As we end another year,
I could easily make a list of things that drive me in my personal life from my wife, kids and grandkids, to my work as an explosives countermeasure specialist, but I can just as easily make a list that drives me with how much sorrow and suffering I have personally witnessed in our world.
I have witnessed firsthand the darkness in our world, from war, famine, government corruption, and the exploitation of children. After being exposed to the darkness, I can’t pretend it’s not there. In my eyes, the absolute worst is the use of children as sex slaves. I will never understand how anyone can receive pleasure from abusing a child.
As we head into the New Year, we tend to approach it with optimism about what is to come. For me, I approach it with optimism about the lives that will be saved.
In the US, we conducted approximately 100 investigations into child predators attempting to lure our children into child trafficking and exploitation. We work to identify these individuals and threats to our children and provide information to law enforcement agencies. As recently as earlier this month, we worked closely with law enforcement to reunite a 15 year old American girl who was being trafficked by a family member in Mexico. In this specific case, we coordinated with law enforcement to provide them real time information, assisted with the coordination of the rescue, and we’re able to provide updates when the reunification with her mother occurred.
Over the course of 2022 we also had the privilege to speak to over 2000 school students. This has been a huge step for us to not only stop the exploitation before it starts, but also to get to these kids, who may have already begun to be exploited and to let them know there is hope and a way out. We are providing these kids a pathway forward out of their situations.
In the past year, we have rescued 5 kids in Uganda, 3 girls and 2 boys. The Asservo Project has provided safe housing, food, clothing, tuition and other needs. The girls are all in school. We are currently preparing for the others to start school in 2023.
We have been asked to work in Cambodia, Nepal and Uganda, to assist in providing the appropriate care and necessary treatment for survivors.
We are also working with partners in Cambodia and Nepal on security initiatives to ensure that these facilities where survivors can have safe housing, schooling and their needs met, are truly safe for them and the staff caring for them.
These are the things that continue to drive me and give me hope for 2023. What is it that drives you?
I will never forget when we founded The Asservo Project, how many people told me that we can’t rescue the survivors, that we can’t identify these predators online, that we can’t end human trafficking in our lifetime, and although we may not see human trafficking end in our lifetime we do believe we can make a huge difference.
Can’t is not in our vocabulary and we pray it’s not in yours.
William Wilberforce once said, “You may choose to look the other way but you can never say again that you did not know.”
We pray that you will consider an end of the year donation to continue the fight against human trafficking. Through your gift, we are impacting lives. We are identifying traffickers, and seeing the restoration of victims.
From myself and all of us here at The Asservo Project, may you and yours have a blessed year in 2023.
With thanks,
Joseph Sweeney
Co-Founder/CEO
The Asservo Project