Raleigh Sadler reached a turning point in his life when he met Anna, a woman who was being exploited by her boyfriend. For five years, as she sat in a church pew every Sunday, no one ever asked her if anything was wrong.

Catalyzed by this experience, Sadler began to build Let My People Go, and, last Tuesday, launched the nonprofit.

Let My People Go fights human trafficking by educating churches on how to spot trafficked individuals and by providing churches with the resources they need to reach out to a victim. They bring churches together to fight this tragedy and Tuesday’s launch was just the beginning of their efforts.

Close to 100 people came to Let My People Go’s event Tuesday night at Calvary-St. George's parish. The organization’s team brought in an incredible lineup of speakers, including representatives from NYPD, Vice, Homeland Security, and the International Justice Mission. The program also included remarks from two sex trafficking survivors and the international, best-selling author of "A Harvest of Thorns," Corban Addison.

From beginning to end, the energy in the air was undeniable as Let My People Go’s groundbreaking vision was presented.

“Let My People Go exists to empower the local church to fight human trafficking by loving those most vulnerable. We want the church to be the tip of the spear [in this fight],” Sadler said, describing the nonprofit’s mission.

Speakers after Sandler challenged the audience to start loving the vulnerable--the undocumented, the single moms, and those from unstable families. And to love them not only as individuals, but by collaborating and innovating together as the church.

Beyond the lineup of speakers, another group was present at Tuesday’s launch: The House of Sojourner Truth. Let My People Go reached out to The King’s College last semester. Administration connected the organization with the House of Truth as a ministry partner. From there, the House’s chamberlain, Evelyn Stetzer ('18), started working on a project unlike anything the House had taken on before.

“Let My People go asked us to take on a two and a half month-long project, representing them to churches and speaking on their behalf to invite them to the launch," Stetzer shared.

Stetzer and a group of four or five girls from the House committed to emailing churches over the course of two months. They put in time every week to reach out to a few churches. Plus, at the recent King’s clergy panel the team reached out to each church there -- and most of them were already planning on attending the launch. Then on the night of the event, 11 “Truthies” volunteered, registered attendees, set up, and did anything the organization needed.

Stetzer hopes the House of Truth's partnership with Let My People Go will influence how King's students see serving the way God has called us to.

“The student body represents a lot of different churches and backgrounds. But it’s a nonnegotiable to care about the broken," Stetzer added.

As one speaker put it, “When the church comes together to start meeting needs, it’s amazing the difference it makes in people’s lives.”

Let My People Go is ready to work hard to help the local church make an impact on human trafficking, and the House of Truth is excited to partner with them in their efforts.

New Anti-Trafficking Organization Launches, Partners with the House of Truth