Beyond Existing - Beyond the Small Talk
Has life's struggles left you feeling like you were going through your days "just existing?" In this podcast you will hear stories/testimonies from myself and others who have dealt with the struggles life has to offer and getting to that place in which life is being lived "beyond existing." I appreciate all of those who have been willing to "put themselves out there" to open up and share personal information for the betterment of others.
Beyond Existing - Beyond the Small Talk
Human Trafficking Up Close and How a Mission Trip Led to a Greater Calling for Shamirah
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We talk with Shamirah about becoming Messianic, surviving PTSD, and how that journey led her into mission work connected to trafficking survivors in Turkey and later, the Middle East. We share what she saw, what changed in her trust and faith, and what ordinary people can watch for when something feels off.
• human trafficking statistics that frame the scale of the crisis
• what it means to be a Messianic Jew and why it mattered in her story
• surviving church trauma and rebuilding faith after PTSD
• how YWAM training led to overseas missions and high-risk service
• working at a refugee center supporting trafficked women and children
• the arrest story and the unexpected conversation in a police station
• why some survivors refuse to return to the US or UK after rescue
• how rescue work can feel like spiritual warfare and take a mental toll
• practical red flags in public spaces and why reporting matters
• starting a local Messianic Facebook group to build community
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Welcome And Trafficking By The Numbers
SPEAKER_01Hi, and welcome back to the Beyond Existing, Beyond the Small Talk podcast. Today I've got a guest who is she has enlightened me so much on just the dark things that go on in this world, and she actually worked and did risky work in child trafficking. And for privacy reasons, we can't really get into that, but today she's gonna share her backstory of what got her involved in this in the first place. Before we get into that though, I want to share some global trafficking statistics that I found on the Tim Tebow Foundation website. And this information comes from the International Labor Organization and the State Department. 50 million people are trapped in human trafficking, and 70 to 71 percent of all are women and girls. 25% are children. Between 600,000 and 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders each year. 80% are female, with half being children. A life is estimated to be bought and sold as often as every two minutes globally. She's
Messianic Judaism And Finding Roots
SPEAKER_01here today. Hello, Shamira. Welcome to the podcast. Uh Shemira is like one of the most humble, but one of the most creative and interesting people that I know. And uh she is an unashamed follower of Christ. We worked together uh for probably about a year. Yeah. Yeah, six months to a year. Yeah, and so we had like a lot of awesome conversations and like she just she knows so much about so many things, but uh she owns her own business in landscape design and just she's just taught me so much about that, but she's also taught me a lot about the Jewish tradition because she is messianic, and that's kind of what led her in into all of this. Um, so that's kind of the direction we're gonna start. If you can, Shamira, just kind of before we get started into the rescue work that you did with the church camp, if you could just tell us a little bit about being messianic and the traditions, because there's so many in our audience who just don't know.
SPEAKER_03Oh, yeah. Well, being a messian Jew means you're a Jew who believes in Jesus. And sometimes it's Jews who are ethnically Jewish, who come from a Hasidic or some other type of Jewish background, who have come to know Jesus and realize, hey, he's the Messiah as prophesied in the old testament. And then some are just they were once Christians, but they really like, you know, the Messianic traditions, and so they became Messianic Jews. I'm kind of half and half. Um, I was raised in a Pentecostal church, but uh that led to me getting some PTSD. So that led me on a journey to find my roots and where I came from, which you know, DNA test and family tree later, I discovered I was Jewish. So I went on a deep dive of the Jewish traditions, the Jewish ethnicity, culture, religion, food, music, all of it. And I just submerged myself into it, and now I'm a messianic Jew, and I absolutely love it.
SPEAKER_01So you were at a um specific, not all Pentecostal churches, but this one particular Pentecostal church you were in caused you to have this PTSD.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Okay, and I was a teenager, and the pastor's son was having some struggles in life. Uh, he was deep into drugs and alcohol, and he attempted to do bad things to me, and as a result, I ended up with PTSD. And it was a huge struggle for a long time. I hated God. I tried to convince myself that God wasn't real and that if there truly was a God, he wouldn't have let this happen to me. But you know, the little voice, small voice in the back of your head saying, No, I'm here. I'm with you, I've never left you. And I did not want them to do that to you. So I ended up coming back to God very slowly. It wasn't until probably my late teens. This PTS thing happened to me at 13 years old. And I was 17, 18 when I came back to God. So that was it was a long, long journey through high school without God.
SPEAKER_01Wow. High school years without God. I can't imagine.
SPEAKER_03Yes, it was it was interesting to say the least.
SPEAKER_01Oh man. Especially when you're a teenager. So what drew you into the messianic? Like, did you did you have a rabbi near your house or how did you at the time from like late teens on, I was researching, you know, all the Jewish traditions.
SPEAKER_03I had started keeping kosher and I was set and I was celebrating Sabbath to some degree. There were no Saturday service type churches or synagogues in my area. But I would, you know, every Saturday morning I would get up and I'd pray and I'd read the Bible, and you know, every Friday night I did the Shabbat prayers and I would have the big meal and all of that. But once I moved to Florida, because I was still on a journey for God. Because I kind of lost my faith in humanity, but I hadn't lost my faith in God. And I was like, Well, Lord, where do you want me to go? And you know, I'm Jewish, but I I believe in Jesus. Are there synagogues that will let me in? Not even realizing messianic was a thing. And then while I was at Wywam, Youth with a Mission, uh, there was a messianic synagogue about 20 minutes away, because this was a big city, so it's not like in your small town you drive 15 minutes, you're at your church. No, this you had to drive a good 30 minutes to go two miles. Sound like Atlanta. Yeah, it was almost like it was Jacksonville, so yeah. And I went to the messianic synagogue there, and I remember telling the rabbi, I said, you know, I wish I could convert. I'd like to convert. And he said, You can't convert if you already are. If you're Jewish, just be Jewish. If you believe in Jesus, just believe in Jesus. If you're both, then just be both.
SPEAKER_01That's wonderful. Yeah. That's wonderful. Because I had a friend who looked into converting to Judaism, and it was gonna be a two-year process.
SPEAKER_03Oh, yeah, which is wild to me because in the Christian faith, you just start being Christian. Right, exactly. You accept the Lord into your heart, and then you are just Christian. Whereas with you know, the Hasidic or Orthodox, it's a two-year process. You gotta do all these weird things, and it's just like, wow.
SPEAKER_01Yeah a lot. Yeah. Now, um, how did your family, how did you get your family pulled into uh Jud well, being Judaism or not Judaism, but I guess messianic?
SPEAKER_03Unknowingly to me, my dad had always loved the Jewish faith. He was always curious about it. Especially since his mom had very unique and weird traditions. Every year she would celebrate Christmas for eight nights and she would light a candle every single night, which you know, if you're Jewish, you know. Oh, Hanukkah, you light a candle every night. So she would do that, and then at at Easter, she would do the Seder plate, the Passover Seder plate. And Dad was like, you know, that's Jewish, Mom, right? And she said, Oh no, it's not Jewish. What's a Seder plate? It is when you have all these different food elements that represent something that happened long ago when the people of Egypt were escaping slavery. So you have the bitter herbs that remind us of the bitter hard times we went through. You have the lamb shankbone that represents that one day a sacrifice would come, which as we all know is Jesus, who would save the people of earth, which they thought it was just the Jews. No, it's everybody. It's everybody. And, you know, there's all these different things, and there's a whole ceremony. But my grandma would have that satyr plate every year at Easter. And so my dad was like, that's weird. Why do we do that? No one else at church does that, and no one else celebrates Christmas for eight nights and lights a candle every night. You know, this is weird, Mom. Where did these traditions come from? She's like, Oh, we're Irish.
SPEAKER_01Irish. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Wait, then it wouldn't be Catholic tradition, right? Yeah, no. Which is it, but then she later on told my dad, Well, actually, I think we might be Jewish. And my dad said, Yeah, I think so too. And she said, Um, you know, my great aunt, she spoke and read and wrote in Hebrew. And my dad said, Um, yeah, that's not something they teach in colleges or high school. You would have to be Jewish to know that. So he was already doing his own research. So by the time I finally came to him while I was at WyWham, I called him up one night and I said, I've decided I want to be Jewish and I want to be a messianic Jew, a Jew who believes in Jesus, and I want to start keeping Sabbath like Jesus did. And he said, You know, I've been wanting to do this same thing, and I found this messianic synagogue in Concord, and I've started going. So not only was he going to church on Sunday, he was also going on Saturday, which was hysterical to me for the longest time. I was like, You're getting a double dose. Double dose, double blessings. That's right. And so eventually, when I came back from all my trips overseas, I joined up with him and we were going for a while. And then my younger sister, you know, she just loved church anyway, so the more the merrier. So she was going Sunday and Saturday
Hebrew Names And Belonging
SPEAKER_03with dad. And then eventually mom came around to it. She was nervous because her family, they're all pastors and ministers in the Pentecostal setting. So she was afraid of what they would think of it and how they would react. So she was very nervous. Plus, her family were like, oh, it's a cult, because they thought it was part of the Yellow Delhi stuff or Jehovah's Witness or something like that. Twelve tribes, Yellow Deli. And she's like, No, they're Jews, they just believe in Jesus and they but they still do Jewish. Right.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Because I didn't realize the 12 tribes were so heavily into Jewish tradition and they are, but they also get some things wrong.
SPEAKER_03Because they they have like certain beliefs about certain Jewish traditions, and it's like, nope, that's not what that means.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_03But it's okay.
SPEAKER_01Interesting. Yeah. Before we um leave this topic, can you explain just the whole process of of women getting the Hebrew name and like how your how your name Shamera came about because it was not, you know, it wasn't a family name that you were going with. That's correct.
SPEAKER_03No, I mean it is on my driver's license now. Um yeah. I in high school had a friend who was Jewish, and one day it just accidentally slipped. She called me Shamir, and she's like, I am so sorry. I don't know why I always want to call you that. She said, I know that your name is not Shamir, that it's Alicia, but it's fine. So I said, Oh, it's okay. I'm like, what does it mean? And she told me, and she said, It means protector. I said, Oh, that's cool. She said, you know, it makes sense. She said, you know, you love your sister who's autistic, and you're always protecting her from bullies. So it makes sense that I would want to call you protector, which I thought was super sweet. But when I was again at White Women, I was meeting with this messianic rabbi, and I he said, Well, I will figure out a name for you. Because traditionally, your mom prays for seven days and asks God to reveal to her your Hebrew name, you know, your spiritual name, who God calls you. He said, Well, I'll do it because my mom was still on the fence at that time. So he did all the prayers and he came back and he says, Shemira.
SPEAKER_01And you didn't tell him ahead of time.
SPEAKER_03I didn't tell him ahead of time, nothing. But in that moment I said, Oh, my friend in high school called me that. And he said, I'm sorry. Is this friend a Jewish? And why didn't you tell me this in the first place? This could have made things a lot easier. I wouldn't have had to spend a whole week trying to get it from the Lord when you already had it. So I said, I'm sorry. I didn't know that was the name the Lord chose me. I just thought it was the random name my friend called me. So then the name stuck. And so there's some people who call me Shamera, there's some who call me Alicia. I know when I was working with you, Alicia and Elise are too similar. Yeah. And uh they were all like confused trying to figure out who eventually they all start calling me Shamera because it was easier to distinguish from you.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I love that story. So does every messianic um well the the men, the boys get this name too?
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Usually at your bar or bot mitzvah, you get a spiritual Hebrew name.
SPEAKER_01Okay.
SPEAKER_03But I was well past age.
SPEAKER_01You were yes.
SPEAKER_03Um I did though just a couple years ago. I had my bot mitzvah finally. Oh, did you? I did. It was actually the month before I started working with you. Okay. And it was really fun because I went to the rabbi and I said, I really, really want to be able to do that.
SPEAKER_01How many were you talking about this? Okay.
SPEAKER_03I said, I really want this. I didn't get to have it at 13, because at 13 I had PTSD.
YWAM Training And The Call Overseas
SPEAKER_03I was going through trauma. So I said, you know, I would like to have that because I missed out on it. So he said, sure, absolutely. Cause and I mean there were people who survived the Holocaust who never got to have Bar and Bat Mitzvah's because they were in all of that and in concentration camps. And when they escaped, there was no time to have those celebrations or those traditions. They had to go straight into figuring out their new life in a new country. So there were many who had bar and bot mitzvah's layer in their 90s, 80s, 70s. So he's like, if a 92-year-old can get bar mitzvah, he said, 30-something year old can't get bot mitzvah. So that's why I had that, and it was so fun. He said, and the good news is you have a Hebrew name already. So it's easy.
SPEAKER_01Yes. Oh goodness. You keep mentioning why Y Wham. Y Wham, youth with a mission. Okay, that's what I was gonna ask. Youth with a mission. How'd you get paired up with Y Wham?
SPEAKER_03I had an aunt who did YWAM many eons ago when it was first beginning back in the day. And I was, you know, struggling to find my path in this world. I'm like, where am I supposed to go with my life? Where am I supposed to go to college? What do I even study? You know, all of that existential crisis stuff you have in your 20s. And she said, Hey, youth with a mission, um, have you know, I did it. Have you heard of it? There's one in Florida. I know how much you love Florida, you know, you could go back. And she knew I had a heart for helping people and rescuing people.
SPEAKER_01Well, because you're the protector.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. But I also wanted to join the military, but they wouldn't take me because of my heart murmur. So she said this will be kind of like serving. And I said, Yeah, I think I'll do it. So I went to Jacksonville, Wy Wham, and met lots of unique people like me from all different denominations and walks of life. And I was the only Jew, but it was super fun. They were all excited. They're like, it's a messianic Jew. I was like, Oh, I didn't realize I'd be popular, but that's fine.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Because they would always ask me, How do you say this in here? How do you say that? And why do Jews do this? And why did Jews?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it is it's so fascinating. Well, you don't grow up around it, and you've just got so many questions about your Christian roots.
SPEAKER_03Oh, yeah. And I was still learning the answers to a lot of my traditions. And sometimes I'd say, I don't know. Let me ask my rabbi.
SPEAKER_01So you start attending YWAM, and uh, how did the whole mission trip even start?
SPEAKER_03They have different programs. I was in the DTS, which is the discipleship training school. DTS. And it helps missionaries get into missions. It's like the first step. They teach you about missions, they teach you how to be a missionary, they also teach you about finances, how to like collect or get money from people and stuff like that. But also you had to learn first aid and self-defense and those things. And it was really unique. And they decided, you know, we're gonna send because there were so many of us. This was the first time they had more than 10 people that wanted to join. So they had 30. So they split us up into groups
Turkey Culture Shock And Daily Rules
SPEAKER_03of ten, three groups of ten. And I was in the group that somehow ended up doing Turkey. And so I was on my way to Turkey. So I did three months of training. October through December. I did training, and then I did two months in Turkey. But those two months ended up being a little bit elongated because once I finished the program came back into the US, I contacted some people I met over there and I said I want to continue what I did. And they then gave me all the things I needed and the paperwork I needed to go back.
SPEAKER_01So that's what I did. So you felt this draw, this oh yeah call back.
SPEAKER_03Yep.
SPEAKER_01How many of you went to Turkey?
SPEAKER_03I think eventually ended up being fifteen of us.
SPEAKER_01I think that's right. And I know you told me I've I've got rid of my so you said that it was inner city work.
SPEAKER_03Oh yeah, it was Istanbul. And then we eventually went to Ismet.
SPEAKER_01So you went from Ist Istanbul to where? Ismet.
SPEAKER_03Ismet's on the all the way on the other side of Turkey. And it's up in the mountains and it's the border of Syria.
SPEAKER_01Oh, oh my goodness.
SPEAKER_03That was completely different. Istanbul felt like being in New York City. There's all different cultures, all different languages, all different restaurants, people everywhere, taxis. I mean, that's what it felt like. Uh Ismet, though, it felt like being in the Middle East. I mean, every every woman is covered. And if you don't have someone walking, like as a woman, if you were alone walking by yourself, you get dirty looks from men and other women because women are not to be unaccompanied.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so it's very, very traditional.
SPEAKER_03Yep. Very, very traditional Islam.
SPEAKER_01Men and women could not walk together, right? Or boys, and or was it single women? Like, did you have to stay on the opposite side?
SPEAKER_03Single women, you have to be accompanied by a mother, a father, a husband, or not husband, because you're single. Yeah. A mother, a father, or a brother. So your brother could walk you around, but you could not have a boyfriend.
SPEAKER_01Okay. Because they didn't date.
SPEAKER_03You were
Refugee Center Work And Listening Deeply
SPEAKER_03usually assigned a spouse. Sometimes they dated. Sometimes there were families that were a little more modern and they would allow boys and girls to date, but that was very rare. Okay. Usually it was arranged marriages.
SPEAKER_01So is there a particular way you had to dress?
SPEAKER_03Well, yeah, I had to cover my head. I had to wear a scarf to cover up, and I had to make sure I wore long sleeves, which was fine because it was winter.
SPEAKER_01Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_03So it was cold. I didn't mind wearing the long sleeves. Um I had to wear, I had to make sure I was wearing uh jeans or skirts that went past the knee, went all the way down to the ankle. Um and you couldn't show your ankles either. So you had to wear close ankled and closed-toned shoes, which is how you dress anyway. Which is how I dress, anyways. Um I I don't like my feet being exposed to the elements. Right. I had tennis shoes and converse, it was fine.
SPEAKER_01So when y'all went there, your purpose was to to look after those who had already escaped abuse and had been trafficked.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. We worked at a little refugee center that took in the trafficked women and children, and sometimes men, sometimes men were trafficked. They usually did heavy, hard labor. They were mostly slaves. They were labor slaves. So there were a few of those, but it was mostly women and children. And so I would listen to their stories and their nightmares, and it was I don't know what it was, because most people they hear that and they're like, Wow, I'm glad I don't have to. To go out there and rescue those people. Me, I was like, ooh, I would like to rescue people. Don't know why that hit me that hard. It just was in me, like, mm-hmm that's something I need to do. So I remember talking to them saying, you know, I would love to volunteer to do that. And then eventually, towards the end of the trip, they did let me. They let me go on one little mission. And I came back and they're like, Wow, you're really good at this. Too bad you're not staying.
SPEAKER_01So then I And that planted a seed.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. And then I got back to the US and I thought about it for a couple weeks. And then finally I called them back and I said, When you know, when do you need someone? When's your next grip coming over? And so I went back. And that's when I really took a deep dive in. I mean that one little trip. It was small, but it was nothing compared to all the other rescue missions I went on the next time around.
SPEAKER_01Sorry about the cough. Oh, you're fine. That time of year. Yes. Welcome to North Carolina. Um, so you you met a lot of I know before you told me I guess the women I well, you've lived in several places. You've lived in the Midwest, you've lived in Florida, you have family in Georgia, and so you're exposed to all these different accents.
SPEAKER_03Oh, yes.
SPEAKER_01And I remember you telling me that you could kind of pick up where women were trafficked from.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Cause I mean, uh you would start hearing, you know, a Midwest American accent from a girl, and you're like, I'm sorry. You speak English already. Where are you from? And they'd say, Oh, I'm from Illinois. How how are you here? How are you in Turkey? And they would say, Oh, well, I was kidnapped or I was taken and I was blindfolded and put on a plane. Next thing I knew, I was here. And I was like, Oh my, and no one came looking for you. She said, Well, they probably think I'm still in the US or dead.
SPEAKER_01Oh my gosh.
SPEAKER_03So that happened a lot. And so that's when I found out that a lot of like sporting events like the Super Bowl, women who are trafficked here in the U.S., women and children, they are sold to international people at those events. And then they are taken on private jets overseas. And so people over here in the U.S. thinking their daughter or their child is still in the US and we're dead, they're actually in the Middle East.
SPEAKER_01And yeah, when you were telling me that, I just the first person I thought of, you're younger than me, so I don't know how familiar familiar you are with this, but like that Natalie Holloway.
SPEAKER_03Oh, yeah, I I've heard of it, yeah.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. And uh they were down the Caribbean, I think it was, and like
Arrested For Singing In A Park
SPEAKER_01that was such a huge story that she went missing and they never recovered her body. And some think that she was killed. You know, a lot of people thought she was killed, but then some thought she was trafficked, and then just listening to your story is like, how many of these women that it's a bunch.
SPEAKER_03And it happens to indigenous women too. You see them all the time talking about their people getting trafficked and they're wearing the orange handprint on their face, and they're like, Where are my family? And it's like, well, they might be in the Middle East. So, and it's hard too because some of the people purchasing like in the other countries are high-up officials, politicians, CEOs, you know, the 1% of their country. So it's hard to go up against people like that who have the funds to bury the truth.
SPEAKER_01You share just this amazing story to me about um y'all got you actually were sent to jail in prison. Um I know can you just start from the beginning with how how you got arrested.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_01What you were doing illegal. What were you were doing illegally there?
SPEAKER_03In this part of Turkey it was illegal to sing in the parks. It's considered disturbing the peace. But it's only illegal if you're a woman. Men can sing and whistle, women cannot. You have to be silent. You can talk to your family, but you can't sing. Didn't know that. So me and some friends, we were off and we were out and we were singing and you know, just having fun. And these police officers started coming up to us, which not a huge ordeal, because I mean I was often talking with police officers all the time, anyways. So I thought, oh, this might just be one from someone I know coming to ask a question or they need my help or whatnot. I don't know. And then he comes up and he starts asking, like, what are you doing? Can I see your ID? And he was talking in Turkish and me, I'm like, eh, I kind of know Turkish. I know I'm gonna have to order a sandwich and ask where the restroom is. So I was like, sorry, English, American. And he was like, Oh, can I have your ID? And I pulled out my ID and he's like, Oh, you are American. Getting there thinking I'm faking it. I'm like, no, no, I'm American. I mean, I feel like my accent gives it away in the fact that I speak English, but that's fine. And next thing I know, he is putting me in handcuffs and putting me in his cock car. And I'm like, What did I do? What is happening? What's going on? Especially being a Jewish woman in Turkey, and he only took me and not the other girl. So I'm like, what is going on? And she's left alone, and she's calling, you know, the people we work with, going, Hey, can you come get me? And Alicia is now in handcuffs, and I don't know whether tainted her or what station. So I finally make it to the station. I'm sitting there with the police chief asking me all these questions. Where are you from? America. No, really, where are you from? America? What part of America? North Carolina. It's like, and also Florida and Georgia. I live in Ohio. Ohio. Because those are all the states I've lived in. I said, Would you like me to tell you more about them? And he was just looking at me, which of course, you know, that's sassy. You don't ever want to get sassy with a police officer. But in that moment, especially with you being female, too. Oh, yeah. But in that moment, I was annoyed because I'm like, I've told you I'm from America five times now. How do you not believe me? And then I handed him my license and he's looking at it. And then he gets to the next question, which over there, you are born with a religion. So, whatever religion you are from your parents, they then put that religion on your birth certificate and every single legal document from there on, including your ID. So it tells you what religion you are. And if you change religions, you have to pay. At the time, I think it was a $900 fine, but I think it's a $5,000 fine now to change your religion from your birth. So you have to get a new birth certificate, a new ID, all of that.
SPEAKER_01All new documentation.
SPEAKER_03Change your religion. And so a lot of the Christians over there in Turkey still have Muslim IDs because while they may or may not have five grand to change their IDs.
SPEAKER_01Plus, it's safe. Yeah, I was gonna say it's safer for them to have that on their cards.
SPEAKER_03Because depending on the religion you have, some religions get, you know, if you get a spin ticket, the cost might be higher for certain religions than others. Whereas Islam, you know, you know, a hundred bucks. If you're a Christian, it's you know, two grand. Right. So he was looking at my ID and he's like, your ID doesn't have your religion. And I said, No, why would you need to know your religion to drive?
SPEAKER_01Right. We don't do that in America.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. And he just looked at me like he was confused. He said, Well, how do they know what fine they give you? And I said, It's the same fine for everybody. I said, I don't know why you would need to know religion. Everyone drives the same. Well, sort of. Then you go to Atlanta, Georgia, and it's it's a little bit wild down there. But everyone drives the same. Yeah. And he said, Oh, well, over here, your religion is on your driver's license. I said, Oh, that's weird. He said, Well, I think it's weird. You don't have it on your license. I was like, Well, I guess that is true. You different culture. So then he asks, What religion are you? And normally, even though I'm Jewish, I would say Christian. Jews are hated in a Muslim world. So you don't ever say Jewish. And I believe in Jesus anyway, so it's not weird to say Christian.
SPEAKER_01So it's not like you're making it up.
SPEAKER_03No, I believe in Jesus. And right as I was getting ready to say Christian, it was like something took over my mouth, and I said messianic. And I remember like this feeling of like, oh God. Oh, I just painted a bullseye on my body. Yeah. And um I just started praying and turned like, oh Jesus, what did I just do? I don't know what to do, please Lord help me. And he looks at me and he says, What's messianic? And I said, It's it's a Jew that believes in Jesus. I heard a pen drop, literally, because he dropped his pen. It went silent for two minutes. He just stared at me. Just stared at me. And I'm getting even more nervous because I'm like, he's just staring at me. And I just told him I'm Jewish and he's Muslim and I don't know what to do. And then after a couple of minutes, he asked me again, I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you correctly. What is your religion? And again, I said, Messianic. He said, What's that? And I said, A Jew who believes in Jesus. He immediately starts weeping. And he says, You are the real God. That is the real God. This is the real God. I've been looking for the real God, just weeping. I'm like, what just happened?
SPEAKER_01Oh my gosh, every hair on my body is standing up right now.
SPEAKER_03It was so wild. I'm like, what just happened? What did the Lord just put me through? What is going on? He then tells me he has spent a whole year's journey praying to every single God known to mankind, saying, you know, if you're real, do this. If you're real, do this. And then he gets to the Jewish and Christian God. Most Muslims think Christians and Jews are the same. Just like in Islam, you have the Shiites and the Sunni. So they think the Jew and Christian are the same. Except that one calls their God Adonai and one calls their God Jesus. So they don't know the difference. But they're like, well, but the Christians are more tolerable than the Jews. So we like them better. Don't know why. So he's just like it's just it's it's hard, you know, because that's what they think. So he's asking me all these questions, and he says, you know, I he said, I told this God because I knew it was the same God. I told him, if you're real, send me a Jew who believes in Jesus, because I didn't think that existed. He said, Every other Muslim in the world thinks Jews and Christians are the same. He said, I never thought they were. I always thought they were different just because they do completely different traditions. He said, Christians have Christmas and Easter. Jews have Hanukkah and Passover. He said, you know, they're they're different. And I'm over here in the back of my mind thinking, sort of. I mean, they're similar, but yeah, they're different. He said, so I just said, you know what? If you're the real God and you're the God of these two faiths, then bring me a Jew who believes in Jesus. And he said, and I didn't think it would happen. He said, and this was two weeks ago. He said, and here you are in my office, cuffed for singing in the park, and you've just told me you're a Jew who believes in Jesus. How is this possible? So I told him the whole story I just told you about, you know, becoming messianic and how I did a DNA test and found out I was Jewish and you know all of that fun stuff. And he just was eating it up and he was asking me questions from the Bible about John 3.16 and all the I mean, it was I was there for three hours just talking with this cop who was learning and he was like, Oh, I'm gonna he's like, Well, I'm a Christian now. I said, Okay, just like that. He said, just like that. Did you happen to pray with him?
SPEAKER_01Oh yeah, like what did you do?
SPEAKER_03Yeah, I prayed with him and he asked, you know, Jesus to come into his heart. And I gave him my Bible because I was like, here, you can have mine.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Would anything happen to him if he walked out with a Bible?
SPEAKER_03I don't know. With him being a police officer, the most they probably think is he confiscated it.
SPEAKER_01And this is 2012.
SPEAKER_03This is 2012.
SPEAKER_01So and they weren't quite as strict as they are now, right?
SPEAKER_03Right. So now I don't know. I don't know if he's still a police officer. I don't know if he's in jail for his faith. I don't know if he was able to pay the fine and get it changed, if he even did that. Don't know where he is. Um, I don't remember his name. I remember his last name. I don't know a first name. I don't I can't find him on Facebook, so no idea where he is now. All I know is he was that day. He's like, I found the true God. He he answered my prayers. So I know that therefore he's real. And then he told me, he said, I knew Allah wasn't real. He said, My mom told me he was, but I never felt him.
SPEAKER_01That's what I hear a lot with the underground church in Iran.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Never felt him. He said, plus, you know, when they would read the Quran, they're like, it contradicts itself. One moment it's all peace and love and joy, and the next minute it's kill everybody. He's like, you can't keep the peace if you kill everybody. That's not peace, that's murder and violence. So he was like, I don't understand this religion that I was born into.
SPEAKER_01I love that. I could listen to that story over and over. That is just Oh, the way God just brings people together and then the way he pursues.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, and I was supposed to touch base with my dad. Like I was supposed to like Skype call him because Skype was a thing. I don't know if it still is or not. I think maybe so. Yeah, and I I was supposed to Skype him at a certain time and I hadn't. And it wasn't until later that evening that I finally got a hold of him. He's like, Where have you been? Like, all nervous as dads are using his dad voice. Where have you been? Do you know what time it is? You were supposed to call me at this time. And I'm like, Yes, dad, I know, I'm sorry. And I told him the story, and he thought that was amazing. And yeah. He said, So he said, You've decided to just be fully Jewish. I said, Yeah, how about you, Dad? Yeah, me too. You have to be after that. But the cop he fed me cookies, he got me tea, he took me out for lunch after that because I missed lunch. It was middle of the day.
SPEAKER_01So you never got booked?
SPEAKER_03I got booked. I have a criminal record in Turkey and I'm not allowed to go back. You're not allowed to go back. But it's fine. With the way the world is currently, with Palestine and Israel and Gaza and Iran and all of the chaos, and with Turkey kind of involved, kind of not involved. They're teetering. Um, I don't know that I would want to go back.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Cause did you tell me you had family or friends that were killed in the October 7th?
SPEAKER_03Yeah, I had a best friend who was like a brother to me. Um and he he was a gay man, but he loved the Bible. He and I did Bible studies all the time. I don't know if he ever gave his life to Christ. I'm hoping he did. But he and his husband, they were at the October 7th uh music festival, the Nova Music Festival there on October 7th, and he and his husband did not make out a lot. So it was really hard because I had just gotten engaged and I told him I wanted him to be the flower boy. Did you see those videos of like the grown men who were like dancing to music and tossing flowers down the aisles? Like I wanted him to do that, and he said absolutely he was all in 100%.
SPEAKER_01And then he didn't make it back. I'm so sorry about that. Um just kind of circling back, and so you left the jail and how many of you were
Why Survivors Fear Going Home
SPEAKER_01in jail at the time? Oh, you said you were the only one taken, right? Okay. All right, so you go back.
SPEAKER_03Um He actually drove me home. He drove me home. I told him, He said, Oh, you're one of the rescuers. And I say, he said, Oh. He said, Do you not have a rescuer ID? And I'm like, I don't know what that is. So then he helped me fill out all the stuff to get a rescuer ID. So the next time you show the police and then they don't bother you because you're oh yeah, you're helping. Yeah, yeah. So but I never had another issue again. He was the only one, but the cop who took me in, um, he you could tell he was a very stiff, uptight person, but the police chief was more relaxed and more personable. Once I was in the police chief's office, I was like, it's okay, everything's okay.
SPEAKER_01So yeah.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_01So you get back. Um, how much longer do you stay there?
SPEAKER_03I think I was there a few more months. I think it was uh three or it was right around three. It was a little more than three, maybe a week more, but yeah.
SPEAKER_01Okay. Now the women that you help rescue and the children by especially the ones that you picked up on their accent, since you were American, like would they open up a lot to you?
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Plus, um, many of them they would, you know, say, Oh, I struggle to, you know, say what it what it's like, what I've been through. And I, you know, I wasn't trafficked, but I have a very similar story. I mean, I was I was raped at 13. That was my trauma. And so I told them, I was like, oh no, I know exactly what you're going through. And I would describe to them and express everything going on emotionally and in the mind, and they're like, Yes, that's exactly. How do you know that? And then I would tell them and they're like, Oh, so you're kind of like me. It's like, yeah, a little bit different, but yeah. So they opened up more to me because I understood what they were going through. I knew what it was like, the pain, the feeling betrayed by your own people. Because many of them, I mean, some of them were sold by their own families. And some of them were trafficked by trusted people in their neighborhoods or their community. So, you know, there was this sense of betrayal. And some it was random. They're like, Yeah, I don't know who the person was, I never saw them again. They just grabbed me and then they sold me. But many of them, it was someone they knew. That I understood that betrayal, what it was like.
SPEAKER_01Once the women were rescued, you told me a lot of them requested to not go back to the United States. Can you explain that to me? Yeah to the audience.
SPEAKER_03Some of the women in the US, as I started working and going deeper in, many of them, like politicians, knew who they were and knew they were in these countries, but they never reported to the authorities or their families where they were. And some of these politicians even at some point purchased them themselves. So many of them, uh UK too, is UK and the US, they did not want to go back. They're like, now that I know what I know about my own government in my home country, I don't want to go back. But also some of them were sold by their own people, people in their neighborhood. They didn't feel safe in the US anymore. They didn't feel safe in the UK anymore. They're like, is that neighbor still there? Is he going to capture me again and resell me? And are the authorities even gonna take him in and charge him and put him in prison? So they're like, I don't trust the US anymore. I don't trust the UK anymore. And so they would request to go to other countries. Oftentimes it was places like Nordic countries, which have strict rules. There's hardly any um trafficking in those countries. Because now it has to be, they call it consent. So you can be a prostitute, but it's a career. So you have to actually be employed, you have to apply to those places, you have to have a resume, stuff like that, and you have to be paid. And if you don't, you can report them to local authorities and then you can get your payback. So there's like trafficking now has to be a paid profession. Well, that takes away all the fun in that country for some of those people. So trafficking is hardly a thing in Nordic country. So many of them moved there. They went to Finland, Sweden, and some who were also even through all the trauma, were still believers in God, said, Send me to the Lord's land. And sent me to Israel. Israel. And Israel often took them in. Did they? Really? Yeah. Because they were like, no, we get it. We get it. Plus, Israel is known for, you know, their self-defense and the Iron Dome. So they were like, yeah, take me there. Plus, Israel is one of the leading countries in combating against human trafficking. I wonder so rampant in the Middle East that they often the IDF is rescuing human trafficking.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, because right now you've got like just different social media people or podcasters trying to spin this saying that the child trafficking Israel's evil and with the whole Epstein thing and trafficking was coming from Israel and Yeah, because he was technically Jewish.
SPEAKER_03Um I think ethnically he was, but religiously I don't think he I think he was atheist. I don't think he had a God. Right. Yes. Because for someone to be that far gone and that far evil, you have to be down some deep dark atheist hole. I mean, I've met atheists who are nothing like that. Nicest people you ever meet, but that's like dark, dark atheist. You know, so my atheist friends are like, yeah, no, he had problems. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Well, I want to trust you over with all your experience. So I'm gonna trust you over somebody that's just on Instagram spouting off.
SPEAKER_03No, yeah.
SPEAKER_01Or TikTok or whatever.
SPEAKER_03And it's hard too, because sometimes people don't believe you. Um, especially being Middle Eastern myself, because I did the DNA test and I found that I was half Asian. For years we were told we were English and Irish. There was Irish, there was no English, and but there was a whole lot of Middle East.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and your features are are a lot more Middle East.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. And for years people are like, well, maybe you're Italian or Spanish or Portugal because of my features. But then when I say Middle Eastern, they're like, Oh yeah, that makes more sense. So you But then you say you had Romani. Romani gypsy, yeah.
SPEAKER_01They came over during the Holocaust, yeah.
SPEAKER_03So between the Romani and the Middle East, yeah, yeah, I I look Middle Eastern. But I've also lived in the Middle East and I've worked in the Middle East and I've seen firsthand what's going on.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_03And I, you know, I've come face to face with Hamas peoples and Houthi and Hezbollah and all of them. Because many of them, well, they own some of these women and children too. Yeah. And they were even selling some of them. In fact, the African, you know, the US was involved in the slave trade of Africans. It ended in the US and Europe. It never ended in the Middle East. It's still going to be.
SPEAKER_01Right, because you had all the Muslim traders who were trading. Yeah. Um, I I think to the even all the way back to the Roman Empire, they were trading.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Selling Africans. Still African slaves in the Middle East, and they still go into Africa to this day and kidnap these people and force them into slavery. So the Middle East, they have they got their problems. I I love my culture and my heritage, but you know, it's one big giant messy family reunion over there with Russian roulette.
SPEAKER_01Right. But you've seen you've seen firsthand where rescuers like are the ones being rescued, they want to be sent to Israel.
SPEAKER_03They want to be sent to Israel because the IDF soldiers were often helping and aiding in the rescue in US military, but then also a lot of organizations that do rescue missions. But they would meet these IDF soldiers, and they were like, oh, everything I was told was wrong. They're actually really great. Take me there.
SPEAKER_01I'm so glad you you shared that and really cleared that up. Um, and also you said that women requested to be sent to Canada.
SPEAKER_03Oh, yeah, Canada too. Canada and Israel, and then some even went wanted to go to uh South Korea. So but South Korea. Yeah. But Canada and Israel and the Nordic countries were the most common.
SPEAKER_01I've read Germany too, where I think Germany had taken in a lot of that.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, Germany has taken in a lot. Um currently they're slowing down on that because uh with everything going on, there's just so many, it's starting to become not an issue, but they're like there's too many to take in at one time. And we're not fully processing, and we don't know if we're actually taking in trafficked people or if some of them are like secreting. Oh, yes. Yeah. So now they're having to like pull back because they've had people they thought were trafficked people that they were rescuing
Spiritual Weight And Team Survival
SPEAKER_03who were then kidnapping Germans and taking them. So they had to like Oh my gosh. Yeah, so now people are pretending to be trafficked women and trafficked men and they're and it's a trap. And it's a trap. So now Germany's like, uh huh, no. So they've they've started slowing down. They're not they're taking less, but they're being they're making sure.
SPEAKER_01Okay.
SPEAKER_03They're fully making sure.
SPEAKER_01Not just trusting people at their work.
SPEAKER_03Oh, I'm a trafficked victim, are you? I know it's a horrible thing to do. And I know that Germany probably feels horrible for it because it's like we have no choice. Arab people are getting kidnapped now. So we and we don't want those people to re-kidnap other victims and take them back into that. So we have to we have to be more mindful and we have to do more research. So, and I think the US has started doing that too.
SPEAKER_01Now, when you were in Turkey, you told me that you could feel this spiritual darkness.
SPEAKER_03Oh, it was it was weird, it was intense. Because, you know, here in the US, I mean, you know, the old saying of, you know, you go into a church like, man, I felt the Lord in there, especially in the South. Uh-huh. You know, you go, Oh, the Holy Spirit was moving in that way. Yeah. You know, but you know, wherever else you go, it's not like you don't feel the Lord. I mean, you do, you don't. I mean, you go grocery shopping, you're not trying to feel for the Lord.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_03I mean, again, there to get your produce and then go home. But, you know, in Turkey, it was you couldn't ignore it. Like you s I stepped foot off the plane, it was like, wow. I mean, it just felt so thick and heavy and heavy. It was and I would get headaches because it was just so much.
SPEAKER_02Uh-huh.
SPEAKER_03And you would just walk around and you could see it in people's faces. You could see that they were miserable, or they weren't happy, or they were depressed. You could just see it. I mean, it was like a thousand years worth of ice, but it was it was just not evil, because the people in Turkey aren't evil, but like But the love of Jesus was not there and it was apparent. And it was apparent, and it was it was heavy. And even like some of the people who I worked alongside with who weren't Christians would say the same thing. They're like, Wow, I don't know what that is. And they always would say, you know, you get into this business and you don't stay atheist for long. Because it is a spiritual warfare. These people who are traffickers, who are buying and selling women and children, they are so caught in evil that they themselves have become evil and they're doing these horrible things. But it's also to some degree part of their culture. I mean, you read the Quran and it says if there is a woman or a child who is not Muslim, you can take them and do with them as you please. You can torture them, you can enslave them, you can rape them, you can force them into marriage and force them to become Muslim, you can kill them if you want to. It says all these things. And so that's what they believe. Like, oh, well, they're not Muslim. So in order to cleanse the earth of non-Muslims, then I must take these women and children and do these things to them.
SPEAKER_02Oh my goodness.
SPEAKER_03Meanwhile, our gods like, don't kill, don't love your enemy.
SPEAKER_01Yes. Pray for your enemy. Pray for yeah. Oh my gosh, there's such a contrast between the two religions. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Well, you definitely um you definitely experienced darkness. What kind of effect did this have on your mission team?
SPEAKER_03Oh man, many of us, like, once it got to the weekend, we were excited because it was like we could just go home and rest. And we would sleep all day Saturday, just the because the
How Rescue Missions Actually Worked
SPEAKER_03intensity of everything, the missions, the darkness in the country, just the intensity of it all. You just slept. But also, you would do whatever you had to to bring joy into your life. So, you know, we're pulling up YouTube and we're watching DC talk music videos from back in the day. Oh my gosh, I love that. Veggie Tales was a huge thing because it was so goofy and funny, and we all knew the songs from childhood.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_03That it was the one thing when we started singing it that it would just bring a little bit of joy back into your life. You know, all these grown men and women singing my hairbrush song. So we just met. My hairbrush song. Oh yes. Oh, where is my hairbrush?
SPEAKER_01Uh so during the week, you what exactly would you guys do during the week when you just when you're talking about how intense that was?
SPEAKER_03Monday was usually the day where we would get our mission, and then Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday was when we would do the mission, and then Friday we would come back, and then we would do paperwork about what we did.
SPEAKER_01Okay.
SPEAKER_03And then Saturday and Sunday we were off.
SPEAKER_01Can you give examples or is that kind of private?
SPEAKER_03Oh, I think the biggest example that I can give is they would hand me a file of who they were looking for and where they know they are currently, and so we're gonna send you there. So then I would get there, and um, I was often the bait because I look younger than I am. I mean, I was in my 20s, but I looked like a teenager. So they would kind of sell me to the traffickers, and then I would go in with, you know, hidden cameras and microphones and stuff, and I would figure out where they were. But I also had GPS trackers on me, so they would, you know, follow me, and then once they got to those locations, they would come in guns blaring and get the people out. But I was the I was the bait. Oh my god. That's what I did. I was the bait.
SPEAKER_01Well, this was not the camp though, right? This was later. Yeah. Okay. All right. Now during the camp, you know, what what did y'all do to serve people?
SPEAKER_03Oh, we would um feed people. There were a lot of a lot of the victims who were trafficked, they they didn't have homes. They didn't have food, they didn't have clothing, so they were staying in this shelter. And so we would make sure they had running water, we would make sure they had food in the refrigerator, that they had clothes, furniture, anything they needed. We helped them find jobs. Okay. Just get back into society. And for some, because they were some were trafficked so young, they never finished high school or middle school, not even elementary school. So they had a third grade level of education and they're in their 20s or their teens. So we would send them to a day school and teach them to read and to write and all the things you learn from third grade to twelfth grade. So that if they wanted to go to college, they could.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. And you know what blows my mind is how they're so they are kidnapped when they're young. Oh, yeah. But once they are rescued, you know, like in their 20s or whatever, they don't want to go back to their parents, a lot of them. Like, yeah. That blew my mind because I'm thinking it would be opposite for me, but you do a good job of explaining why.
SPEAKER_03It's harder because you don't know your parents anymore. And so when you go back, they want you to go back to being that nine-year-old little girl. And they want to buy you clothes, they want to take you to the movies, and they want to do things like they did with you when you were nine, but you're not nine, you're 20. But also you have this trauma, and those parents may or may not know how to handle that trauma. But also the relationship's been broken. Last you saw them, you were eight, nine, ten years old. You're now eighteen, nineteen, twenty years old. You're a woman and you you don't know them, and you may, because of the trauma, you may barely remember that. You don't even remember what they look like. You don't have pictures anymore. Those are faint memories. So it's it's weird and it's awkward. Now, some do. Some are like, no, I need my mommy, get me my mommy now. And it's like, okay, but for some, that trauma was so hard, and they'd been without them for so long. They're like, it's gonna be awkward, and they're gonna want to treat me like a kid. And I'm not a kid, I'm an adult with trauma, and I don't know what to do with my life, and I need more guidance than my mommy who wants to treat me like I'm nine. So it's it's it's rough, it's hard. Because they also in the past they used to release these women back to their parents, and 70% of the time they left their parents because it just it because of those reasons. Some were able to go to counseling and therapy and regain some sort of a relationship with their parents, but 70% they they don't stay with their parents because it was so awkward. And it, you know, mom's so happy to have you, and she's like, I bought you a teddy bear, and I bought you this mermaid doll or whatnot. And they're like, I am 20 and I have to go to school now. Because the mom is also traumatized. Mom and dad are also traumatized. They lost their child, they're expecting to get their child back, but their child's not a child anymore.
SPEAKER_01Not even the same person after all the experience.
SPEAKER_03Same person, and you know, of course, you know, daughter looks like you, yeah, but no longer acts like you, doesn't have any traits or anything that's remotely similar to you, completely different person. And that relationship is hard to regain. So many of them knowing that, because we would tell them that up front, you know, 70% leave their parents because of this. If you're willing to at least try, we will help you get back to your parents. But if you're like, no, I don't want to go through that, it's okay. But we are gonna tell your parents you're safe in a life. And we also know how to tell them why you're not coming home to them and why they're going to another country because also they don't trust America anymore.
unknownRight.
SPEAKER_03They don't want to go back to the betrayed by the US. They don't want to go back and you know, they have to go tell the parents they feel betrayed by our politicians. They also don't know you anymore, they don't even have memories of you, they don't know you, they don't want to return to a stranger. And it's hard to tell the parents, but you have to tell them. You have to say they are alive. And maybe one day you can go visit them or they can come visit you, but right now they can't do it. And so that that's hard too. Because I remember hearing stories of those people talking about the parents breaking down weeping, like, why isn't my baby coming back?
SPEAKER_01Not that fairy tale ending.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Yep. Most of the time it was not a fairy tale ending.
SPEAKER_01So there's just so many parts to it that you just don't even really think about. Now I know that this has just changed your life completely. What's what would you say is just greater awareness that you can take from this?
SPEAKER_03Well, it's definitely opened my eyes, because you know, you go through life not even knowing it exists, or you know it exists, but you don't pay attention. But to come back from that all, it's like, hmm, I know that that is secretly going on in government buildings and corporation buildings and all of these things. And it's like, hmm. And I remember I came back and I was working a desk job at a corporate office, and it was like, all
Coming Home With New Discernment
SPEAKER_03I could think about was, I wonder how many people in this building have taken part in human trafficking, have bought or sold someone. That's all I could think about. Oh my gosh. So then, like, I didn't like anyone I worked with, I didn't trust any of them, and I didn't want to do my job. I didn't want to do it right because I wanted their company to fail. And it was like, no, I can't be like this. So then I had to take a step back and say, nope, I'm gonna go back to college and I'm gonna get a degree, and I'm not gonna work in a corporate atmosphere anymore. So that was the biggest change for me.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, you're gonna get your hands in the dirt, do some landscape.
SPEAKER_03No, plants are a lot easier than people. Yeah. Yes. They don't talk back, they don't traffic. Yeah. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01So your mission trip, it led to discernment.
SPEAKER_03Oh yes. Oh, yes. And sometimes I've been places and I've watched like what looks like a mom and dad and their kids, but the kids are very strange. Like, you know, you watch a family and you got a dad going, stop it, because you know, their kids picked up a stick and they're beating their brother with it, and they're like, No, quit it, don't do that. Yeah. Or, you know, this little boy's throwing rocks, or this little girl's picking flowers, you know. You watch parents in the store and they're like, quit it, stop, don't you know, normal parent behavior. Or the kids are giggling, or the mom and dad's laughing at what their kid did. Yeah. Whereas with these, you see the mom and dad are being more secretive, like they're talking with each other, like they're trying to look normal, but it's forced. And then the kids are silent and they barely move, and they're just walking behind. They're not trying to play with the rocks or pick the flowers or you know, beat their sibling with a stick. The kids don't look like each other, which isn't a huge ordeal because people adopt.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Or yeah, step families.
SPEAKER_03Or stepfamilies. But even those are like a normal family. They're talking, they're giggling, they're shopping for plants, they're playing with the plants, you know, all shit and shoving each other.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_03And you know, you got the kids like, I want to push the car. Yeah. The car's got concrete on it, and dad's like, you can try. But yeah, you see that. That's normal, even with adopted children. But for this, it's like they're silent, they don't look at anybody, they're looking down at the ground, and it's just like that's that's not normal. Not normal at all. And you know, the parents keep looking over their shoulder. It's like, why are you looking over your shoulder while you're buying plants? Like, that's weird. You shouldn't be looking over your shoulder while buying a petunia. Like, that's a little weird. So I've seen that, and you know, I report it. I don't always know where it goes after that. Um, but I have on occasion, I've had officers come back and say, I'm glad you reported that. Because it turns out they were a trafficker. Those kids aren't theirs. Are you serious? I've had that happen at Walmart of all places. I don't know what it is about Walmart, but that's usually where it happens. Especially like in their garden center. Because a lot of times they don't want to go through the normal register, so they go to the garden center register.
SPEAKER_01Oh, makes sense. Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_03And me, you know, who loves plants, I shop at every garden center known to mankind. So I go to Walmart too. But yeah, you see that and it's like that's weird.
SPEAKER_01I wonder how often I've been in the presence of of something like that. I know I've taught I taught a student a few years ago, and we would hear about how um she the whole family like got pulled from the home because mom was pimping out the brothers. Yeah. And her too, probably. I mean it was awful.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Oh yeah. My mom, teacher as well, she's heard some nightmare stories, things she can't talk about, and she's just like, I have this kid in my class, I can't tell you why, but I need you to pray for them.
SPEAKER_02Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_03And down there are like, yep, absolutely. Right there, right then. Yeah. Start praying.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. So we you mentioned the Super Bowl a little bit. Can you kind of talk, can you kinda educate listeners on that again?
SPEAKER_03Yeah. If if hell was a place on earth, I think it would be the Super Bowl. Because a lot of people go there to watch the sports game, but don't realize that, you know, who they're sitting next to isn't there for the game. And so a lot of like wealthy people, because the Super Bowl tickets are expensive, thousands of dollars. So really it's only like, you know, wealthy people in the US who are going. So it's, you know, politicians, CEOs, things like that, actors and actresses. I mean, every year the Super Bowl, you know, they span across the crowd and they'll show you this politician or this actor who's there in attendance, you know.
SPEAKER_01Or entertainer. Yeah. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03And so there's places at the Super Bowl like back areas where they're selling women and children. So it looks like a family or a boyfriend and girlfriend, but really it's a pimp and his and his well, the woman he owns, and then you know, the guy who if he's not the dad, but you know, and the woman is not his wife. It's you know, these are his properties, and he's selling them or trading them with someone else. And they're selling to the people who are there in attendance. And a lot of international trafficked people are brought to the Super Bowl and then sold to Americans. And then American women and children who've been trafficked are sold to international politicians who then take them
Holding On To Faith And Trust
SPEAKER_03to their country. So which is why it's so hard to find missing women and children because they're probably not in this country anymore.
SPEAKER_01So this sounds a lot like um Tim Ballard and the Sound of Freedom. Oh yeah. So that's very accurate. Oh, yes, that would be very accurate.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, I didn't watch that movie because I read the synopsis and I was like, oh, that's gonna be hard to watch. Yeah. Because of what I've been through. There's certain movies that are a little too true story. Yeah. And I'm like, no, that'll bring up memories and I'm good.
SPEAKER_01I guess really my last question for you is just how has this this whole enlightenment where the the scales are off your eyes, so to speak? Um, how has that affected you and how do you keep from getting so depressed over this?
SPEAKER_03Really, it's my faith. I mean that's the only reason that I don't get depressed. Yeah, it's hard to think about. And I do. Occasionally you hear something or you see something and you s immediately go back to that. But it really truly is my faith in God that has kept me afloat. It is hard. You see those things and you no longer trust people. Even in your own church, even in your own synagogue, you're like, hmm, I wonder if they do things they shouldn't. And you know, you're like, you wish you wouldn't think like that, but when you see the things you see, and then plus having the PTSD from the from the church that I grew up in, yeah, it it gets really hard to trust people. That's been the biggest one is trusting people and opening up to people. But I've gotten accustomed to it's easy to tell when you can trust someone. And it's easy to tell when you can't trust someone. There's people I've met in my life that I've been like, hmm, I don't know that I should really open up much about my life to them or even my cultural background. Oh, it feels like privileged because you have met me all the time. I appreciate that. And then
Building A Local Messianic Community
SPEAKER_03the people you meet and you're especially when it's someone who believes in God and you get that feeling off of them, you're like, oh, it's a Jesus person. It's a Jesus racing. I think we're gonna get along for So yeah, I mean, you get as I get older, it gets easier. But I'm sure one day it'll be but a faint memory that I'll tell grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and they'll be like, Man, my grandma's a bad plea. Listen to what she did. I know, right? Let me tell you about my grandma. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01I appreciate you just sitting down with me and recording this and and just sharing so much. And I know that some of it gets really hard to talk about, but um I'm very appreciative and you've just you've enlightened us and you've just taught us so much. And uh one more thing. Yeah. Can you tell everybody about your Facebook group that you started?
SPEAKER_03Oh yeah. I started a Facebook group in Iredale County. It's the messianic community of Iredale County, because there were quite a few of us who are messianic believers, whether it be messianic Christian or messianic Jew, who believe in Jesus and who follow a more Jewish lifestyle. But you know, there's the closest, you know, synagogues are either Hickory or Concord, and sometimes they're a bit of a drive. You can't always make it.
SPEAKER_01So that's so the one in Concord is what, 45 minutes to an hour? I guess depending on traffic, because traffic's pretty bad around there.
SPEAKER_03It depends on traffic. Most of the time it's about 50 minutes, and every once in a while we get halfway there and realize we're never gonna make it, and we just turn around. Which is awful sometimes. Happens once or twice a year. It always seems to be during a festival, too. It's like it's Passover and I can't even get there, but yeah, it's alright. But that was why I created the group because I was like, well, maybe we can all get together at least online. Yeah. And then maybe hopefully one day we can meet in person, and that'll be really nice.
SPEAKER_01Is it just for messianic
Closing And Listener Request
SPEAKER_01or could any Christian?
SPEAKER_03We post stuff about, you know, Jewish things and messianic things and Bible stuff. Um, the synagogue that I go to in Concord, um, I post their service every Saturday, so you can watch the Messianic Jewish uh service and what it's like. But also they dance during their worship, and so you might occasionally see me over there dancing. Sometimes they scroll the camera over, and there's you know a group of us dancing to the worship, and there's little old me dancing along. So Yeah.
SPEAKER_01And what's the name of the Facebook group again?
SPEAKER_03It is the Messianic Community of Iredale County.
SPEAKER_01Messianic community of Iredale County. MC I see. Okay, so you guys should uh check that out. And Shamira, uh again, I appreciate you coming on to the podcast, and I hope to have you back again. All right. Hey listener, before you go, would you please open your podcast app, scroll to Beyond Existing, Beyond the Small Talk, and tap follow and leave a five-star rating or a quick review to help this podcast grow. Also, you can go to the episode's description to send me a text if you would like to share how this episode impacted you, or if you would like me to share a message with my guests. Thank you for listening.
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