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Our Team


Executive Director – Jeff:

 

Jeff is the Founder of Gracehaven. As an Obstetrician/Gynecologist on staff with the Christian Medical Association, in 2005 he was asked by the State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons to research the health consequences of human trafficking. From 2005 through 2008 he submitted an annual report on the health consequences of human trafficking to the Director of the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons. This research resulted in the publication of an article entitled “Human Trafficking and the Healthcare Professional” in the May 2008 issue of the Southern Medical Journal. Since December of 2005, Jeff’s work against human trafficking has also included teaching healthcare professionals to recognize potential human trafficking victims through public speaking and by producing the first online CME program regarding human trafficking specifically directed towards healthcare professionals. In 2006, he completed a consultation on the health needs of trafficking victims in Sierra Leone and Liberia for the State Department. Since 2008, he has focused his anti-trafficking efforts to creating Gracehaven, a non-profit organization creating a shelter for adolescent girls who have been commercially sexually exploited in central Ohio.


Director of Training & Education – Theresa:

Theresa is a survivor of domestic sex trafficking when she was a teenager living in the Detroit area. She initially wrote her story in her first book, “The Sacred Bath: An American Teens story of Modern Day Slavery.” She has subsequently republished her story in the book entitled “The Slave Across the Street.”

Theresa lives in Central Ohio and is the single mother of three beautiful children. Theresa has been a licensed Social Worker for nearly twenty years and received her Master’s in Counseling Education from University of Dayton as a Human Development Specialist. She is a spokeswoman for Gracehaven in addition to her duties as Director of Training and Education.

She is featured by the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center Museum in a traveling exhibit entitled, Invisible Slavery. She lectures internationally on human trafficking, multi-cultural and parenting issues and has been seen on ONN, ABC and FOX28.

Excerpt from The Sacred Bath: An American Teen’s Story of Modern Day Slavery

“My story is a bit unique… I lived in a nice neighborhood and had a wonderful family. We weren’t poor and I wasn’t neglected. Yet I was targeted by a group of very evil men who used me, tortured me and made me do things for them and other men for their profit. I was kidnapped and left for dead. They didn’t care about me as a human being and didn’t value women.” —Theresa

Program Director- Megan T:

Megan graduated from the University of Dayton with a BA in International Studies and Human Rights. Following graduation she moved to Washington DC  to work as a Case Manager at Ayuda providing services to international survivors of both sex and labor trafficking. After working for Ayuda she worked for two years as an Executive Assistant the National Campaign Against Torture. Working with survivors of trafficking and torture led her to pursue  an advanced degree in clinical social work, which she received from Boston College this past May.While in school she spent time working at the International Institute of Boston as the Survivor of Violence Victim Advocate. As an advocate she provided comprehensive social services to survivors of trafficking, torture, war trauma and domestic violence. She finished her final year internship back in Washington DC where she worked as a fellow with FAIR Fund, a youth empowerment and anti- trafficking organization. As a fellow she helped implement programs to help girls say safe from trafficking and provided services to girls at risk for becoming trafficked as well as those who had been involved in commercial sex exploitation. She loves to cook, travel, and spend time raising her newly adopted puppy, Cullen, and is very excited to join the Gracehaven team!

 

Outreach Social Worker – Megan C:

Megan is a licensed social worker who graduated Summa Cum Laude from Capital University with her degree in social work. Early experience includes the YWCA’s Permanent Supportive Housing Program for formerly homeless women struggling with mental illness and addiction. Megan also worked as a pastoral assistant at Vineyard Church of Columbus where her work included assisting women’s prison ministry, outreach to the homeless, leading a women’s group, pastoral counseling and sermon research for the senior pastor. Megan also regularly worked at its food pantry and nursing home ministry outreach.

Megan has a passion for working with women who have been sexually abused and who want to walk in freedom from their past. To this end she has organized and lead a recovery group for sexual abuse survivors. A book of Megan’s poetry was published when she was twenty-two.

Five years ago, after discovering Gary Haugen’s inspirational work at the International Justice Mission, Megan began her own research and writing on Human Trafficking.

Megan lives in Columbus, Ohio. Her greatest joy in life is being an aunt to her amazing nephews and niece: Liam, Cora, Finn and Martin.

Executive Assistant-Kendra

If you’ve sent in an email to info@gracehavenhouse.org, you’ve probably interacted with Kendra. Kendra is our amazing, multi-talented and altogether humble executive assistant. Since Kendra is the one who keeps everything running smoothly at Gracehaven, it helps that running is also one of her passions!  Beyond that, she is a strong believer in the vision of Gracehaven in our fight against child sex trafficking.