Woman with horses
“We need to help get them on a path that’s going to create economic empowerment and self-sustainability.”
Rebecca Bender Initiative
Rebecca Bender
Founder & CEO of Rebecca Bender Initiative

Counseling:

We provide segmented recovery counseling for women, children, and families. Individuals need to get proper counseling, and mothers need to obtain counseling and parenting skills to be able to generate trust within the family bond. Mothers need the opportunity to transition to a place where they feel confident to care for their children. It is common for those who have been trafficked or who have been through domestic violence to have mental illness conditions such as psychological trauma, Trauma Bonding, Stockholm Syndrome, PTSD, anxiety, depression, ADD/ADHD, comprehensive difficulties, and insomnia. Recovery counseling, which includes Complex Compound Trauma Counseling, provides the avenue for healing for these conditions, as well as, healing for the emotional trauma previously generated from these conditions.

Substance Recovery:

By partnering with local, community organizations and outpatient medical facilities, we provide a Substance and Stronghold Recovery Program. Many of those who escape from sex trafficking have been forced to use drugs to stay captive. Survivors of both sex trafficking and domestic violence may also have emotional strongholds to the normality of modern-day slavery. These addictions do not vanish just because individuals have been removed from their geographical situation.  Each participant has the opportunity to receive an individualized program, as well as, accountability through other avenues of counseling provided by our partners.

Nonverbal Communication Therapy (Equine/Animal/Music/Art/Gardening/Sportsmanship, etc.):

We intend to implement the REINS model to our current equine/animal therapy format. Each participant will have the opportunity for this specialized healing and rehabilitating program. Music, art, gardening, and sportsmanship therapies provide the opportunity for nonverbal and creative expression. These therapies provide a safe outlet for psychological stress and anxiety and open the doors to decrease denial and increase positive emotional change.

Education/Vocation:

Many women and children who are affected by sex trafficking have a limited education.  A high percentage of women who are escaping domestic violence have been homemakers, have no formal education, and have depended on their abuser for financial support. We provide schooling so these women can obtain a GED, as well as, homeschooling and recreation for their younger children. We also teach life skills and focus on the strengths of the individuals so that they will be able to further their education, obtain jobs, and eventually support themselves.

Employment:

We partner with employment agencies and intend to implement social enterprise with online distribution to create immediate additional employment opportunities.

Financial Literacy:

We educate participants to succeed, by teaching them real-world costs of living and what it means to abide by a budget. Budgeting provides accountability and a sense of responsibility.