Grayce Belvedere Young (host), Lee Roper-Batker, Ramsey County Attorney John Choi, Leslie Kupchella (host).
GOLDEN VALLEY COUNTRY CLUB, (9/20/12) – Over 100 guests attended an educational event on Sept. 20 to learn more about child sex trafficking in our state and what the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota and partners are doing to address it.
The event was hosted by Grayce Belvedere Young, president of the Prouty Project and former Women’s Foundation board chair, and husband Dan Young, and friends Leslie and Rick Kupchella.
The program for the evening included an overview of the MN Girls Are Not For Sale campaign by Lee Roper-Batker, Women’s Foundation president and CEO, and remarks by Ramsey County Attorney John Choi about the victim-centered approach Ramsey County is taking to address the issue.
To drive home what is at stake for girls being trafficked in Minnesota right now, Choi played a recording of a recent 911 call made by a terrified girl calling for help. The girl explained to the dispatcher that she had been held captive in a hotel by two adults for a week and forced to have sex with many men each day. (Note: The police rescued the girl and connected her to housing and treatment. The perpetrators were arrested and charged.)
“Raising awareness and funds is vital to ending this crime to the girls in our community,” said Belvedere Young.
Thanks to the generosity of those who attended the event, over $25,000 was raised to help fund the systemic solution Minnesota is building for the child victims of sex trafficking.
