Love’s Arm will host the “Lights On” Campaign fundraiser on Aug. 30 from 7-9 p.m. via a Facebook Live event. The event allows donors to sponsor “a day of healing” by covering the costs of what it takes to run Love’s Arm and its residential home for one day. Donors will be able to text-to-give or donate through a link.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, their traditional annual fundraiser was canceled.
Officials said, "The north Georgia I-75 corridor is repeatedly listed as containing the third highest activity of human and sex trafficking in the nation. Love’s Arm is registered as the region’s first resource for victims of sex trafficking and addiction seeking a way out."
Founded in 2005 by Mimi Nikkel while she was teaching at a detention facility, Love’s Arm sends an outreach team throughout Chattanooga and north Georgia to intentionally engage and foster relationships in the streets, strip clubs and motels with victims of sex trafficking. Once a week, these outreach volunteers go to these communities and do three things: introduce themselves, offer a bag of hygiene supplies and offer prayer. Many of the volunteers are survivors themselves, so they are able to offer a level of support and encouragement few else can, officials said.
“Through Love’s Arm, these women learn to love themselves again and care about their bodies and their health,” said sex trafficking survivor, Karen Smith. “I never knew I had value and worth and what love meant. When I see these women figure out what love really is and that they do have value and worth, the light comes back in their eyes. And it’s the biggest blessing in the world.”
Transition into recovery through Love’s Arm includes trauma-informed care, mental health services, healthcare services and a residential home called Rahab’s Rest. Rahab’s Rest is a cost-free, 24-month recovery home for women exiting sex trafficking and addiction.
Love’s Arm does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, age, sexual orientation or any other characteristic. Their 24-hour hotline is 423-500-0400.