Surviving Human Trafficking: Andi Buerger’s Story of Courage & Truth

Human trafficking is not something that happens “somewhere else.” It’s happening in every community, every day. In this deeply moving episode of Conversations That Make a Difference, Teresa Velardi sits down with survivor, advocate, and Voices Against Trafficking founder, Andi Buerger. After enduring 17 years of unimaginable abuse, Andi made a courageous decision: to turn her pain into purpose and become a voice for those who cannot speak for themselves. This conversation will open your eyes to:

• What human trafficking really looks like
• The shocking truth about how often children are taken
• Why most victims never escape
• Warning signs you may be missing
• Practical ways to protect your family
• How everyday people can make a difference
  
  

This is not just a story. This is a wake-up call.
If even one life is protected because of this conversation… it matters.

Resources from this Conversation:
Learn more about VAT and support their mission: https://voicesagainsttrafficking.com/
SEMPI Social Communication Model: https://www.sempi.net/
Sound of Freedom movie: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_o...)
Taken TV series: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taken_(...)

Stay in Touch with Teresa Velardi:
SUBSCRIBE to this channel for more inspiring conversations, author spotlights, and heart-centered teachings. Tap SUBSCRIBE and turn your notifications ON
www.conversationsthatmakeadifference.com
New episodes every Tuesday

AEP = Authentic Endeavors Publishing
www.authenticendeavorspublishing.com
Our mission is to communicate with purpose, create with authenticity, and gather a global community rooted in gratitude. We strive to inspire leadership and offer heartfelt encouragement through meaningful writing, empowering every voice to shine and every story to make a lasting impact.

The Daily Gift Book Series - Each book is a compilation of real stories from real people, designed to uplift, encourage, and remind you that you’re never alone on the journey.
Visit: www.dailygiftbookseries.com or look up Teresa Velardi on Amazon

Join the Grateful Hearts Community
If you’d like to grow a life rooted in gratitude, hope, kindness, peace, and authentic friendship, join us in the Grateful Hearts Community on Facebook.
Access The Grateful Hearts Community on Facebook and request to join:   / thegratefulheartscommunitygroup  

Transcript

Conversations That Make A Difference with Teresa Velardi

SPEAKER_00 0:04

Welcome to Conversations That Make a Difference. With your host, Teresa Vellari. We believe that authentic, meaningful, and diverse conversations are the two divides us together. I do like it. Join us for conversations filled with gratitude, valued, abundance, authenticity, and faith. Here's the host of our show, Teresa Vellarti.

SPEAKER_04 0:52

I'm Teresa Vellarti, your host, and we are excited to have Andy Berger here with us today. So we're excited to have Andy here, but before I introduce her, I would like us to first do what we do every week, and we're going to say the serenity prayer. God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. And I also want to say that it is by God's grace that we are fabulous, blessed, highly favored, living in our greatness, using our gifts and talents, making a difference in the lives of others with passion and purpose, and all of God's great universe is conspiring in our favor. And we gratefully say amen. So let me let me tell you about this woman that I have um become friendly with because we have missions in the world to make a difference in

Andi Buerger - Survivor & Heart of Voices Against Trafficking

SPEAKER_04 1:55

whatever way we can. And she is brave and bold, beautiful, and she has an incredibly good purpose in life. Andy is um the excuse me, Andy has a not-for-profit organization called Voices Against Trafficking. And she works to create an expansive tool for which every day people can uh up to the highest government officials can draw resources for public awareness. Now, if you are not familiar with what trafficking is, we're gonna talk about that. But first, let me say that Andy is an international speaker, author, and advocate for victims of human trafficking and exploitation. Andy herself was a victim of child sex trafficking and unspeakable abuses by family members for 17 years. She founded Beulah's Place, which provided temporary shelter services for at-risk, unsheltered teens for 14 years. 300 plus youth were, I try and say that three times fast. 300 plus youth were successfully rescued and assisted earning national recognition. So she has a nationally recognized, she had a nationally recognized place for kids to go when they were in trouble. Andy later founded Voices Against Trafficking to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves, the voiceless victims of human trafficking and exploitation. VAT, Voices Against Trafficking, advocates for the protection of every human's rights, regardless of race, gender, culture, or socioeconomic status, voices against trafficking, the strength of many voices, speaking as one, gives a portion of proceeds from HSL to survivors of child abuse and trafficking, and does Andy's, and excuse me, as does Andy's first book, A Fragile Thread of Hope, One Survivor's Quest to Rescue. Andy launched Voices of Courage magazine in 2023. It is distributed internationally and accepted into the U.S. Library of Congress. It honors everyday heroes who selflessly fight to protect human rights. These champions come from all walks of life to change communities and the world for the better. A television series by the same title debuts in 2025. Andy, you have so much going on. I know you are making a world of difference in this arena. Welcome to Conversations That Make a Difference.

SPEAKER_01 4:40

Well, thank you, Teresa, and thanks to your audience as well. I'm just honored to be here and looking forward to being able to create that awareness and impassion people to want to be part of the solution.

SPEAKER_04 4:52

Yeah. And this is something that I'm pretty passionate about. I've seen what can happen. My niece, when she was very young, almost got abducted. And I'm convinced today with what has happened, what is going on in the world with children, that she could have been a statistic. But instead, she's she's thank you, Jesus, she's perfect. She's got a family and she's doing well. So for people who don't know what human trafficking is or don't understand it, can you give us um a picture of what something like this would look like in just even any town in the country, um, I'm sure has lost children or women to human trafficking. So give us an idea of what it looks

The Hidden Reality of Human Trafficking in Every Community

SPEAKER_04 5:40

like.

SPEAKER_01 5:40

Yes, absolutely. Even though uh there is a great myth that says, oh, it doesn't happen in our uh community, that is not true. We know that every 40 seconds, Teresa, a child 18 years or under is abducted. That means they're taken or they're alerted to something that seems safe, maybe a summer job, maybe babysitting, maybe mowing lawns, whatever it is, um, they are actually taken. So every community is affected. So the basic definition, Andy's you know, baseline definition is

Inside the Mind of Traffickers: Coercion, Control, and Fear

SPEAKER_01 6:12

human trafficking is when somebody is forced or coerced to be uh either labored, uh engaged in sexual activity or debt repayment against their will. It could be a child, it could be an adult, but they did not willingly engage, they did not uh offer themselves out for that type of activity. They are literally coerced into it and usually terrorized or their family members or they're threatened, you know, that if you say anything, we're gonna tell your mom, your dad, your family, or we're gonna kill them. And you know, I have many examples of that. So that's the basic rule of thumb. Uh, before human trafficking became a term, you know, there was a lot of familial trafficking, intra uh interfamily trafficking that did not necessarily involve money, but it involved perversion. So basically, human trafficking is driven by perversion and greed, and we always hear about the greed, national headlines, movies, it's all about the money.

SPEAKER_04 7:11

Yeah. Recently, um, was I think it was last

Shocking Statistics

SPEAKER_04 7:14

year, um, Sound of Freedom came out and really put eyes on trafficking of young children. How often you said every how many seconds children are abducted? Every 40 seconds in the US. In the US, and the United States is from what I've what I've read and the research I've done in the past, is that the United States is the number one country that perpetuates this horrible, horrible practice and crime. These are crimes against humanity. So

Why Most Victims Don’t Escape

SPEAKER_04 7:47

um it that's huge, it's ridiculous. And most of the times people don't get out. How do people get out?

SPEAKER_01 7:55

That's right. It is by the grace of God, you know, even in my situation in the early 60s when there wasn't even a conversation about child abuse. If there was something wanky with Uncle Joe or grandpa or whatever, people just swept it under the rug, or they didn't talk about it, didn't invite them to gatherings. But uh, people generally, the statistics from a couple years ago, I always use conservative statistics because it's changed uh dramatically in the last three years with an open border. But statistically, one only one out of every hundred victims will survive or survive long enough to move forward, you know, and go on with the life. The average uh lifespan of a victim once they are engaged in human trafficking activities against their will, as you said, a crime against humanity, a crime against their body and person, um, their average lifespan is seven years after the start. So it's a very hard life, and and people wonder why some of those survivors come out as drug addicts or alcoholics or or whatever. But what you have to realize is their body has been sold in sex uh trafficking, for instance, at least 20 to 25 times a day. Now imagine a child or any adult having that many uh activities in one 24-hour period, and most of the time they are drugged because after a while they just can't they can't do it and they wouldn't do it if they had a choice. And many times they die in the process.

SPEAKER_04 9:24

Oh my goodness. My heart my heart. I think of um, I think of that. I'm gonna go back to that movie because that gave a a really good picture of how covert these uh people who drag these young children into trafficking are. I mean, in that particular movie they had they had um tryouts for um um, I I guess it was um modeling or you know, movie stuff, and the kids were all like, oh, I'm gonna be in pictures, I'm gonna be in pictures. And the next thing you know, they're taken from their families and they're um scattered among among the world. And that's that's the other thing. I just heard just probably 20 minutes before I came on to to do the show today, that there are, since that border has been opened, there are 325,000 children who are missing in this country. No one knows where they are. How often are people are are children and and women mostly taken from a place and then transported to another country? And in that case, they probably never get seen again unless they have a story like the one in the movie.

SPEAKER_01 10:47

Absolutely. So, and that that's the low end of the numbers. That's just what uh has been reported. And here's the thing: it used to be let's say there is a child that comes across our border, let's just take the US and Mexico. That child should be placed in child protective services, CPS, you know, um, and health and human services has to run those things. There should be a 30-day hole in order to verify do you really have family here? Are you connected to anybody? You know, and why aren't they, you know, given physical exams and checked out? Now it's less than 10 days for every child. They're moving them fast through foster care, through CPS, and again, without a checks and balance, those kids most likely will be sold if they haven't already. But to lose that many children, why isn't there an outcry about the agencies that are responsible for those children? And here's the thing: I truly believe there are some parents in other countries that think if only my kid, my child could get to America and make their dreams come true. They're very vulnerable, right? What parent doesn't want? You know, the bright lights, big city, Hollywood, you know, opportunity. Look at all the athletes from different countries that play professional sports. However, the person they send that child or those children with, you know, along the way, are they connected to someone who's going to take those children? Are they being paid to escort their coyotes? You know, is what we call them to take them across the border, and the parents may never see them again. We also have cases, even in the US. I hate to tell people this, but it's true, some families will sell a child either because they have bills to pay or they can't handle it, or for whatever reason. Okay, so children are sold for a number of reasons, and there are plenty out. Yes, the US is, I am going to say, uh complicit in the exponential rise of child sex trafficking, of human trafficking, uh, of what happens to the women and children before they even cross the border. Okay, and so we astonish people when we use you know tough words like raping trees and things, but maybe we need to be uh kind of uh awakened as a community to the brutality of what happens to these adults and children. The children did not have a choice, and now they're in a country, probably don't speak the language, they have no way to do anything except be sold. Maybe some of the young men will go work somewhere, cash under the table, but where do they live? How do they live? How do they utilize the services that we would normally give if we knew, you know, how to bring them in properly?

SPEAKER_04 13:28

Yeah. Oh my goodness. Unbelievable. So it's no wonder you created a not-for-profit, actually, two not-for-profit organizations um dedicated to eradicating human traffic and sexual exploitation. How did you ever get the guts to get started with this after all you've been through? I have to tell you, you're one of my heroes.

unknown 13:52

Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 13:53

I appreciate that. But as you know, it's God's grace. So let me just kind of give you the five and dime for your audiences so they understand the background uh

A Survivor’s Story: 17 Years of Abuse and Survival

SPEAKER_01 14:02

very quickly. In the early 60s, as I said, there weren't any um organizations, there weren't any safe houses. They didn't even talk about child abuse. It was the culture. Uh, I was actually uh trafficked by all immediate and some extended family members from the ages of six months to 17 years old. And again, you know, the image factor, go to church, have an image, whatever it was. Uh, we were very controlled. But the physical abuse, the sexual abuse, the the torture that I had to endure by the age of five, Teresa, it was so bad. And my birth mother said she could take me out anytime. So I

The Moment That Changed Everything: A Child’s Encounter with Faith

SPEAKER_01 14:42

thought if I'm gonna die anyway, I'll beat her to the punch and I'll just go kill myself. And I went to the curb of my house and I waited for a car to be coming by fast enough. It was usually a busy street, but you know, at that day, at that time, there weren't any cars, so I waited. But while I was waiting, and here's how God, here's how God meets people sometimes, in such desperation and pain. I just wanted to be dead so no one could touch me, nobody could, you know, beat me to death, nobody could, you know, control me. And I looked into this huge blue sky and I thought, wow, it's just so big, you know, where does it go? How far does it go? Who made it? Is there someone out there that made this beautiful sky that's bigger than the people that were hurting me? And in that moment, I heard this voice within my heart say, This is not the plan I have for you. Suicide is not the answer. Now I'm five years old. I never would have known what the word suicide meant, but I heard that voice, I felt that voice within my body, and I trusted it. And I decided, you know, okay, I went up to the garage and I just sat against the garage door or stood against it, and I said, if you keep me alive, I will do whatever you call me to do. Those were the exact words. So, as many people know, there's a difference between being asked to do something and being called to do something. And so this blind faith with a God I had met began on that curve. Now, life was not easy. I had um things that uh happened, I was locked up for three months during the summer. You know, I could only uh have a bathroom break a day, and you know, things like that, and because somebody told a lie, and and and so I was locked up. And so I tried to take my life a couple more times, and by the time I was 17, uh I thought, okay, well, I've come this far. So maybe I should try and stick it out because I've already endured so much pain. But uh the summer I turned 17 was the summer of my birth mother the last time she tried to kill me by choking me to death. So it was not an easy life by any means, but I also know that God was always there. He's the one, Jesus is the one that pulled me away from the second story window that I tried to jump out of. He's the one that kept me from cutting my wrist with a steak knife, you know, at age eight. So there was a plan and a purpose, and I try and encourage people no matter what has happened in your life, God has not forgotten you.

SPEAKER_04 17:24

No. Oh man, to be told that this is not what you are called for, and have he's calling you to something, and then to actually, even through everything that you have gone through, be brave enough to say, okay, it's time, and then you step into the role that was prepared for you, despite everything that you had experienced. Um, it takes guts, girl. It takes thank you.

SPEAKER_01 17:56

Well, I'm not gonna say no to that. I I don't think I I clearly knew exactly how it was all gonna happen because it seemed simple. Just go, you know, talk to the teens, rescue them, whatever. Um,

From Trauma to Purpose: Building Beulah’s Place

SPEAKER_01 18:07

but I had this major life event where I had the fourth of ten traumatic brain injuries and I was not able to work in 2008. Uh, lost a very high-paying um corporate training job, and I thought, what am I gonna do? I'm in my, you know, my 40s, and I'm I don't know if this is all my life will be. I lost a year of memory. But during that time is when God inspired Beulas Place and basically said, you don't have to be a rocket science, all you have to do is love them. And I thought, okay, so Ed and I talked about it. We started doing that, we created a safe house system where uh anyone that we vetted, single, married, grandparents, would take one of our kids in for three to five months, and we would uh they had to finish high school, GED or diploma, they had to get a job and maintain it. Sometimes they could earn their way to a car that would be donated, but all in all, all of those kids, what they needed was someone to intercede, to give them guidelines, not judgment. Uh, our our basic plan, because we didn't really have one, was to love unconditionally, and then uh figure out uh their needs, food, housing, you know, jobs, uh, medical, dental, whatever it took, and then create a plan for them, Teresa, where they could go and reintegrate into community again successfully as young adults.

Rescuing Over 300 Youth: How Safe Housing Changes Lives

SPEAKER_04 19:32

Yeah, and that takes, yeah. Well, how awesome to be able to set somebody up in a family that's going to love them and not hurt them and you know be there to advocate for them and make sure that they get what they need. It's it's a huge, huge, huge undertaking, I'm sure. And um, how many kids did you say you you um put through the program? I more than 300, yes?

SPEAKER_01 19:57

Right, in the central Oregon area, and some of those kids came from other places as well, and they ended up in our area. And then, of course, we also did help uh some uh case-by-case kids outside of Oregon. But yeah, and out of those 300, 12 have completed university or college.

SPEAKER_02 20:14

Nice.

SPEAKER_01 20:15

Yeah, homeless to college, and they're changing their world their way. Um, and you know, unfortunately, COVID put a put a kink into what we were doing in terms of we had just gotten a building, we were halfway through renovating it, and uh in Oregon, the the leadership, I use that word loosely, decided that kids were the problem in COVID and and we weren't able to keep the building. But you know, God used that too. So that's when voices of trafficking, uh voices against trafficking was birthed out of uh the Beuless Place success.

SPEAKER_04 20:48

Wow. All right, so we're gonna talk a little bit about that when we get back, but we're gonna we're gonna have to take a break right now. Um, when we get back, I would like to talk to you not only about um what you just said, how God used that, even even in the time of COVID where you could not complete the mission, so to speak. Um, you know, there's it's like the thing, the shortest distance between two points is from A to B, but God's plan usually takes us on a road all the way around before we get to the point, you know. So, and along the way, there are good things, and I can't wait to hear some of them. Yeah. So we'll be right back with Andy Berger, and this is Conversations That Make a Difference. And we're back with Andy Berger. We are talking about human trafficking and voices against trafficking and how Andy has made a difference in the lives of people who have experienced such a horrendous, horrendous um um life after they have been um trafficked. So uh Andy, what are the biggest obstacles and challenges that hinder the work that you're doing, the anti trafficking efforts? Um there are um you know. When you talk to people about this, some of them say, Oh, it's not happening as bad as you think it is. And there's there's huge denial around this. Um, what what are some of the obstacles and the challenges that you each um you go through? And keeping in mind that you have helped so many kids get out and created a safe place for them to be able to live a um a much more peaceful life? What's talk to me? Tell me what what I need to know, what our listeners need to know. And while you're doing that, maybe you want to um um say uh what one thing that I I would like to know, and I'm sure my listeners would like to know as well, is are there certain things that you can see about people who are actually being um abducted, have been abducted and are under the control of somebody else? And is there something that we can do as laymen, if you will, to help those those people, the children or the women who are in this situation?

SPEAKER_01 23:03

All right, so we're gonna call that a two-parter.

SPEAKER_04 23:05

I'm gonna start with absolutely yeah.

SPEAKER_01 23:07

Uh one, as we talked before, breaking the myth that, oh, it doesn't happen here. I know my neighbors. Okay, well, if you know your neighbors, and let's say uh your preteen is trying to socialize and there's a sleepover or a pizza party or something, do you know if that person has additional children? Is there uh a son, you know, that stays in the house while the daughter is having the sleepover? What about the coach that you know doesn't want the parents to come to the pizza party? And that's a true story, you know, didn't want the parents there, just wanted all the girls there, right? Okay, so there are things that happen that look innocent, crowds of any kind. I don't care if you're on the soccer field or if it's you know Super Bowl Sunday, crowds are very, very dangerous for kids. And uh just not so long ago, the the story about the father the daughter went up to use the bathroom in a stadium, you know, at a big uh professional sports game and disappeared, took them 11 days, you know, to find her, which was a miracle. But she was already in another state, she had already been violated. That father will never forget that day. And it doesn't mean we have to police our kids, but we do have to teach them how to be aware, and we need to have some things that I'll offer to help people, uh, like you know, the family code and things like that, to know when their kids are in trouble. But back to obstacles, clearly, you know, funding because if people don't believe it happens, they're not going to support it either in time or with valuable resources. Okay, and there are good organizations out there, but again, it's all about vetting and doing our due diligence to find out who's doing doing the work. You know, what we find

Awareness Is the First Step to Prevention

SPEAKER_01 24:44

a lot of times we have this amazing uh prevention program uh from the Paratus Group and Brian Searcy, and we have tried to get that into schools and try to get families interested in just watching a four-minute video uh five days a week for 90 days. That's it. And your family will definitely be situationally aware, you'll know how to help have conversations with your children. I have a mom who bless her heart, she works two jobs, you know, dad works, they have a couple of kids, but they they spent the $79 one time to do this program and they make it fun. They have taco night on Monday and they they watch the video or they talk about what the video says, and then they that one of the kids gets to choose dinner for the next night, but they were willing to put time and energy, and because of

Warning Signs: How to Spot a Victim in Public

SPEAKER_01 25:33

that, they actually helped uh uh a child that was being abducted, they notice something strange in the restaurant, like the body language of someone who's abused or controlled, they'll usually be quiet, maybe not have eye contact, they won't speak unless the handler, as we call them, tells them to speak, even if it's just ordering pancakes, you know, all of that is done for them. But this couple who had gone through the training felt something was off, and so as the man and this young girl uh exited the restaurant, they got up and they took a picture of the license plate of the car, and then they called the police and they they told them their suspicions and why they thought it was suspicious. The car ended up being stolen, but at least there was a clue for the police to go after. So, again, you know, we don't know whose child that was. But what I say again, we're not trying to police them, we're trying to protect them. But if we don't have a conversation as adults with our kids, the kids that we're involved with, grandkids, foster kids, any kids,

College Campuses and Hidden Dangers for Young Adults

SPEAKER_01 26:37

up to the age of 24, because right now, Teresa, college campuses are the most dangerous for women 18 to 24 years old. It used to be, oh, well, just you might get raped if you went out at night. No, it's way worse than that now. There are recruiters on campuses looking for men and women, young, young men and young women to be uh trafficked. And it could be a party, it could be so many different things that look normal, or that a kid uh a young person says, I want to do that, you know, and I'm here at college and it's okay, right? Because my friends are. It's not always okay. So those obstacles, and then of course, uh our leadership, whether it's the mayor or the school board, uh, head of the school board, or we go all the way up to the White House. What are they doing to help keep America's children safe? And if they're not doing something, why? Pull your support, don't vote for that person. Because here's the crux

Human Trafficking is Right vs Wrong - It's Always Wrong

SPEAKER_01 27:35

human trafficking is not about right versus left, it's about right versus wrong, and it should always be wrong unless you're participating in it or profiting from it, but you're not gonna see that, but it is wrong no matter where you stand, economically, gender-wise, uh political-wise. And here's the other thing that people think it just started in America, right? Wow, that's not true. Human trafficking has been going on since before the Greco-Roman eras. There has always been a trade of human life for sex, for profit, for labor, for debt repayment. So it didn't just occur, we're just now getting a lot more um exposure to it in the last 40, 50 years.

SPEAKER_02 28:24

So this one.

SPEAKER_01 28:27

Yeah, absolutely. And think about the national headlines, think about the university scandals, think about Epstein and Maxwell. Here, here's Jelene Maxwell, well dressed, nice shoes, nice nails, nice hair. What young woman wouldn't want to be like what they saw, right? And so she invites somebody, you know, over, and there you have it. Uh, there are a lot of female predators, and people refuse. That's the other myth. Oh, well, they wouldn't do that, you know. Yeah, they do.

SPEAKER_04 28:58

Yeah, and it's sad, it's really sad. Now, I I don't know if this is um this is uh something that you teach the the kids, but I know that there is a signal, a hand signal that people can use when they are being abused or have been are with somebody that they don't know, that they need help. And I've I've always like for for um for um um a woman in distress. I think this signal is four fingers up, one finger in here, and then you close your hand. Do you know about this signal? Is this something that you teach them?

SPEAKER_01 29:34

I do know about it. I don't specifically teach it because guess who else knows what those signals mean?

SPEAKER_04 29:41

Yeah.

unknown 29:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 29:42

So when you identify yourself as a woman in distress, uh that was a great idea. And it could still work if the predators and people that want an easy hit, a kidnap, uh uh, you know, sexual assault, anything, didn't also know that. They are also using young teenagers to do those signs, to get into somebody's car, into somebody's house, uh, to to do whatever it is they're going to do. And so we have to be careful. So here's an all here's an alternative,

The Power of a Simple Code Word to Save a Life

SPEAKER_01 30:12

okay? If if you have uh whether your family unit is a single person, a married, a family, uh, whatever, roommate situation, we always encourage people to create a code that say let's take a family of four. You got a mom, a dad, two kids. That family should have a code word, something generic, because you don't want to say, well, you know, dial 911 or police. Maybe you say groceries is your word for your family. And when your child uh texts you that word, you know, uh-oh, I gotta go get them, I gotta help, they're in trouble somehow. And and for parents that have trackers on phones, you know, do that immediately. Okay, for adult uh children, say college age or adult teens, uh have the family code, and also if they have two or three kids that they they normally hang with that are regulars in their life, they could also have their own code so that if they're with a friend, because when a teen or a young person's in trouble, they'll probably call a friend first before they would call a parent figure. Um, they could also have a code for them, maybe it's you know beer or maybe it's uh I don't know, dinner or something like that, pizza, whatever that word is, but do not share it with anyone. Um we had a little trouble teaching some of our kids that. Oh, I told you know, so-and-so what my word was. And so we would talk about the responsible way to use that. If you are a parent with young kids and you have a daycare worker or you have someone come to the house or anything like that that you trust and and please vet them out, um, then they could also have access to that word. It's just a quiet way because if some if someone gets snatched, it takes as little as three seconds for a predator to snatch a 10-year-old that weighs 70 pounds. Okay, that's how fast. And a lot of times there's not going to be a way to call, but uh kids are very fast with texting, and so they could text that word or text some help word that you all choose. So that's one way to do it. Another way to prepare, uh, like that couple in the restaurant, they were already prepared, but for those who aren't, go to voicesagainstrafficking.com. We have helplines and hotlines, put them in your phone today. This way, if you see something, you can say something safely. You know, your neighbor's not gonna know, uh, the town's not gonna find out, it's suicide hotline, human trafficking uh suspicion or victim hotline, uh child abuse hotline, all kinds of helplines and hotlines. And if you have children uh who can who can understand the responsibility for those numbers, make sure they have those in their phone too. So uh voices against trafficking has that on there.

SPEAKER_04 32:58

Nice. And these are some of these hotline numbers are national hotline numbers. It doesn't matter.

SPEAKER_01 33:02

Absolutely, yes, absolutely. And Department of Homeland Security, we have that line there too. They will take reports of suspected trafficking, abductions, things like that.

SPEAKER_04 33:13

Okay, good. Um well, you're giving us a lot of information already, so I hope that people who are listening are feeling a little bit safer knowing some of the things that that Andy is sharing with us. This is a national, this is an international, this is a worldwide problem that um people would like to deny, but it's it's alive and well and living in every city in this country and every city in the world probably. So um speaking of all over the place, how much does um the media, let's say, how much are they um what kind of role do they play in this whole thing? I, you know, a lot of times you don't like you won't hear stuff on how to help on the media. To me, that that's kind of like being complicit and or in denial that there is actually a problem.

The Role of Media and Why This Crisis Is Underreported

SPEAKER_04 34:05

So, what part does the media play in this whole thing?

SPEAKER_01 34:08

Well, they should play a major part. And thanks to you and other people that have shows and that are in uh media in general, I appreciate that so much for being part of the solution. But here's the deal it's not uh it's not really news to them because it doesn't gain them anything to talk about that. A lot of big box stores used to have walls with missing children's pictures on it. Why aren't we talking about take 30 seconds out of every show, every newscast to highlight, hey, this this person's missing, or uh as a reminder, go put these numbers in your phone because you know trafficking is an issue, whether it's here or somewhere else, be prepared. Why aren't we encouraging people to be involved in the solution to prevent it, which is the best way to not have it? Okay, if we prevent one victim, it's worth whatever you have to do to do that. So the media, in my opinion, is very lax because they are not using not only my services, which are there for the taking, all our speakers that are involved in voices against trafficking, that are fighting internet, you know, safety and all those things. Uh, we're all here available, and yet getting to mainstream media is very difficult because it's either not sexy or saleable enough. You know, it's not a big headline for them. And honestly, you don't know who's covering up for who, right? Or who's getting paid by who. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 35:34

I have no idea who's getting who's getting uh their palm greased, so to speak, to keep their mouth shut or to say something that's a code for somebody else that doesn't, you know. Um this tunnel runs really deep, really wide, really long, and it's all over the place. So we have to go to a break again. I hate to break this up, but we have to take a break, and we'll be right back with Andy Berger, and we're talking about voices against trafficking and how you can play a part um in the fact that you are becoming aware of some of the things that um are out there that you may not have looked at before. We'll be right back. And we're back. We're having this incredibly good conversation with Andy Berger, who is um with Voices Against Trafficking. She has not-for-profit organizations, has been uh, for those of you who are just joining us, has been trafficked herself, and we are talking

Practical Safety Tools Every Family Should Know

SPEAKER_04 36:30

about what's going on out there, and we're talking about some solutions for families to be able to and practices for families to be able to prepare their kids. You know, Andy, the other day I read something about um 11 kids in a container, in a cargo container, were rescued. And the children, several of them, they were under 11. They were under 11, and several of them said they had been in a store with their their mom and um and they just got they just got taken. They just got taken. Talk to me about how parents can be more mindful. Um, well, obviously, parents, be more mindful of where your children are. Okay. Talk to me about how uh people can actually um do something about this or prevent.

SPEAKER_01 37:24

Absolutely. It gives me chills to even think about that anytime I see a container when I'm traveling or on the you know roads. It's just okay. So to your point, yes, especially with holidays coming up where it gets even busier for a lot of families, school has started, all the there's a lot going on, and so we're not blaming parents. What we're asking them to do is, like you said, please be more aware of where your children are. So I was in a big box store, you know, groceries, sundry, I mean the whole thing, you know, huge. And I saw three little kids in the aisle, uh, the toy aisle. No parents, no adults that seem to be connected to them. But I will tell you what I've experienced and seeing. My guess is the parent probably said, sure, go ahead and look at all the toys, you know, so you can tell Santa or you know, whatever, go entertain yourself basically while I go do grocery shopping.

SPEAKER_02 38:13

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 38:14

But most of those big box doors, where are the toy aisles and things uh next to bathrooms, uh, exterior exit doors, you know, for employees, uh, all kinds of things where somebody could easily snatch them and exit before a parent is even aware of what has happened. They'll think the child is lost in the store, they'll have somebody go over the PA, but but by that time, that's at least an hour. Okay, that's at least an hour. So please be with your child or have an adult that is responsible, watch them because it is so easy, and you do not want that tragedy in your family. You do not want your child to go through what I did or what so many others have gone through. And again, uh, there are a lot of big box do-it-yourself stores, and they have these little sessions, these little classes, which is great, but have a parent or an older guardian there watching the person, giving the lessons, watching around. I'll give another example. Um, big box store in our area. I kept noticing every time I would drive through, I wasn't shopping there, but there was another store I was shopping at, and I and I noticed that there were three black SUVs in the back of the parking lot consistently for about two or three weeks. Okay, well, guess what? I I talked to some of our uh colleagues, and we all uh agreed that they were waiting so that the first SUV could go up and snatch somebody. The second one would be a backup, and if they got lucky, the third one would pick up someone else, okay, as they're coming out of the store with their package or their kid or whatever, and it could be an adult or a child, but they are waiting to pounce, okay? And so we have to be more aware of the parking lots, you know, who's in the stands at our kids' uh, you know, ball games. Uh, what about the dance class? Have you vetted out the teachers? Are you looking at the other parents? Are you looking at, you know, how they respond to certain movements by the kids dancing? It's you know, really cute to have your daughter in a tutu, but you have to be there. You can't just rely on that teacher to be basically the babysitter. Not in these times. It used to be different, but it's not anymore. And it it just really my heart is for people to protect our children. But we have to be more diligent.

SPEAKER_04 40:35

And you know, the other thing, the other thing as far as you know, paying attention, these things right here are huge distractions. Absolutely. How many times you're in the store and you see people with and all they're doing is looking down, looking down, looking down, pay attention to what's going on around you, people, pay attention to what's going on around you. There's even if they're not your children, pay attention to what's going on around you. If you see a child in distress, I would say, I would be the one that goes and says, Are you okay? You know, right. I would be absolutely means that there are go ahead.

SPEAKER_01 41:14

I'm sorry. Oh, I'm so sorry. There was a little glitch. But to your point, you know, school bus areas, you know, there are a lot of times I see kids all by themselves, you know, getting on the bus. And I understand parents work, or you know, maybe grandma isn't well and she can't watch the kids or whatever it is, but I don't have to have little children to be an adult that could volunteer and watch the bus stop, you know, one day a week. Let's say get seven people or five people to watch that area, just from you know, that point of view. Volunteer, uh, you know, vacation Bible school, who's in the parking lot watching who comes in and out, who who's watching for the people watching the children, you know. Um, let's see, what else can we think of? The stores we've already talked about, uh, you know, just all those different things. And if your child has to use the restroom, even if they are 10 years old and they're old enough, stand outside that door, wait for your son, wait for your daughter, make sure they come out, you know, within a reasonable time. I saw a mom do this the other day, and I said, good for you for standing outside waiting for your son. Her two daughters were in the bathroom where I was, so I was watching them without her knowing, and I was making sure they were safe. But she was waiting to make sure her boy came out of that bathroom, you know, and we don't do that enough.

SPEAKER_04 42:28

No, we don't do that enough.

Movies: Sound of Freedom & Taken series with Liam Neeson

SPEAKER_04 42:30

Um, movies. We talked about the there are some movies, Sound of Freedom, and when Sound of Freedom came out, um, there were t-shirts that were being sold afterwards. God's children are not for sale. God's children are not for sale. That's a line from the movie. And Jim Caviezel does a great job in this movie. I think that, you know, there's nothing, there's there's nothing that is um, they don't do anything graphic in the movie, but they de definitely paint a picture of how a certain scenario can play out for children um when they are um when they are when there are people who are looking specifically to take them into this this arena. So Sound of Freedom. What's the other one that you mentioned to me earlier?

SPEAKER_01 43:14

Uh the Taken series with Liam Neeson. Uh they kind of started it uh in a different way. It was definitely you know theatrical, but there is a lot of truth in that movie. One parent didn't want the daughter to go to Europe, the other parent did, and it was, you know, kind of a battle between the two divorced parents. Like the girls go and things happen, but the first one in particular, and then it goes into um uh the second and third movie. But if for a starter movie, if someone hasn't seen that one, start with that, you know, and then you know, if you if I would definitely recommend Sound of Freedom. There are a lot of movies, Ring of Silence. There's so many. Do some research. If you're a movie person, do some research, watch the movies. Uh, YouTube if you want

SEMPI program from Australia

SPEAKER_01 43:55

information. But again, look at credible sources. Why isn't this in the schools? They're teaching all kinds of things. Why don't we have anti-trafficking or prevention? There's a free program called SEMPI, S E M P I out of Australia. 22 countries are using it and they're reducing the homelessness, the hunger, and the incidence of trafficking of children. And I've tried to get that into our area here. And I'm going to keep plugging away because the material is free and it's developed by a survivor and it helps five-year-olds vet their peers all the way up through college. It can be used all the way up through college. So why aren't we saying, yeah, give us more of that? We want that for our school. We want our kids to understand.

SPEAKER_04 44:44

What's the name of the program again? Say it again.

SPEAKER_01 44:46

Senpai, S like Sam, E M P like Peter, I Senpai. So each day in the classroom, uh their teachers, let's let's check our Senpai today. And there are four questions. It's a social communication uh program. And it's something like, you know, did you eat yesterday? Okay, how are did you sleep last night? If you didn't, why did someone come in or were you hungry? You know, things like that. So it asks four simple questions, and at the end, the child will will ask the other child, do we need an adult to help us? Can you imagine if we vetted from five years old up what we could do? It would be humongous.

SPEAKER_04 45:28

It would be humongous. You know, it uh this is there's just so much, so much here. So for those of you who are listening, there's replays on this, replay it, share it with other people. Andy is a wealth of information, and I am I'm floored. You know, the other thing that I wanted to say is we we were talking about you just said college. Okay, so a lot of college kids, even high school kids, they go to other countries on, you know, student um exchange as exchange students. Some dates and one comes to go to the other country. They don't know anybody. They're being entrusted to a family who who knows if they've been really vetted or whatever. Um, and they're in it in a place where they may not even know the language and they're going there for a period of time. Or let's say a group of kids just graduated high school and they're gonna go backpack through Europe or something. What can you tell the family members, parents, and what what tips can you give to these kids who are so ambitious to go on these um adventures, if you will, to keep themselves safe?

SPEAKER_01 46:38

Well, one of the things we've mentioned a few things, but yes, the kids themselves need to have that code. Uh, there should be some responsible adult on the other end or somewhere where they can identify a safe spot. You know, if you're in trouble, where would you go if you could get there? Okay, so the parents need to be involved in that. Even if you have an 18-year-old, okay, sure, we want you to have this advention, but uh this adventure, but here's what needs to happen before you go. And have the conversations. And if you don't know how to have it, ask one of us. We'll we'll help you. We're we're not perfect, but we can tell you what to look for. Um, I I get some physical therapy, and one of the therapists is first time out of Oregon, young girl, beautiful, cute, blonde, adorable, hasn't been out of her hometown for 24 years, and she's going to New York. And so I talked to her about things to look for and what she and her girlfriend need to understand. But they actually have one of the parents in New York who's going to be kind of their their guide or their safe spot, even though they're going to be independently doing activities. So we just need to make the map of safety for our kids because they don't know. They don't know uh what kind of target they are for predators.

SPEAKER_04 47:54

Yeah, I think I think a lot of us are are raised in in house, especially if we are in a very

How To Help Stop Human Trafficking Today

SPEAKER_04 48:00

safe household. Um, we're raised with blinders on that. We don't imagine that this could possibly happen to anyone we know or anyone, one of our children or whatever. We just don't imagine that we can. But I know that you have a lot of resources on the website. Can you tell people a little bit more about the website and what they can get there?

SPEAKER_01 48:20

Okay, on voicesagainstrafficking.com, voicesagainstraffing.com, besides the helpline hotlines, we have our books. Uh as uh Teresa mentioned, there are two books, and proceeds go to uh victims of child uh abuse and exploitation and trafficking. Uh, we also have uh a CD coming out or an album, so to speak, a digital album. It's called Broken Treasures, the inspiration album. We're gonna have positive, you know, songs, message songs. Uh that's gonna be a fundraiser for us and hopefully out right before Thanksgiving. That's a way to support us. Very simple, just like buying a book. We also have the magazine Voices of Courage available on the website and on Amazon. So uh again, you know, lots of resources. If you're a long-term reader, read a book. If you like magazine style that's more editorial, get the magazine. If you love to listen to music, it's coming, and then we're gonna have a TV show next year. Uh, and then usually we try to have one or two free live international uh forums through Facebook and YouTube. Again, it all depends on funding. Right now we're we're a little bit low, and we have survivors that were supporting, uh one in Africa. We have uh actually almost 30 orphaned kids from war and human trafficking in Pakistan. So it's growing, and we're trying to, you know, give them school supplies and things. Uh, and then also in the US and various states as well as my area. So all of they need your help. They need your help. We're a 501c3, so that's one small way that you could help us that would create big results.

SPEAKER_04 49:54

Right.

SPEAKER_01 49:55

And if somebody wanted to donate to the organization, how can they do that? Absolutely. Go to voicesagainstrafficking.com, click on the donate button, and you'll get your tax receipt. Uh, it's through PayPal. You can be recurring or you can be at one time, and every single dollar gets used. None of us are paid. We are all volunteers. We've been volunteers for 20 plus years.

SPEAKER_04 50:15

Andy, you have brought so much information. I don't know how to thank you. For the families that are listening to this, for the mothers, for the fathers, for the children, the daughters, the sons of people who have who love and honor who you are. Please do everything you can in order to be able to make yourself aware of signs and signals that could potentially bring you into harm's way. And for

Voices Against Trafficking: Turning Pain Into Global Impact

SPEAKER_04 50:40

the families that are are um teaching their kids how to stay safe, kudos to you. Be sure to go to voicesagainstrafficking.com and do what you can in order to be able to educate your children and yourselves on how to be aware of what is one of the biggest crimes against humanity, if not the biggest crime against humanity, that is happening every single day, multiple times a day around the world. Andy, thank you. You're welcome. My pleasure. And thank you all for listening to this uh incredibly important uh show of conversations that make a difference. We'll see you next time.

SPEAKER_00 51:21

That brings us to the close of another episode of Conversations That Make a Difference with host Teresa Vellardi. We want to sincerely thank you for tuning in and sharing your time with us today. Our greatest hope is that today's discussion inspired your personal growth, encouraged you to share your unique gift, and gave you the courage to write your own magnificent story. If this message resonated with you, let's keep the conversation going. Take a moment to like, comment, and subscribe on YouTube and follow us on our Conversations That Make a Difference Facebook page. This will ensure you never miss a moment of inspiration. We air new episodes every Tuesday at 5 p.m. Eastern Time. Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe. It truly helps us reach and empower more people. Until next time, keep making a difference. We look forward to welcoming you back next Tuesday to our next conversation.