Special Edition: 2022 Iowa Anti-Trafficking Heroes

2022 Iowa Outstanding Service Awards

The Iowa Network Against Human Trafficking and Slavery recently presented five 2022 Outstanding Iowa Anti-Trafficking Service Awards. The presentations took place at the Rotunda of the Iowa State Capitol Building in Des Moines, Iowa. I was honored to stand at the podium to read the tribute to each outstanding honoree.

Governor Reynolds was scheduled to present the awards but was ill the day of the award presentation. Instead, the NAHT partnered with Secretary of State Paul Pate and Lt. Governor Adam Greg who are pictured with each of the five honorees. This award was originally created in 2016 through a grant from the Rotary Club of Ames, Iowa, and is now administered by the NAHT and the Governor's Office.

Each of this year's awardees is so very well deserving. I like to call them anti-trafficking heroes. As you read about each of these unsung heroes, I am sure that you will agree that they have made a very significant contribution to Iowa's fight against modern-day slavery.

If you know an Iowan who has made a significant contribution to Iowa's fight to end trafficking, please nominate them by completing the nomination form you will find here.

Here are the 2022 Awardees:

Max Christensen, Iowa Department of Education

Would the School Transportation Executive Officer for the Iowa Department of Education, Max Christensen, please come forward? His contribution to Iowa's fight against human trafficking is truly outstanding.

In the fall of 2018, Iowa became the nation's first state to require training about human trafficking for its school bus drivers. Despite the disruption of the COVID pandemic, all 9,000 Iowa school bus drivers are now trained! The Iowa Department of Education and its School Transportation Services Department deserve today's recognition for moving this human trafficking training requirement forward. The Iowa Department of Education collaborated with the Department of Transportation and Truckers Against Trafficking in this first in the nation human trafficking training program. To read more about Max Christensen, click here.

Tri-State Coalition

Would the spokesperson for the Tri-State Coalition Against Human Trafficking, Sister Mary Lechtenberg, please come forward? This Coalition is a faith-based collaboration based in Dubuque and fighting human trafficking in a portion of three states.

They are one of ten coalitions across Iowa, most of which have a representative serving on the Network Board of Directors. Countless volunteer hours have been dedicated to community awareness and education projects, anti-trafficking public policy, and advocacy for survivors.

Despite Covid, the Coalition continued to sponsor many trafficking awareness panels, films, and information booths. They have distributed and posted Network Rescue Stickers, funded a billboard on Highway 20, and provided training for hotel/motel employees. They have joined forces with the University of Dubuque to conduct an annual “Run the Runway” 5k run/walk fundraising event that takes place annually on the runway of the Dubuque Regional Airport. Despite Covid, 215 participated in 2021 with over 30 volunteers and helped to make the event safe and successful.

The Tri-State Coalition collaborated with the Dubuque Transit Co. to offer training to 70 local bus drivers. They also funded a bus wrap that drove through Dubuque city streets all of last year.

With a generous grant from ‘100 Women Who Care”, the Coalition partnered with Set Me Free to provide student education in the schools. To read more about the Tri-State Coalition, click here.

Kim Hilby

Would Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Dubuque, Kim Hilby, please step forward? Kim leads the research, writing, and editing of a first-ever Iowa Best Practice guidelines for services to adult human trafficking survivors.

Since February 2021 when she began the project, Kim has spent several hundred hours conducting literature reviews, as well as supervising two University of Dubuque student interns, who assisted Kim with her research. The Best Practice Guidelines document is nearly 60 pages long and includes a variety of suggested best practices for survivor-centered and trauma-informed care providers. It also provides an extensive list of resources and links for survivor organizations.

As an Assistant Professor since 2006, she has developed and regularly teaches learning modules on human trafficking in her courses. To learn more about Kim Hilby, click here.

Lenchen Raeside

Would the Co-founder of Chains Interrupted, Lenchen Raeside please come forward?

Lenchen has been fighting human trafficking in Iowa long before many even knew it existed. She has been a fierce warrior in the fight, founding Cedar Rapids Gives and partnering with local, state, and national organizations to fight to end human trafficking.

When Lenchen met Teresa Davidson, “Cedar Rapids Gives” merged with “Sisters and Brothers Collaborating Against Human Trafficking”, and the two of them founded “Chains Interrupted”. Through the years, Lenchen and her husband Bob have been involved with assisting many survivors “out of the life” as well as passionately spreading the word about this heinous crime and raising funds to combat it. To read more about Lenchen Raeside, click here.

Hotel/Motel Employee Video Training Video Production Team

Would Susan Mitchell, the spokesperson for the Hotel/Motel Employee Training Video Production Team please come forward?

It has long been recognized that the majority of sex trafficking occurs in Iowa's hotels and motels. Most estimate that the number is as high as 70%.

For the past several years the NAHT and local anti-trafficking coalitions have trained volunteers to approach hotel management to get permission to provide in-person training to employees on how to identify and report suspected trafficking. Over that period we trained just over 300 hotels. However, there are over 3000 hotels/motels across Iowa and many more managers turned down the free training rather than accepting it.

That's when the idea of HF455 emerged which required all hotel/motels who want to do business with the state of Iowa to be trained in both labor and sex trafficking. The bill passed and was signed by Governor Reynolds to take effect on January 1st, 2022. The Department of Public Safety was given the responsibility to implement the bill. The Network partnered with DPS to come up with a training program. One of several volunteer training committees was the Hotel/Motel Employee Training Video Production Team. To learn more about the hotel/motel training video production team, click here.

To watch the award presentation and awards' acceptance speech, click here.

This award was originally created through a grant from the Rotary Club of Ames to the NAHT in 2016, and past awardees are as follows:

2021 Awardees:

• Ruth Buckels- is an Advocate Extraordinaire and a foster/adoptive parent to 8 trafficked female survivors and has presented over 100 trafficking awareness lectures.
• U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Iowa- has prioritized human trafficking investigation and prosecution.
• The Rotary Club of West Liberty, Iowa- has sponsored numerous community-wide trafficking awareness programs, prevention projects, and fundraising events.
• Stacy West- is a survivor and spokesperson for Iowa victims.
• The Iowa City Law Enforcement Task Force- This task force carried out a sex trafficking investigation that received what is considered the highest federal honor for victim rescue and services by law enforcement.

2020 Awardees:

• Heather Brown- Survivor and now has turned her “Scars into Stars”
• Sen. Charles Grassley- sponsor of several federal anti-trafficking congressional bills
• Brenda Long- Founder of Garden Gate Garden Ranch and the annual “Eyes Wide Open” Conference
• Jim Townsend- Business leader and voice against trafficking especially in illicit massage businesses
• Mark “Rocky” Vest- Founder of “Break the Cycle 200” bike ride raising over $750,000 donated to anti-trafficking organizations

2019 Awardees:

• Teresa Davidson- Founder and President of Chains Interrupted; First in Iowa hospital-based human trafficking trainer
• Joy Fopma- Founder and driving force behind Wings of Refuge
• Motor Vehicle Enforcement Chief David Lorenzen- Instrumental in launching Iowa Truckers Against Trafficking
• Vanessa McNeal- Filmmaker of 1-hour trafficking documentary Gridshock
• Stephen Patrick O'Meara- Former assistant U.S. attorney who has handled many human trafficking cases

2018 Awardees:

• Brittaney Sowder- Survivor and spokesperson for Iowa survivors
• Kellie Markey- Founder of Dorthy's House in Des Moines, IA
• Greg Heartsill- State Representatives and Erin's Law advocate
• Mike Ferjak- Lead Iowa Human Trafficking Law Enforcement and Prosecution Task Force
• Teens Against Human Trafficking- 15 TAHT clubs reaching 90 schools
• Kim Reynolds- Governor and NAHT honorary board member and advocate

2017 Awardees:

• Maggie Tinsman- Author of the First Human Trafficking legislation, founder of Braking Traffik
• Kevin Kinney- Author of three Human Trafficking legislative bills and investigator of trafficking
• Chris Branstad- Advocate for Teens Against Human Trafficking and AMP
• Cathy O'Keeffe- Braking Traffik CEO, and FBI human trafficking service awardee
• Brad Fox- School principal who uncovered a major drug and sex trafficking ring in Eastern Iowa
• Christi Geisler- Survivor and spokesperson for Iowa survivors

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