One Month. One Mission. Lasting Impact.
The past month has been both educational and deeply impactful for The Enitan Story (TES). For the first time in our organization’s history, we hosted a month-long Human Trafficking Awareness and Prevention Series, featuring both in-person and virtual events. While we have facilitated numerous trainings in the past, this marked our first extended series designed to span several weeks, creating space for deeper learning, collaboration, and community engagement.
This experience was both rewarding and instructive. It highlighted the powerful role that sustained education and dialogue can play in strengthening systems, building professional capacity, and expanding community awareness around the prevention of both labor and sex trafficking. Through the series, system professionals, advocates, and Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) with lived experience gained valuable tools, resources, and insights to better support individuals and families impacted by trafficking.
We launched the series with an in-person resource fair at the Rum River Library in Anoka. Unfortunately, due to an ICE raid in Minnesota at the time, attendance was significantly affected, as families feared leaving their homes. In response, we partnered with the school system to distribute human trafficking awareness materials and gift cards for basic needs, ensuring support still reached families despite the challenges.
The remainder of the series was held virtually. Our first virtual event took place on January 23, an “Ice-Out” day in Minnesota following the tragic death of Renee Good. We began by holding space for collective grief and observed a moment of silence in her honor. The panel featured SME consultants Symmiona Williams and Honorable Bella Hounakey, child welfare specialist Amanda Lager, state agency trainer Sophia Maceda representing the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) and the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), and attorney Rachel Kohler from the International Institute of Minnesota (IIM).
The panel explored labor trafficking, mandated reporting, and trauma-informed response, particularly for child welfare professionals, as labor trafficking became a form of mandated child abuse reporting in Minnesota on July 1, 2025. The session also addressed legal considerations for supporting foreign-born survivors amid today’s complex political climate, emphasized the importance of meaningful engagement with individuals with lived experience, and highlighted strategies for maintaining staff wellness while working in trauma-exposed environments.
The series continued with a practical training on year-end tax preparation for SMEs and small business owners. Recognizing the challenges of tax season, this session focused on organizing financial records, categorizing expenses, understanding 1099 reporting, and documenting income below the $600 threshold. The training was co-facilitated by Honorable Ronny Marty, a certified public accountant, and me, blending accounting expertise with lived experience perspectives.
We concluded the series with a powerful session on ethical and trauma-informed procurement from SMEs with lived experience. This training helped system professionals, nonprofit partners, and SMEs understand how to intentionally and responsibly purchase goods and services in ways that promote dignity, empowerment, and economic equity. This session was co-presented with SME consultant Mel Alvar, who co-developed and co-facilitated the specialized training curriculum, “Engaging SMEs with Lived Experience: Guidance & Recommendations for Government Agencies, Nonprofits, and Other Stakeholders,” in partnership with The Enitan Story.
Each virtual session opened with an interactive icebreaker and concluded with participant feedback forms, allowing us to gather insights, measure impact, and strengthen future programming.
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to our sponsors: the Minnesota Department of Health Safe Harbor Program, Anoka County Child and Family Council, and Anoka Child Abuse Prevention Council. We also commend our speakers, who showed remarkable resilience and commitment despite the emotional toll of the ICE surge in Minnesota that resulted in tragic loss and widespread trauma. Most importantly, we thank our participants from across Minnesota and beyond, especially the SMEs with lived experience, whose engagement, openness, and dedication made this series deeply impactful and meaningful.
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