The Next Step Retreat

At an early age my mother and father taught me to make every day count. My father would ask if I had made a difference in someone’s life today, and if I hadn’t, it was a wasted day.

I have chosen to make a difference in the lives of 40 young women who are survivors of human trafficking. On September 18-21, 2014, I will be hosting a Survivors' Retreat on the Central Coast called The Next Step. 

I have partnered with a local survivor and advocate, Carissa Phelps, who has started a corporation called Runaway Girl, FPC. Her memoir is an amazing story of courage and inspiration, as illustrated in her recent book entitled, “Runaway Girl: Escaping Life on the Streets One Helping Hand at a Time.”

Runaway Girl, FPC, was created by Carissa Phelps to connect survivors of human trafficking with resources, networks and local organizations to protect and care for those who are victims within their own communities. Carissa is in contact with many of the victims in safe havens across the country.These survivors need help developing confidence to succeed in the world.

The four-day September Retreat will answer this need by helping survivors move into the Next Step of their lives. The girls will participate in physical and lifestyle activities, talk therapy sessions and personal growth workshops in a nurturing environment with fellow survivors and mentors. It is their time to think, to reflect and to become whole. They, in turn, will pay it forward by helping others who are still trapped in these horrific and abusive environments.

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter and for choosing to address human trafficking in our community. 

Sincerely,
Joy Danley
Certified Personal Trainer and Lifestyle Fitness Consultant