North Augusta church will host educational forum on human trafficking

Samantha Winn, Aiken Standard, S.C.
·3 min read

Jan. 12—Through prayers and reading through the Bible, Twyla Tuten and the Anglican Church of the Holy Trinity decided to take action on a social initiative.

A forum to discuss human trafficking will be held Jan. 25 at the church located at 160 Merovan Drive in North Augusta. The forum coincides with human trafficking awareness month, which is acknowledged annually in January.

"At our church we have been praying over Matthew 25, that is where Jesus exhorts us to care for those and visit those in prison, to help the homeless, to feed the poor," she said. "... We were just sort of realizing that we ... have never really addressed the area of human trafficking."

Tuten, the chairman of the missions committee at the Anglican Church of the Holy Trinity, wanted to help provide educational resources to parents in the CSRA about the dangers and warning signs of human trafficking.

"I've learned a lot of shocking details and a lot of things that I would rather not know as I've researched this topic and talked to folks," Tuten said. "It is a multibillion-dollar business."

"Our community, particularly our families, need to be aware and that this is a very dark," Tuten said. "... It's a very prevalent, very big risk to our children, especially since we increasingly encourage people to be online and on laptops when they have to do school work and play on them. You just have to be so vigilant about what goes into your children's minds; and we are encouraging parents especially to be aware of this, and they need to be aware and they need to be educated on the dangers and certain signs to look for and I'm hopeful that my speakers can do that and provide that for us."

Several law enforcement officers will be in attendance to share their knowledge on the topic.

From Georgia's Richmond County Sheriff's Office, investigator Terry Gore will speak about his experience related to crimes against children. He has over 36 years of law enforcement experience, worked alongside the GA Bureau of Investigation and with the FBI.

Deputy James Kemfort from Lexington County will also be speaking at the forum. Kemfort is currently a representative to the South Carolina Human Trafficking Taskforce and has previously served as a School Resource Officer, Patrol Supervisor, Major Crimes Investigator, Homicide Detective, Special Victims Unit Detective and Field Training officer.

In addition, the Columbia nonprofit Lighthouse for Life, will be sharing resources related human trafficking.

Tuten hopes the knowledge helps others and impacts the community.

"We realized a number of years ago that you need to put your money, your prayers, your hands to the work," Tuten said. ".... We have become aware of it and what an insidious issue it is in our society and what a threat it is to our families."

The free event will have a light supper and childcare upon request. Registration is required and can be found via an Eventbrite signup. Participants can also call the church prior to the event to register at 803-426-119.

Samantha Winn covers the city of North Augusta, with a focus on government and community oriented business. Follow her on Twitter: @samanthamwinn and on Facebook and Instagram: @swinnnews.