Texoma Living Well Magazine November/December 2016 | Page 22

Poiema

S

lavery was abolished in America in 1865 with
the passing of the 13th Amendment to our Constitution. It was abolished in every other country in the world by 1981; however, there are
still people enslaved around the world. And,
yes, there are even slaves in America. Human trafficking is a modern form of slavery. It involves controlling
a person through force, fraud, or coercion to exploit
the victim for forced labor, sexual exploitation, or both.
The statistics are crazy. Trafficking is the fastest-growing
and second-largest criminal industry in the world. It is
estimated that each year 100,000 to 300,000 American children are at risk for becoming victims of commercial sexual exploitation.
Most people become aware but feel helpless to do anything. Enter Rebecca Jowers. She was first introduced
to the problem of human trafficking on a global scale
when she was a student at Dallas Theological Seminary.
As a wife and mother of four, her circumstances prevented her from moving overseas to serve in a ministry,
so she began researching domestic human trafficking
and realized it was not only a problem in our own country but right in her own back yard. In Texas alone, as
many as 30 girls are trafficked as escorts each month.
The average age a girl enters prostitution is 13. And an
estimated 516 girls are trafficked via online ads each
month in Texas.

By Michelle Wallace

During a conversation following a mission trip to China in 2012, a pastor asked Jowers about her postseminary plans.
“My big, hairy, audacious goal is to establish a safe house
for women coming out of human trafficking,” Jowers replied. Until then, she had only shared this vision with the
Lord and her husband Raymond.
Months later, the pastor approached Jowers about starting
an anti-trafficking ministry. Jowers agreed to serve on the
leadership team.
“It turns out, I was the team!” Jowers laughs.
For the next year, Jowers continued to research issues related
to human trafficking. She visited safe houses in Texas and in
Atlanta. She read volumes and attended conferences. With
help from others, she developed an after-care program based
on Scripture and sound counseling principles. She recruited
volunteers and accepted speaking engagements at churches,
schools, and community groups. In 2013, Poiema Foundation
was incorporated as a 501c3 nonprofit entity.
“We felt called to step out in faith. God was calling us to establish a safe house,” Jowers says. Potential donors asked where
the safe house would be located, but Poiema had no answer.
“We prayed someone would donate a house. But who donates a house?” Jowers says.