“The early bird catches the worm.”
We know the meaning of this familiar proverb: the earlier you act, the more likely you are to be successful. But what does this have to do with preventing human trafficking?
Early Action Prevents Future Victims
We at Beautiful Dream Society view prevention of human trafficking along the same lines as “the early bird gets the worm.” Our targets are far more precious than the worms our avian friends pursue. We pursue those whom traffickers are most likely to set their sights on: teens who center their lives around social media (Part I); American youths in a difficult family situation who may be prone to run away (Part II); orphaned children in Lesotho, Africa who have no one to look after them (Part III).
Runaway Youth
Studies estimate that 1 out of 3 runaway youths in the United States are approached by a trafficker within 72 hours of leaving home. Traffickers can spot a runaway youth from a mile away and pinpoint that youth’s vulnerability by offering false care, false love, or false opportunity. Beautiful Dream Society partners with organizations and agencies who help runaway youth. The earlier we can make kids privy to traffickers’ methods before they run away from home, the more likely we can keep them out of human trafficking.
When we act early and reach these vulnerable populations sooner, we can prevent future victims of human trafficking. Beautiful Dream Society is dedicated to a broad variety of prevention efforts so that we can be the early birds who get to the precious ones before traffickers can!
Join Us and Be a BDS Early Bird
Want to be a BDS Early Bird? Here’s a simple way: register to run or sponsor a runner in our Run for the Dream race! If you register BY MAY 22, you can get our Early Bird Registration of $25 ($35 after May 22). Your support of this fundraising event will help us be the early birds when it comes to reaching vulnerable populations. YOU can help us get to them before traffickers can reach them!
Run for the Dream will take place Saturday, June 6 at 8:00 a.m. Meet at Stars and Stripes Park at Lake Hefner in Oklahoma City. You can register to run or walk in our 2K Fun Run, our 5K or 10K races, or to sponsor a runner at: www.beautifuldream.tv/events/run-for-the-dream.