THE FOUNDERS
BEHIND PATH2FREEDOM
“NEVER THE SAME SINCE MEETING THE ONE”
— ANA STEVENSON, FOUNDER
Brittany stood at the front of the room with tears streaming down her cheeks, her head bowed in shame. Fear and pain marked her face, yet she spoke with remarkable courage as she recounted her story. Deceived by an extended family member, she was trapped in a sex trafficking ring for two and a half years—drugged, exploited daily, and, in one horrific instance, forced to endure more than 50 men in a single night. A few months into her nightmare, Brittany became pregnant by her trafficker, yet the exploitation continued throughout her pregnancy. Only days after giving birth, she was forced back into the commercial sex trade. In her darkest moments, she begged God to end her life.
On Friday, January 30, 2015, I was among a handful of people invited to a meeting to hear from Brittany, a sex trafficked survivor, as she shared her story for the first time. It was shocking, to say the least. That encounter radically changed the course of my life. Her story moved me deeply across a spectrum of emotions, from sadness to disbelief, then outrage, and ultimately to a driving sense that I must do something!
Imagine for a moment this victim being your daughter or son, sister or brother, niece or nephew, grandchild, or a family member of a dear friend. How can this be real? Who is there to help these poor souls escape? Who will have the courage to pave a path to freedom for these desperate victims?
Path2Freedom was born from that moment. In Florida, there were no long-term, evidence-based trauma facilities dedicated to sex trafficking survivors. Our campuses provide safe, restorative housing, along with trauma-informed counseling, medical care, education, employment support, social reintegration, and spiritual reconciliation. Our goal is to empower survivors to rebuild their lives with independence, dignity, and hope.
Florida has one of the highest rates of human sex trafficking in the nation, yet most people are unaware it is happening in their own communities. Every survivor, like Brittany, deserves the opportunity that freedom brings—and a future filled with promise.