Western Slope Against Trafficking Quarterly Meeting Notes
Jan. 8, 2024
ATTENDEES: 30 people total
Poet Lisa Conners introduced and read an invocation poem she selected, “Sleeping on the Bus” by Martín Estrada, courtesy of the Getting the Word Out project.
Discuss your organization’s milestones and recap your work:
Joseph Center has 9 programs now and is growing. Last year had 5000 walk ins, 600 intakes. Some were HT survivors.
Freedom Institute collaborated with SD51, is seeing growth and change.
Laboratory to Combat Human Trafficking: 500 calls on hotline to connect to services (1/5 to Asian Pacific Development Center)
Loving Beyond Understanding: Two centers in operation, one is on South Ave, the other is a CMU campus satellite, armed security service contracted. Navigator and peer support offered, serving preteen to elders.
Bravestone Project educated 100; worked with 20 survivors; worked with juveniles. Excited about presenting Jan. 27 THRIVE conference.
GJPD-provided additional support; focused training sessions; Officer Arnold Naik worked with houseless population.
Center For Independence: services provided to 700 persons with disabilities.
RMHP: funded community NGOs, Spanish language interpreters, worked with LGBTQ community; assisted with connecting minor HT victim with services.
Alpine Bank: fraud prevention
Center for Children-3 cases of HT victims
Grand Valley Connects: 3 new Navigators added today, 2 at library and 1 at Mind Springs
CDPS–CHTC bringing MDTs, skills based training. Annual report coming up.
WSAT: conducted 19 educational and/or Colorado Human Trafficking Council Human Trafficking 101 Trainings and provided direct services to two survivors of human trafficking
Discuss challenges:
Migrant Ed D51 Outreach workers cover 30 school districts and there is an influx of new immigrants (TPS)
Center for Children- outreach, involve community
Alpine Bank- back office transactional- fraud identification trainings
RMHP: Housing, language barriers (Asian population), case managers, recognizing signs of HT, thousands of people on Medicaid; confusion about organizations and their roles
Center For Independence- how to get past barriers to housing access, need to create a doc that gives clarity for access, mental health
GJPD-LE need victims and witnesses to report, discomfort with reporting to police. LE can train tellers in banks
GJPD, victims’ services-victims need to give permission to receive services
Bravestone- need to talk victims through, mental health providers, accessing funds, developing trust in victims
WSAT: refine the referral process: determine which agency is best suited to fit the needs of the survivor/the movement
Additional milestones, resources and needs noted
LBU drop in centers are mental health affirming. Want more training for staff; refugees coming from other states; needs more grants (develop fees for services); peer counselors
LCHT- online resource directory (24/7) ; textline 12 AM to 12 PM are beneficial resources
Freedom Institute: Immigrants, mental health, funding guidelines
Joseph Center: funding programs for HT, safe houses and secure; fill-in gaps e.g. Latimer and “then what?”; language help: victims from Philippines; lacking space and staff.
Update on Resource Directory initially created through LCHT, to be revised for WSAT website
Kaleb Wilkins has been working to create an online searchable resource directory for WSAT using the LCHT regional resource directory completed last year. Objective is a tool that is user friendly and makes data search adjustable. It will be housed on the WSAT website. WSAT is hoping some attendees could fund completion of the resource directory.
Next WSAT Quarterly Meeting: March 11, 2024, 12-1:30 pm.