Marc Estes

Over the past few months our church has been investigating ways in which we might assist in combating the child sex trafficking in the Portland/Vancouver area.  Our city has been nicknamed, “Pornland” by Dan Rathers and has become one of the highest areas for sex trafficking in the entire United States.

Our journey has begun, by making a commitment to get involved and use our influence and resources to make a difference. On Sunday evening, August 15th, Pastor Frank presented our passion and commitment to get involved to the congregation at our Super Sunday Night. We asked our congregation to consider getting invovled in five different areas:

1. Commitment to Pray – We handed out thousands of prayer cards and asked people to pray. Over 300 people committed to pray daily for the cause.

2. Purchase a Care Package for Victims – Emergency Care Kits are available to any women who come into a S.A.R.C. drop in center.  Their need consisted of approximately 200 care packages for a year. We were able to commit to purchasing 246 Care Kits, thanks to the generosity of the CBC family.

3. Purchase Quilts – During the winter, most of these young girls are cold and need bedding to assist with their circumstance. The annual need is for 100 quilts. We were able to raise the money to purchase 127 quilts!

4. General Donations – We asked the congregation to donate money toward developing a ministry base in which we might be able to begin attacking the problem. The church raised over $1400 with many more commitments.

5. Volunteer to serve – Almost 200 people stepped up to the plate and made the commitment to serve in some capacity.

I am so proud of our church and their passion and commitment toward those in need. We truly do have a heart for the city and desire to make a difference.  If you are interested in helping us, you can also donate to help with the cause simply by clicking here, and selecting the ”Fight Sex Trafficking” category.

Here is a recent video that was also posted on Facebook, by a close friend, Tanell Morton. It will give you a fresh perspective at the challenges ahead.