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Optimistic VoicesAuthor: Helping Children Worldwide; Dr. Laura Horvath, Emmanuel M. Nabieu, Yasmine Vaughan, Melody Curtiss
Vital voices in the fields of global health, global child welfare reform and family separation, and those intent on conducting ethical missions in low resource communities and developing nations. Join our hosts as they engage in conversations with diverse guests from across the globe, sharing optimistic views, experiences, and suggestions for better and best practices as they discuss these difficult topics. Language: en-us Genres: Science, Social Sciences Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it Trailer: |
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Cross-Border Collaboration Brings Trafficked 11-Year-Old Em Back to Her Family
Friday, 17 October, 2025
Send us a textThe remarkable journey of an 11-year-old girl named Em demonstrates the life-changing power of cross-border collaboration in child protection. When Em was trafficked from her home in Liberia to Sierra Leone under false promises of education, she instead found herself forced into domestic labor and street selling. After becoming separated from her trafficker and lost on the streets, local authorities connected her with the Child Reintegration Center (CRC).Through counseling sessions, CRC discovered Em wasn't from Sierra Leone at all, presenting a complex international challenge. What happened next showcases the extraordinary impact of professional networking in child welfare. George Kulanda from CRC and Prezton Gonkerwon Vaye from Red Meets Green had previously met at a child protection training workshop where they exchanged contact information. This connection became the crucial link in Em's rescue, demonstrating how seemingly small professional relationships can transform lives.The multinational effort expanded to include multiple stakeholders across both countries, coordinating Em's safe transport to the border, completing necessary documentation, and arranging temporary placement while family tracing continued. In a touching development, Em's parents learned about their daughter's whereabouts and traveled to claim her, resulting in an emotional reunion filled with "joyful tears." Today, Em is back in school and dreams of becoming a doctor to serve her village community. Her mother now educates neighbors about trafficking risks, creating ripple effects of protection throughout their community.This story reminds us that behind every trafficking statistic stands a child with dreams and potential. When organizations unite across borders, even the most complex cases find resolution. As Elena, the youth co-host wisely observed: "There's always light at the end of the tunnel. You just have to be resilient and willing to seek it." Subscribe now to hear more inspiring stories of hope and resilience on Optimistic Voices: A Child's View.________Travel on International Mission, meet local leadership and work alongside them. Exchange knowledge, learn from one another and be open to personal transformation. Step into a 25 year long story of change for children in some of the poorest regions on Earth.https://www.helpingchildrenworldwide.org/mission-trips.html****** Shout out to our newest sponsor: The Resilience InstituteSupport the showHelpingchildrenworldwide.org
