October/November Update

The fall has been a time of active ministry for JSASSN.

I’ve had the opportunity to connect with fellow ministers who seek to stop sexual abuse, assault, and trafficking, including friends from Church of the Resurrection, Nea Koi, and Emmaus Ministries in Chicago.

I’ve learned about new educational resources, including the International Justice Mission’s new documentary, “The End of Slavery,” and Heidi Hermann’s blog, “Abolish Human Trafficking.” I was thankful to God to meet Dawn Herzog Jewell and begin reading her book, Escaping the Devil’s Bedroom: Sex Trafficking, Global Prostitution, and the Gospel’s Transforming Power. I’ve also been writing an essay on the prevalence of incest in cases of childhood sexual abuse for a forthcoming book edited by a colleague at Trinity Theological Seminary called The Long Journey Home: Ministering to the Sexually Abused.

I continue to pray along with others around the world for an end to sexual sins and healing for those affected by sexual brokenness, both the abused and the abusers, thinking especially this Christmas season of the “restavèk” children in Haiti, homeless prostitutes on the street in Chicago, and children in America affected by sexual abuse in their own families. Please pray with me so that we may see the world changed by the love of Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit. “For with God, nothing is impossible.” Luke 1:37

Dr. Jane Beal
JSASSN International

August/September 2009 Update

In August, I met a very courageous woman, a rape survivor, who has since become a friend. She had been attacked by two military men in the hotel where she was staying in New York. Another man from the hotel was key in identifying the two perpetrators who are now being held on charges that will be deliberated upon in military courts, where the penalties for crimes are much more severe than in the civil courts. This woman’s story reminded me of the tension between violence and honor in the military.

Rape is far more prevalent in the military than is publicly acknowledged. In fact, in March of this year, I met the poet Brian Turner, who served seven years in the military and authored Here, Bullet, and he spoke of the military hospitals in California with wards specifically for treatment of female soldiers suffering from posttraumatic stress as a result of being raped by their fellow American soldiers or officers while serving overseas. A smaller and even quieter ward is reserved for male soldiers who were raped by men as well.

I have been praying for my friend, her court case, and for the men and women of the US military who have acted out sexual violence against others or been victimized by it.

I’ve also been praying for an end to prostitution and sex trafficking in Chicago, especially for the closure of the so-called “gentlemen’s clubs.” I have been doing some research into ministries that seek to help the estimated 16,000-25,000 prostitutes in Chicago. I have been thankful to discover the program called Footprints sponsored by the Christian Community Health Center, which I will write more about in my next post.

At the same time, I’ve been doing research on the prevalence of incest in cases of childhood sexual abuse as preparation for writing an article on the subject for Moody Bible College Professor Andrew Schmutzer and his book, Ministering to the Sexually Abused. I have been learning many useful things that I hope to synthesize in my essay. The essay and the book as a whole are intended to help ministers, counselors, and others working in church and para-church serving people who have experienced abuse. I continue my work on my own Testimony as well.

Just to follow up on the case of Johnie Dale Damron from previous updates: In Adams County, Ohio, Damron had a pre-trial hearing on August 20, and on September 10, he was convicted of failing to register as a sex offender after he moved to West Virginia. He was sentenced to 10 months in prison, but since he had already served time in jail while delaying his court dates, he will be released on December 12, nine weeks from today. He is currently being held at the Correctional Reception Center in Orient, Ohio and will not be transferred to prison due to the shortness of his remaining sentence. He will be required to pay for all court costs, to have his DNA tested to see if it matches any evidence stored in a government database of unsolved sex crimes, and upon release, to register as a sex offender wherever he chooses to live. He is currently registered in the Ohio Sex Offender registry where his status shows as “incarcerated.” His information can be accessed by entering his name, Damron, and county of commitment, Adams.

On a related note, I filed a report with the Oakland Police Department detailing the sexual abuse I experienced as a child at my father’s hands in 1978. As I already knew, the statute of limitations does not allow the police to investigate this matter or make an arrest nor does it allow the courts to prosecute. However, the officer I communicated with has forwarded my report to Child Protective Services (CPS) in Solano County, California. My counselor, who is a mandated state reporter in cases of sexual abuse, has similarly filed a report with CPS. I do not expect anything to come of these reports due to the amount of time that has passed since the original abuse, but I have followed JSASSN protocol in filing the reports, and they may prove to be useful references in the future.

Dr. Jane Beal
JSASSN International

June/July 2009 Update

In June, I joined the children’s church volunteer staff at Church of the Resurrection (aka Rez) in order to help at the church’s Vacation Bible School. I was so pleased when I learned that, under family life pastor Janet Williamson, Rez has developed a child protection program that all of its volunteer children’s workers must participate in before they can work with children. I took the class and discovered a valuable curriculum that any church can use to screen and train its volunteer staff. The curriculum is called Reducing the Risk, and I recommend all church children’s programs look into using it.

In July, I attended the Exodus International Freedom 2009 Conference held at Wheaton College. The experience was very worthwhile. I attended educational workshops and met a variety of people who, like me, have accepted the brokenness in their lives but continue to see God redeem their past as they look forward to a joyful future. See my post from earlier this month on Exodus International.

Later in July, I attended the Glen Workshop in Santa Fe, New Mexico. This is a gathering of poets, painters, and lyric songwriters as well as other artists. The purpose is to promote faith, art, and mystery within our culture and to do so with Christian integrity. While there, I had the chance to meet and talk with more than half a dozen childhood sexual abuse and assault survivors or their friends and family members. They shared parts of their story with me, and I shared JSASSN resources with them. I also shared my testimony with a small group of twelve or so toward the end of the week.

I praise God for all that I’m learning, and I continue to ask your prayers for me, for JSASSN, and for all the survivors of abuse, assault, and trafficking worldwide.

Dr. Jane Beal
JSASSN International

April/May 2009 Update

April was National Poetry Month. To celebrate, I wrote a poem a day, and I shared my poems in an online community of poets gathered at Robert Lee Brewer’s blog, “Poetic Asides.” I wrote three or four poems on the theme of God’s redemption and how it can work in the lives of those who are recovering from sexual abuse and assault. One of these poems, “Psalm,” received positive feedback from other poets. (I have since posted the poem here on the JSASSN website.) By reading and responding to poems by other survivors, I was able to make personal connections that brought encouragement to those writing about their experiences of abuse. I felt particular solidarity with a Jewish psychologist from Florida who survived sexual abuse, still believes in God, and works to help young people overcome similar, horrific past experiences.

As the school year wrapped up at Wheaton College, I met numerous times with survivors and members of their families. I feel that God has been drawing my attention to the needs of the children of survivors of sexual abuse and assault, survivors who have not been able to receive complete healing from their past. Many times, for example, the hypervigilance and fears of mothers who were abused have a negative impact on the identity formation of their daughters, particularly their attitudes towards human sexuality.

On a personal note, I learned that Johnny Dale Damron first pled guilty to the charges brought against him by the state of Ohio when he was extradited from West Virginia. However, on the date of his sentencing, he changed his plea to not guilty. He will remain in jail until his case is revisited in the courts in August.

In May, I watched the movie, “The Kite Runner.” This is a film about the rape of a young boy and of his country, Afghanistan, among other things. It is an extremely intense story that draws attention to the needs of orphans in Afghanistan, Afghanistan itself, and the larger problem of evil men who do violence to children. I think if survivors watch this movie, it will trigger certain memories and emotions, but in my case, it also reminded me to continue to pray for the end of sexual abuse, assault, and trafficking worldwide.

Later on in the month of May, I spent some time in Spain, primarily to take a spiritual retreat with the Lord in Avila and to make a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. During the trip, I met a member of the Guarda Civil (Civil Guard), and I had a number of meaningful conversations with him about the history of Spain. We talked, among other things, about the dictatorship of Franco and of Pinochet (who ruled in Chilé), and the forms of torture that those men used against the people they persecuted. I was reminded of how evil war and violence really are. Like poverty, war and oppressive governmental regimes create opportunities for sexual assault. Therefore I pray not only for the end of poverty but the end of war.

Dr. Jane Beal
JSASSN International

February/March 2009 Update

Thanks be to God! February and March have been full months of ministry for JSASSN. New Christian ministries to sexual assault survivors have been added to the JSASSN network, Orphan Helpers in Honduras and House of Hope in Nicaragua; the JSASSN website got a new format to make accessing our information easier; and the Jennifer Franet Memorial Membership Drive and Education Outreach succeeded in adding over 100 new members to the JSASSN cause on Facebook, STOP SEX TRAFFICKING. And there’s more!

In March, I once again partnered with the Wheaton College chapter of the International Justice Mission and the International Needs Network, Ghana, to bring representatives from the Vocational Training Center of Adidome, Ghana to speak to Wheaton College. Mercy, a woman formerly trapped in sexual slavery in the trokosi system, gave her testimony while Patience, the director of the VTC, shared about how ING is helping to meet the needs of women in recovery: physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually, and practically. About 100 people were in attendance at the meeting! (For pictures, see Jane’s photo album, “Mercy’s Story,” on Facebook.)

In addition, I was photographed by the Voices and Faces Project, an organization seeking to compile survivors’ stories in order to bring political and cultural change to attitudes toward sexual assault and rape. My story is now part of TVFP database and may be used to raise awareness in TVFP presentations, website, and forthcoming book.

On a personal note, following up on the “ALERT” I posted in January, I wanted to share that Johnnie Dale Damron was arrested in West Virginia for failure to register as a convicted sex offender after the police in Ohio were tipped off by a JSASSN supporter. He has been extradited to Ohio, where he is currently in jail awaiting a trial date in April. If convicted, he could serve up to a year or more for this felony.

More importantly, I had the opportunity to meet and encourage several survivors of sexual assault ss well as their family members in the past two months. I have become vividly aware of the fact that survivors become parents, and the abuse they suffered, if not resolved in a healthy way, negatively impacts their children even when the parents do not become abusers. Interacting with Orphan Helpers and Love, Light, and Melody has also reinforced in my mind how vulnerable to sexual exploitation children, especially orphans, really are when they live in extreme poverty.

Please continue to pray for JSASSN and for the end of sexual abuse, assault, and trafficking worldwide through the love of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit.

Dr. Jane Beal
JSASSN International

Jennifer Franet Memorial Membership Drive

In April of 2008, I joined Facebook, an online social networking site, and I started a cause: STOP SEX TRAFFICKING. Our cause had 125 people join. This year, in 2009, I would like 1000 people to join. So I am inviting everyone who views or reads the JSASSN International site to join my cause on Facebook as I am starting a membership drive in honor of Jennifer Franet.

Jennifer Franet was my best friend. We met when we were 12 years old. This past December, on Christmas Day, she was killed in a car accident — two days after joining our cause, STOP SEX TRAFFICKING.

The last thing she communicated to me before she died was her hope that my spirit and my work through JSASSN International would be a blessing to others.

Will you help me bless the world and fulfill Jennifer’s wish by becoming a part of the Facebook network, joining my cause STOP SEX TRAFFICKING, and inviting 10 of your friends to join this cause this year?

By sharing information about stopping sexual abuse, assault, and trafficking with our friends, I believe more people will pray and become educated and network with others to stop sexual abuse, assault, and trafficking.

Our efforts in prevention, intervention, and redemption can change the world and bring healing to people’s bodies and souls.

Thank you for considering this request and participating in the Jennifer Franet Memorial Membership Drive and Education Outreach.

Dr. Jane Beal
JSASSN International

November/December/January Update

November: I gave a report to the Wheaton College Faculty Missions Project committee on the work I had done in Ghana, West Africa, complete with photo documentation. Many Wheaton leaders learned about the needs of women freed from the trokosi system. I also began doing research to see if it might be possible to start a faith-based poetry workshop program for women in prisons.

December: I had the opportunity to serve on a faculty panel at Wheaton College on HIV-AIDS. I told part of my story and helped raise awareness about the fact that children who experience abuse and assault are at risk of contracting harmful, even fatal sexually transmitted diseases through no fault of their own.

January: On January 8, JSASSN International celebrated one year of online ministry! In 2008, there were over 4000 views of the site, with the majority of views referred by search engines to JSASSN’s “Definitions” page.

In 2008, I had the opportunity to speak publicly on issues of abuse, assault, and trafficking four times: to women who had been set free from the trokosi system in Ghana, West Africa; to the members of the Church of the Savior in what Chicago, Illinois; to students studying the impact of historical events on world geography in a class at Wheaton College; and on an HIV AIDS panel, again, at Wheaton College.

Most importantly, I spoke with a number of sexual abuse and assault survivors and their friends and family members throughout the year in one-on-one meetings, answering their questions and referring them to resources given on the JSASSN website.

I thank God for what He has done, and I am looking forward to what will happen in 2009!

Soli Dei Gloria,

Dr. Jane Beal
JSASSN International

September/October 2008 Update

Ministry: In September, I preached a sermon called “Redemption” at my home church, Church of the Savior, in West Chicago. I spoke about the enslavement of the trokosi in Ghana, West Africa and testified to the redeeming power of God, demonstrated through the intervention of the International Needs Network in the trokosi system, which has brought freedom to thousands of women and girls in West Africa. I also shared my own story of overcoming sexual abuse and assault. After preaching, I was able to speak with another abuse survivor and encourage her at this stage in her healing process.

Partnerships: In October, the Rev. Walter Pimpong, director of the International Needs Network in Ghana, returned to Wheaton College. He spoke in Grad Chapel. I was delighted to spend some meaningful time with Rev. Pimpong and his wife Marion on this side of the Atlantic just five months after our last meeting in Ghana.

Raising awareness: Earlier this year, I completed the Voices and Faces Project (TVFP) sexual assault survivor survey. Recently, Anne Ream, the director of the project, contacted me for permission to use my story on TVFP website and in a book she is writing. I gave this permission readily, and I am looking forward to how God will use my story to help others.

Dr. Jane Beal
JSASSN International

July/August Update

A Chance Encounter?:

At the end of July and the beginning of August, I took a trip to Israel.  On the Delta flight from Atlanta to Tel Aviv, I met a man who works for U.S. Immigration and Customs as a special agent. He was going to work with the Israeli government to prevent the illegal trade of guns and weapons. Previously, however, he had also worked to break up the sex trafficking trade in different places around the world.

It was quite fascinating to talk with this soldier.  We both learned something from each other.  I had little knowledge of government efforts to stop trafficking, and he had little knowledge of the Christian ministries that work to prevent the trade, intervene in it, or redeem those who are victims.

While in Israel, I became aware of the problems of prostitution, particularly in Tel Aviv, as well as a much more visible problem:  the systematic violation of the human rights of the Arabic people living in the West Bank.  

For more a first-hand perspective of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, see Julia Wallin’s photos on Facebook or her blog. 

Patricia Green, Alabastar Jar:

Patricia Green returned to Wheaton College at the beginning of September. She spoke in Grad Chapel about the problem of sex trafficking in Thailand, where she worked with Rahab International Ministries for many years, and in Germany, where she presently works with Alabaster Jar. I was very thankful to hear this message being brought to the attention of the graduate school community.  

Major Announcement:  

September 26-28th is a weekend to remember victims of sex trafficking. Please be in prayer, and spread the word to others who don’t know about the world-wide problem of sexual slavery.

Dr. Jane Beal
JSASSN International

May/June 2008 Update: International Needs Ghana (ING)

I recently spent two weeks in Ghana, West Africa, visiting the International Needs Vocational Training Center in Adidome and the main office in Accra.  

This was an awesome time of building relationships and ministry partnerships.  I believe that the work of the ING VTC is exemplary, a model for other Christian ministries seeking to bring hope and healing to women who have been sexually abused, assaulted, or trafficked.

Below, I explain some of the highlights of the trip.

Ministry to Wheaton College Student Interns:

One of my primary reasons for visiting Ghana, West Africa was to provide practical and spiritual support to Sarah and Michelle, Wheaton College students serving as SMP (Student Missionary Project) interns with International Needs at the Vocational Training Center (VTC) in Adidome, Ghana. 

I spent four days with Sarah and Michelle on site in Adidome and a fifth day visiting Kakum National Forest and the former slave-fort of El Mina in Cape Coast.  During this time, I had the opportunity to listen to the student interns as they processed their feelings and concerns about their cross-cultural experiences.  We prayed and fellowshiped together.  

Ministry for the Office of Christian Outreach:

I also had the opportunity to evaluate the International Needs VTC to determine whether it would be a suitable internship site in future years.  I toured the site, visiting each work-skills training classroom, meeting the teachers and students engaged in learning cloth dyeing, dress making, hair dressing, bread baking, mat weaving, soap making, and so on.  I attended a “micro-finance” workshop sponsored by a visiting professor, which aims to help women successfully run their small businesses, and I attended a reproductive health class, which aims to educate women about their family planning options.  I witnessed the older children of the women leaving to attend school in Adidome and the younger children being cared for in the nursery. 

I systematically photographed the site to give a clear visual picture of what is done there to the Office of Christian Outreach as well as future student interns and those interested in supporting the IN VTC financially.  These pictures are available for viewing in the “my photos” section of my profile, Jane Ellen Louise Beal, on Facebook.

I was deeply encouraged to see the spiritual side of the IN VTC as well.  I attended choir practice one afternoon as well as the Friday evening and Sunday morning church services.  These were powerful opportunity to praise God and hear His Word preached.

I interacted with all the major staff members of the project.  I met with the IN VTC director, Patience Vormawor, as well as the head counselor, Priscilla Kalitsi, discussing the project’s goals and needs.  I also met with Pastor Jacob, who works as an church planter in the Volta region.  I met with other staff in the International Needs main office in the city of Accra, including the director, Rev. Walter Pimpong, after he returned from a fund-raising and speaking tour in Europe.  In a discussion with the head accountant, I learned that over 160 employees work for the ING on a budget of approximately $400,000.  I’ve begun to pray that God would double this budget so that this NGO, which already has all the necessary infrastructure in place, may grow and expand its services to the thousands of women still waiting to be set free from the trokosi system.

It is my conviction that the IN VTC is a project with integrity and that its staff are doing what they say they do.  It is clear that hundreds of women are benefiting economically from their training, emotionally from counseling, and spiritually from the knowledge of the love and power of Jesus Christ.  It is my hope that the Wheaton College Office of Christian Outreach will form a permanent ministry partnership with International Needs in Ghana, West Africa.

Ministry Partnership with International Needs:

I had the opportunity to partner in ministry with the IN VTC staff while on site.  I learned from talking with Sarah and Michelle, as well as Priscilla Kalitsi, the head counselor, that many women who were formerly trapped in the trokosi system now suffer from symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.  Many of the women have a difficult time talking about their experiences in group or in one-on-one settings with the counselor.  (One particularly brave woman, Mercy, is an exception to this.)  So I spoke with Priscilla about the possibility of sharing my testimony of surviving sexual assault in childhood as a way of encouraging the women at the IN VTC.  Priscilla thought this would be an effective way of modeling open communication about past sexually abusive experiences, and she invited me to speak at the Friday night meeting.

So I shared part of my testimony of surviving childhood sexual assault in simple sentences that were then translated into two languages, Ewe and Danmge.  As part of this testimony service, I played two songs on flute:  “Give Me Jesus” and “Evidence of Your Glory.”  I also performed a praise dance at the conclusion to the song “Surrounded” by Audrey Hatcher, which presented a picture of how God surrounds us with His love even when we are afraid or alone or discouraged.  This dance provoked a powerful response among the listeners.  I was deeply thankful for the opportunity praise God in the dance because the praise-dance was able to cross the language barriers and show the love of God visibly to the women present.

Thankfulness

I am deeply thankful to God that I had the opportunity to visit Ghana, West Africa and connect with the people doing such critical work at the International Needs Vocational Training Center.  

 

Dr. Jane Beal

JSASSN International