Vanessa Perkins, an Ohio resident, has been through some of the worst things imaginable. She’s a survivor of human trafficking and said she was manipulated by her ex-boyfriend and sex and labor trafficked for nearly 10 years. She said she didn’t even realize she had been trafficked until two years after the situation ended.
“I didn't understand anything about the psychological manipulation and control that comes with human trafficking,” Perkins said. “'Cause I didn't identify him as a trafficker. I identified him as a boyfriend. And so to learn that I was tricked in that way, talk about a real tough process to go through.”
It was Franklin County’s CATCH Court that stopped the cycle, but it was a nonprofit called “Freedom a La Cart” in Columbus that made the biggest impact on her life.
“It's a life changing, total game-changing place,” said Perkins.
Spectrum News first introduced viewers to the nonprofit nearly six years ago. At the time it was a catering company, but since then it’s opened up a bakery and café. It’s core hasn’t changed. It's a place where human trafficking survivors like Perkins are lifted up, in a world that has tried to tear them down.
“They taught me how to dress, how to walk into a room, how to have an adult conversation, how to ask for help,” Perkins said. “How to really develop, grow and heal so that I could be employable and self-sufficient for long term.”
All the revenue from the food services helps support survivors. The nonprofit offers mentorship, workforce development training, housing assistance and so much more. Paula Haines, the nonprofit’s CEO said some of the individuals working at Freedom a La Cart in their workforce development program are victims of human trafficking, but not all. It’s a mixed form of employment so that the women are protected.
‘We opened the cafe so that members from the community can come in and enjoy breakfast and lunch,” said Haines. “But then up in the lower level, we have our catering department. So we continue to serve catering throughout Central Ohio and that's where our workforce development program starts in the catering department. And then on the second level is our Survivor Resource Center and so that's where individuals in the community who have experienced human trafficking can reach out for services. And we have support group meetings, we have social connection.”
Perkins used the nonprofit’s resources nearly 15 years ago and now works as the director of programs.
“I've gone through over a decade of trauma and drug use, so to just come into a place of employment and expect me to be able to do it well is unrealistic,” Perkins said. “The space here and the ability to just be however I need to be and work through things and help other people and watch them work through things is a true gift.”
Haines said the company has grown from helping dozens of women before the pandemic to now providing support for about 400 women this year, teaching them to become self-sufficient and realize their value.
“I just want to see a world where we value each other and treat each other as valued humans. I want to see a world where we don't define people by things that have happened to them, but see them for who they are and their worth to society,” Haines said. “Our past does not define our future. And, you know, we look back at our past to learn, but we look forward toward life. And that's where we live. We live in the future. So that's what we're helping these individuals do.”
Through helping survivors and spreading awareness, their dream is to end human trafficking, an issue that doesn’t discriminate.
“They're women in all different stages of life with all different backgrounds,” Haines said. “Some come from poverty, some come from broken homes, while others come from privileged homes and wonderful neighborhoods.”
They call it a cafe with a cause. One order at a time, they’re serving up freedom to victims of human trafficking and a new life.
“I'm happy,” Perkins said. “It's just a lot different. Like, I have this fuller feeling, so I can't be manipulated today. I can't be tricked today.”
Haines said the nonprofit has plans to expand to the Cleveland market in the coming years. For more information about Freedom a La Cart visit here.