B U. C2BU is building
Courage Houses, homes for children rescued from the hideous world of sex trafficking.
The first homes are being built in Northern California and in Tanzania, Africa, and are slated
to have girls living in them by the fall or winter of 2010.
Why is Courage House different than any other solution…
• It’s not just a program; it is a home. It has no minimum or maximum defined stay
• It’s a safe house. Location is undisclosed so perpetrators cannot find girls
• Each girl will develop an individual Unique Life Plan (ULP) addressing her physical, emotional,
psychological, educational, psychosocial and spiritual needs. Resources will be
provided and plans created to ensure each girl’s successful transition to independent,
self-sufficient living.
• Whether placement is voluntary or mandatory, we recognize these children are prone to
run away because of their trauma and their difficulty in navigating and participating in
healthy relationships. We will have protocols in place as part of each girl’s life plan to
address the triggers of running away. In addition, we will offer a menu of activities that
are intentionally designed to daily exhaust and nurture the mind and body of each girl in
a healthy, therapeutic way.
• Though there will be no minimum stay defined at Courage House, we recognize that
state license requirements will not allow all girls to stay past their 18 1/2 year birthday.
We anticipate establishing Courage House Too, a home for girls who are “aging out”, but
still require structure, therapy, and assisted transition towards independent living whether
that might be attending college, working a job or vocational training.
The good news is the Courage House is awaiting its license and plan to move forward very
soon.
What can we do?
• Share the message, by bringing friends to benefit concerts to raise money and educate
with speakers from Courage to be You.
• Monthly Donors, gift cards from Target and RC Willey wishlist and the Courage Cafe.

January 2011 Meeting will be discussing "Courage House"

Courage to Be You, Inc. was founded to “equip, encourage, and empower individuals to discover and fulfill their God-given purpose.” We realize that before any individual can recognize their potential and discover their purpose, their most basic human needs must be met. But on the streets of our cities and in every country around the world, there are multitudes of vulnerable young children that are not having these needs met—far from it. These children are being exploited, abused, and sold.

They need to be rescued. They need a safe place to belong and someone to assure them that they not only have value, but a God-given purpose. They need a home, and C2BU intends to provide them with one.

It’s a Home.

Courage House. It’s more than a house. It’s more than a shelter. It’s a home—a place to belong, a place to receive comfort, security, safety, and love. Every human longs for one. Every human deserves one.

Currently, there is no licensed, long term residential home in northern California dedicated to the unique and specific needs of minor victims rescued from sex trafficking.  With no dedicated home(s) specific to their needs, young victims are typically charged with a crime and taken to Juvenile Hall where after a period of time they are placed in various foster or group homes.  Within days or weeks, law enforcement reports the majority of these child victims runaway.  The FBI reports when a child runs away one time they have a 25% chance of being trafficked for sex, when they runaway a second time that percentage jumps to 85%.  After repeated runaways, probation and/or CPS look at out of state placement to deter this very common behavior of this population.

Under federal and state law, these young girls are not criminals – they are victims of a hideous, violent crime. They need to be loved and taken care of, not handcuffed and repeatedly placed in facilities that are not equipped to meet their unique needs.

God has placed a passion in our hearts to rescue these children from their horrific circumstances; provide them a safe home; offer healing for their physical, spiritual, and emotional wounds; and lovingly show them that they were created them “on purpose for a purpose.”

If we looked at this task with only human logic, we could easily become overwhelmed or discouraged. But when we look into the eyes of these abused children, we do so with eyes full of faith and hope, confident that this is what God wants us to do for “the least of these.” We need your help. We need partners.

We have set up a donation page on our website that details how you can give to our first Courage House in Northern California. Your donation will take our dream from the realm of the impossible to the possible. Thank you, and may God bless you as much as you have blessed these children.

Contact us for information that is specific to your geographic area regarding this hideous crime against children.

Learn More:

Minor Victims of Domestic Sex Trafficking Reports