Bon Secours St. Francis Health System and Jasmine Road have announced a partnership to build a second safe house to help rehabilitate 14 additional female South Carolina human-trafficking victims.
Joining Jasmine Road’s first residential restoration program for human-trafficking victims in the state, the new facility will allow its residents to live rent-free during a two-year period. While the women are living there, the group works with them to address recovery from trauma and addictions. In addition to the services the residents will receive, this new facility will also have a separate workspace to allow the women living there to learn job skills.
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“Our mission is to heal, empower and employ female survivors,” said Beth Messick, executive director of Jasmine Road. “It is critical that the residents of Jasmine Road receive the job training and skills necessary for graduates to transition into sustainable and meaningful employment. Our social enterprises, such as Jasmine Kitchen, equip employees to re-enter the Greenville community with a job and skills that are sustainable, reducing recidivism and the likelihood of individuals ending back up on the streets.”
While Bon Secours St. Francis was not a partner in Jasmine Road’s first house, the corporation was interested in being involved with Jasmine Road early on, said Dr. Alex Garvey, Bon Secours St. Francis Health System senior vice president of mission.
“When Jasmine Road was just an idea, the initial piece of property they were looking at had some issues,” Garvey said. “So that drew us together in conversation and those talks led to discussion about us offering to provide health care to the ladies then. Before this new site even came into play, we had already chosen to financially contribute to the original building for the program. In fact, we can’t say enough about how excited we are as a Catholic hospital to come together with an Evangelical church and a nonprofit organization to help build a better community. We hope this is just the beginning of many more joint ventures.”
Jasmine Road’s new site is funded by a grant form Bon Secours as well as donations from North Hills Community Church, NewSpring Church, Grace Church and Fellowship Greenville. The facility is scheduled to open in 2020.
“The funding is there, the plans are in place,” Garvey said. “It will take between 90 and 120 days after construction begins to get the facility up and ready. However, this is a remodel which is always trickier than new builds because you never know what you’re going to find. Still, it will definitely be sometime in 2020. There are many women out there who desperately need healing and restoration and a way out of this life.”
