Supporting Child Victims of Sex Crimes
During my first year with the Missionaries of Africa, I have had to educate myself about the many hardships that our brothers and sisters in Africa face. From war, to hunger, to lack of education, from drought to flooding, there are too many heart-breaking situations. Personally, the stories about the human trafficking of children are the scariest. I’m sure you are like me and eager to assist programs that aid child victims of human trafficking.
Human trafficking is called modern slavery. It involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor. Often the forced labor is sexual. Using everything from false promises to violence, predators manipulate millions of men, women, and children into trafficking situations. No place is immune from this evil, including the U.S. and Africa. Having heard so many painful stories about human trafficking, when I received a plea for help this summer from Sister Matilda Baanuo, a Missionary Sister of Our Lady of Africa (MSOLA), I knew you would help. Sister Matilda runs the Pope Francis Rescue Home in Malindi on the coast of Kenya. On the surface, this area is a vacation oasis known for its white sandy beaches with palm trees, coral reefs, sand dunes and tourist attractions. The underside of the beauty is that the area is a hub for sex trafficking, often with children. Because of this horror, the people being rescued by the Sisters at the Pope Francis Rescue Home are children who are victims of sexual crimes.
“We rescue vulnerable children. We take them in and protect them from sexual abuse and exploitation. These are traumatized children. We house them. We care for them.”
Sister Matilda
Sister Matilda Baanuo, a Missionary Sister of Our Lady of Africa (MSOLA), counseling a young resident.
During my first year with the Missionaries of Africa, I have had to educate myself about the many hardships that our brothers and sisters in Africa face. From war, to hunger, to lack of education, from drought to flooding, there are too many heart-breaking situations. Personally, the stories about the human trafficking of children are the scariest. I’m sure you are like me and eager to assist programs that aid child victims of human trafficking.
Human trafficking is called modern slavery. It involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor. Often the forced labor is sexual. Using everything from false promises to violence, predators manipulate millions of men, women, and children into trafficking situations. No place is immune from this evil, including the U.S. and Africa. Having heard so many painful stories about human trafficking, when I received a plea for help this summer from Sister Matilda Baanuo, a Missionary Sister of Our Lady of Africa (MSOLA), I knew you would help. Sister Matilda runs the Pope Francis Rescue Home in Malindi on the coast of Kenya. On the surface, this area is a vacation oasis known for its white sandy beaches with palm trees, coral reefs, sand dunes and tourist attractions. The underside of the beauty is that the area is a hub for sex trafficking, often with children. Because of this horror, the people being rescued by the Sisters at the Pope Francis Rescue Home are children who are victims of sexual crimes.
Play therapy is important when working with traumatized children. Sister Edith Yendaw, MSOLA works with a young resident.
“We rescue vulnerable children,” says Sister Matilda. “We take them in and protect them from sexual abuse and exploitation. These are traumatized children. We house them. We care for them.” The Rescue houses up to 45 children a day, some as young as three-years old. Since the Sisters work to reunite children with their families or relatives, 95% of the nearly 600 children served by the Rescue have been successfully reintegrated into their community.
Since opening in 2015 Pope Francis Rescue Home has gained attention in the U.S. in both the Catholic and secular press. Since then, interest in the U.S. has waned while needs have increased. With the help of our donors like you, we assisted Sister Matilda and the Pope Francis Rescue Home in 2019 but they need our help again.
“Child sexual abuse and exploitation are still on the rise in the coastal regions of Kenya, just as they are a reality in many parts of the world,” Sister Matilda reports. “In our work, we see the trans-formative change in the lives of those who have been rescued and given psychosocial support.”
Sister. Redempta Kabahweza, MSOLA, with young residents.
“We receive a little funding from government and the local public but it is just enough to feed the children,” shared Sister Matilda. “We grow some of our own food and sell produce in the local market to help with the basics.” But the Sisters do much more than feed and shelter the children. They provide professional psychological and social services along with nursing care. Simply put, they provide healing to broken children.
With your help, I am hoping to assist the Pope Francis Rescue Home, and other programs serving victims of human trafficking. Because of your generosity, missionaries like Sister Matilda know they can ask us for support. However, they are really asking you for your help. We are grateful to you always and so are our missionaries in Africa.
Your Missionary Friend,
Christopher Anderson Director of Development