- April 23, 2024
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In 2002, Rob Morris traveled with his Love146 co-founders to Southeast Asia to see how they could fight against child sex trafficking. They were taken undercover with investigators to a brothel where children were being sold. As they stood shoulder to shoulder with the predators, they saw children sitting, blankly watching cartoons.
Identification numbers were pinned to their red dresses.
“They were vacant, shells of what a child should be,” Morris explained in a video. “There was no light in their eyes, no life left. Their life had been taken from them.”
Except one girl. One girl refused to watch the cartoons. Her piercing gaze looked beyond the glass, at the group. There was still fight left in her eyes, Morris observed. Her number was 146.
As Terri and Robert Harper, of Palm Coast, sat in service at Epic Church, they watched the story behind this nonprofit organization, which helps combat, educate, rehabilitate and enforce legislation to combat human slavery. They knew they wanted to do something to be part of the fight to stop human trafficking.
They will be doing this, with 10 others as they participate in Ragnar, a 200-mile relay run across the state.
The Harpers will be joined by team members Justin Peterson, Luke Crown, Jill Krohn, Josh Bowen, Mandy Cashman, Matt Houston, Megan and Matt Morgan, and Robyn and Cody Anderson, as they run from Miami to Key West, to raise money for Love146, which specifically aids children who are trafficked into sexual slavery, forced labor and organ harvesting.
Robert Harper, who doesn’t have children of his own, said: “The Bible tells us that we are supposed to defend the cause of orphans. And that’s exactly what these kids are.”
For others on the team, it’s about prevention. Cody Anderson, who has 2- and 8-year-old daughters, believes in supporting this cause ahead of time.
“It’s kind of like saying if you don’t vote, you can’t complain,” Anderson said. “So, that’s my way of thinking. I want to make sure I’m supporting a cause that affects my children and their friends.”
The group still has a ways to go before trekking across the state Jan. 6 and Jan. 7. They are looking to the community for the donation of two vans, shirts, food, water and gas cards.
“If anyone is looking to help us because they feel blessed, or they feel thankful for something, we’re gladly accepting,” Harper said.
To support the team, email [email protected].
