It is not often that an individual will go out of his way to help one that he does not know. But our friend, RA Dickey went 9,000 miles and 19,000 feet out of his way to help our sisters that are trapped in the brothels of Mumbai. He did this to to bring hope to hundreds of thousands that are without hope. Along the way, hundreds joined the campaign. Some have been friends of BTC for sometime, many are folks that were once strangers. To RA and all those that have come alongside in the fight against human trafficking, we love you and we are grateful.  Together, we can set beautiful free!

THE HORROR

Kamathipura is a maze of buildings originally created by the British for reasons best left to our imaginations. While independence did come to India, hundreds and thousands of girls are yet to find freedom from the bondage of sex trafficking. The tragedy of which is disguised in the normalcy of its bustling streets. But above the shops are an array of windows framing the faces of women lost without hope, as they appear and disappear like fading portraits. It is behind these innocuous walls, girls are ‘broken in’ like animals and locked in tiny dark cells for many years, the doors open only to those who perpetrate this evil. Kamathipura is a microcosm of what is a rising global phenomenon of sexual slavery.

THE HOPE

Mets pitcher, RA Dickey is partnering with Bombay Teen Challenge. Both RA and BTC are on a quest to end this vicious business. They are working to stop sexual slavery in Mumbai.

It has been a long time desire for Dickey to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro, but the climb will also have a far greater impact than just fulfilling a personal desire. RA will be climbing to bring awareness and funds to aid in a powerful work that is occurring many miles away from home. RA and his wife are passionate about the issue of human trafficking, where young women are often forced into a life of prostitution. They are a special couple who feels the pain of young girls whom they have never met or seen; nonetheless, they want to do what they can to set these girls free.

During the baseball season, when he pitches at his stadium in NY, he climbs up onto the mound and stands before a crowd of over 40,000 fans that are cheering him on to bring victory to his team. This January, RA Dickey will be climbing a different mound, one that is over 19,000 feet above sea level. RA will be climbing for thousands who have no voices for they are held captive in inhumane situations. But we can speak for them and fight for them. Let’s support RA Dickey and his amazing venture so that together we can work to set these beautiful girls free.

He will be climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro to help raise $100,000 for the work that Bombay Teen Challenge does in the Red Light Districts (read more).

HOW YOU CAN HELP

With $100,000, Bombay Teen Challenge will be able to purchase a health clinic right in the heart of the red light district. This will allow thousands of women living in the brothels to become introduced to Bombay Teen Challenge and ultimately, have a chance at freedom.

But we need your help. Contribute and tell your friends to join us in the great move to set beautiful free!

DONATE TODAY

In the Press:

NY Daily News - http://articles.nydailynews.com/2011-12-27/news/30563138_1_dickey-mets-gm-sandy-alderson

The New York Times - http://bats.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/12/07/a-climb-and-a-cause/

ESPN - http://espn.go.com/new-york/mlb/story/_/id/7181208/new-york-mets-pitcher-ra-dickey-climb-mount-kilimanjaro

MLB.com - http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110831&content_id=24014060&vkey=news_mlb&c_id=mlb

The Wall Street Journal - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203479104577123013472544768.html?fb_ref=wsj_share_FB_bot&fb_source=timeline#articleTabs=article

The Stop Sex Slavery Campaign

Responding to the growing menace of sex trafficking, BTC has launched a communications campaign, which will grow into a nation-wide movement to Stop Sexual Slavery.

The campaign opens on many fronts, reaching out to different people groups with strategically used media.

The Press makes you stop and think.

Films dramatize the story and have a high emotional charge.

The Internet gives immediacy, interconnecting people to get involved and take action.

The power of word-of-mouth: people pass on the message, creating a ripple effect.

There are numerous other opportunities to use innovative media and drive the message home in a fresh and exciting way.

It all converges into powerful communication that informs, excites and creates action:

The shock of getting closer to the kernel of truth. A commitment to responsible reportage; balancing human compassion with the responsibility of revealing often bitter truths.

For more info and regular updates please watch this space OR visit http://supportsss.org/

You can also find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube

As the sun sets in Ashagram (Village of Hope), those that live here settle down and begin their chores to wrap up the day and set things for the next. You can see and hear the bustling of activity at the Jubilee home (the home in the village) where little boys and girls scurry around accomplishing their tasks while trying to finish conversations with their buddies and giggling about things that little ones find so humorous. There are the loving home mothers (BTC staff that look after the children) that make sure that all is in order and that the Jubilee home is a safe place. But if one is to silently observe, you will also see another ‘mother’ that is busy making sure all the young ones are brushing their teeth, getting their pajamas on and saying their prayers before turning into bed. There are several things that set this ‘mother’ apart from the others but the most notable must be her age. Shabhanna is her name and she is only eight years old.  No one has asked Shabhanna to take on this role, it’s just something that comes naturally for her. This compassionate and nurturing heart plays a vital role at the Jubilee home especially when a child comes here for the first time, scared and uncertain. Shabhanna will run to the car pick up the young one and does what she does best, let them know they are safe and loved.

Shabhanna was born in the same place as most of the other children at the home, in the hell of Kamithipura, the red light district of Mumbai. Here, women are trafficked into small, dark brothels where they are tortured and forced to satisfy the carnal pleasures of men. Shabhanna was one of three children born to a young woman who lived and worked in the brothels. Her nights were very different from the nights at Jubilee. She and her brother would either walk the streets through the night while their mother was “at work” or worse yet, they would lay quiet under the bed while their mother was at “work” above. As it happens too often, Shabhanna’s mother became ill and as a result, of no value to her brothel keepers. They were thrown out of the brothel and left in the alleys. Within days, Shabhanna’s mother passed away with her children sitting at her side, watching helplessly. Not having any other option, Shabhanna’s older brother brought her and her younger brother to a government run hospital and ran off never to come back again.  Shabhanna’s younger brother, Pir Mohammad was just two at the time and the doctors found that he had the same illness that his mother had passed away from. Pir Mohammad was HIV positive. During this time, a dear friend of BTC was visiting the hospital and heard a child singing in the distance. As she came closer, she saw four year old Shabhanna sitting in the crib beside her younger brother holding him and singing to him. This woman being an American did not understand what was being sung and asked a nurse to translate. It was a song that Shabhanna had made up and she was singing, “Dear little Mohammad, Dear little Mohammad, I know that mummy has died and you are not well. But don’t cry, I will look after you and be sure you grow up to be a strong man.” The American woman told BTC about this and the children were brought to Ashagram. That was four years ago. Today, Pir Mohammad is a healthy and strong young boy who receives proper medical care so that he can grow up to be a strong man. Shabhanna is a beautiful young girl who the Lord is shaping up to do some amazing things. They both go to sleep in a safe and loving place knowing that a new day is waiting for them filled with promise and hope.

Through the darkness and despair, the Lord has not forgotten the cries of the orphans and widows. As the psalmist says, “extol Him who rides on the clouds,” “He is a father to the fatherless, a defender of widows.” We at Bombay Teen Challenge are honored to be a part of His plan and to see how He restores.

Syed When the BTC Staff Found Him

The unsuspecting man was waiting at the platform for the next train to take him to the next meeting. Fully immersed in the article he was reading in the newspaper, he didn’t notice when young Syed brushed past him and took the wallet right from his back pocket. What would turn out to be a difficult day for the man was for Syed, a very lucky day. There was enough money in his new found treasure to buy some food and even more importantly, to buy some drugs. These two things would keep him satisfied for at least a day. But what tormented Syed would be what happens when tomorrow came and the satisfaction was dried up.

This is not how Syed thought his life would end up.  At the age of 14, he was a beggar, a thief, and a drug addict.  But what other choice did he have, this must have been his karma, the gods must have been angry at him and the best he could hope for was to do better in the next life. At least this was what he was taught. Syed grew up in a small village with two older sisters and a father who loved nothing but his alcohol. An angry man, he would come home drunk every night and unleash his wrath on the three children. Not being able to withstand the physical torture any longer, he and his two sisters ran away to the city of Mumbai. They did not know where they were going; they only knew that what was to come had to be better than what they were leaving.

With just enough money to arrive at the Bandra train station in the big city of Mumbai, they soon realized that this would be their new home. With no one to receive them and no money for a place, they slept on the train platform beside the stray dogs. It was not too long before the siblings resorted to any possible tactic to survive.  At first, it was just begging for food and money from strangers but this was not enough for them to live. They then turned to stealing whenever they could, whether it was from stores or individuals. Life became all the more worse for Syed when one day, his two sisters disappeared and he was never to see them again.

The despair of loneliness crept into Syed and all the food and money he could steal could not take this away. To be rid of this despair, Syed began taking drugs and before long, he was addicted. He would numb the pain and experience pleasure but it would never last long enough and left him feeling even more desperate once the effects of this drug faded.  Deeply saddened and tormented and with nowhere to go, Syed resigned himself to believe that this was his lot in life and joy and peace was not his fate. This was until one day; Syed came in contact with a small team from BTC that was walking through the train station. Sitting by the station, he noticed that this team was walking through the station and spending time talking and what it seemed to be praying with others that were in his same situation. Rarely did anyone talk to one of them unless it was the police barking at them to move from their place. But here was this group of folks that had come intentionally to spend time with those that the rest of society had discarded. The team noticed Syed staring intently and started walking toward him. Syed did not know what to expect, only that he longed for something, not sure what, but something that he did not have and something that all the drugs he could buy could not fulfill. The team came to him and began explaining why they were here and what was propelling them to do this. They then started speaking of this God that was the one true God that knew him by His name and loved him so much that He paid the penalty for all the wrong that Syed had ever done and would do. Syed didn’t understand all of this but he definitely wanted to know this God that they were speaking of.  The unimaginable then happened, the team told him about Bombay Teen Challenge and the home they had for young men and women like him. With fear and a hope he had not known before, Syed agreed and went with them.

That was seven years ago, it has not been an easy road as BTC has had to help him overcome his addictions and the hurt he has gone through. Combined with the physical pain of withdrawal symptoms was the emotional pain of learning to love and be loved.   Syed, overwhelmed by all that confronted him ran away from BTC. One year later, Syed returned of his own accord. When the Lord redeems, He makes whole what has been broken.

Syed at Graduation

Syed successfully graduated from the rehabilitation program and then completed high school. The Lord has given him wonderful skills to play the guitar and write worship songs in the Indian language of Hindi. In March of 2010, Syed graduated from Bible College and is now on staff at Bombay Teen Challenge. Syed’s life is a testimony of a God who relentlessly pursues His children with love and mercy. We have only begun to see the great plans that God has for Syed’s life.