Two American women and one Indian man navigated their way through the heart of the brothel district in India. They entered one particularly dismal building, climbed four flights of dark and narrow staircases, and pushed their way through the choking stench of body odors vainly masked by incense. Every room they passed on the way up was in use, or was framed by a vacant-eyed girl or woman … waiting, waiting, for the next humiliation.
When they reached the top floor two mothers were anxious to receive them. One was the brothel owner; the other was Hanna, a very young mom who was debt-bonded to her.
These two ladies had begged our restoration partners in India to take their precious children away from the horrors of the life in the brothel. They were overjoyed to see their children’s rescuers had actually arrived. Their children would finally be free. Yet they remained enslaved.
We had no idea this covert meeting in 2010 sparked a hope and determination in Hanna that would eventually empower her escape the chains of exploitation and flee to join her child at our partner’s restoration home.
Hanna never knew her birth date, so when her loving new family realized it had been a year since she was set free, they blessed her by celebrating the one year anniversary of her rebirth into freedom, complete with a surprise party.
In the next two months, our team will travel to Jamaica, India and Nepal to engage face-to-face with local restoration partners that have matured and expanded because of our support. We look forward to sharing an update on Hanna’s story and others from our partners in Jamaica, India, and Nepal once our team returns with pictures and stories of God’s provision.
