On Tuesday, Feb 19^th 2008, OneHouse in partnership with Pastoral and Laity Ministries (PaLM) launched their new monthly ENGAGE speaker series on social justice and community engagement. This was the first of several upcoming ENGAGE talks that seeks to equip the Asian American church in New York City through training and volunteer opportunities to lay leaders.

Around seventy people gathered at Overseas Chinese Mission Church (OCM) to attend a presentation by the Executive Director of Restore NYC, a Christian start-up ministry that serves trafficked and prostituted women who want to leave the sex trade. The trafficking of women and children for sexual exploitation is the fastest growing crime in the world, generating $28 billion dollars a year. NYC’s JFK airport is deemed by the Department of State to be a major port of entry and transit point for trafficking. The sex trade in Manhattan and the surrounding boroughs ranges from brothels, strip clubs, peep booth shows, massage parlors, street prostitution, escort services, bars, and private apartments. Restore plans to provide programs and services to these sexually exploited women that will assist them with their recovery and reintegration into society.

She shared how the mission of Restore was to nurture and empower these women to make positive decisions in their lives through counseling and services that can easily be met through volunteers within our very own churches. Restore will provide a safe and secure living environment, an off-site day program, job training skills and on-the-job experience. Other assistance such as medical resources and legal representation can be planned as needs arise.

The process of confronting a systemic problem as widespread and seemingly invisible as international sex trafficking is certainly daunting. The solution? The Gospel-driven church. The course of action? Take small steps. Restore seeks to target a small group of two to four women in their first year of operation, and utilize the pool of willing-hearted volunteers at local churches to help these women grow and overcome their past lives. The executive director further clarified that the largest growing population of sex trafficked workers in NYC were within the Korean and Chinese communities, and it was no coincidence that she was reaching out to a community of Christians in an energetic New York Chinatown. Translation services, grocery shopping, and other basic living skills are exactly the things these women need to become sustainable for their recovery. She also stressed that the greatest responsibility for us as Christians is to understand that these women need the love of God as much as their aftercare and counseling.

How you and your church can help:

1. Pray for the work of Restore NYC.
2. Donate to Restore NYC. www.restorenyc.org/donate/
3. Looking for two women to be Live-In Servants and share a
   bedroom together in the South Bronx. This is a non-paid position
   whereby a mature Christian professional offers their time for one year
   to live with victims of sex trafficking in the house and model daily
   living. We are seeking someone who can speak Korean fluently and is
   familiar with Korean culture. Housing would be offered free (also
   potentially most food costs as well). Respite care would be provided
   as well as tons and tons of support from the community, staff, and
   board. An ideal candidate would be a Social Work graduate student.
4. Willingness to host small dinners/events to raise support and awareness about Restore NYC.
5. Invite Restore NYC to come and speak at your church! Contact: info[at]restorenyc[dot]org or 646.713.4319
6. Once the Restore safehouse is operational, we’ll need volunteer support in the areas of English translation, job skills mentoring/training, cooking meals, recreational and creative arts activities, etc.