Restoration
Awaken conducts outreach and provides direct services to women and girls to help them transition out of commercial sexual exploitation (CSE). Nearly all victims served by Awaken have had a history of emotional, physical, or sexual abuse.
We help program participants with long-term and emergency needs including basic outreach, mentorship services, counseling, transitional housing, transportation, financial aid for college, legal and medical assistance, drop-in center (detail below) and much more.
Drop-In Center
In January 2016, Awaken, with the support from caring community partners, opened the Awaken Drop-in Center, located off of 4th and Spokane St, a hot spot for trafficking, prostitution and CSE. Purposefully located, Awaken is removing barriers and increasing accessibility to its programs and services. The center serves individuals’ basic and critical needs, including case management, education, counseling, mentoring, food and clothing. We aim to be a place of safety by being a consistent presence that provides immediate tangible needs and resources offerings help and hope.
Prevention
Awaken offers preventative education efforts targeting the most vulnerable population – disadvantaged youth. Awaken presents at school assemblies, delivers classroom-based curriculum to students, and works with youth groups to talk to local students about the realities of human trafficking and how to prevent it from happening to them or their loved ones.
Awaken has worked with students from Damonte Ranch High School, Vaughn Middle School, Truckee Meadows Community College, the University of Nevada, Reno, and others.
City Transformation
In order to effectively advocate for social change, our community must be involved. Through our lobbying and outreach efforts, Awaken is reaching a diverse cross-section of Nevadans from grassroots supporters to policymakers. We aim to educate and empower individuals with the information and resources they need to combat sex trafficking and CSE. Awaken offers year-round workshops and trainings for law enforcement, hospitals, social service providers, and faith-based groups. We perform outreach through special events and media campaigns.
Through our Professional Network program, community members provide a wide array of in-kind and pro-bono services to the women and girls we serve. Awaken worked closely with the Nevada Attorney General’s office and helped to successfully ensure passage of the AGO’s victim-centered bill, AB 67.
Awaken’s commitment to reaching community members is a key component in the fight against commercial sexual exploitation and sex trafficking in our area. We cannot combat this crime alone and need all our neighbors to be informed about this egregious human rights violation happening right here in our own backyard.
