January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month, Author Reveals Practical Ways Each of Us Can Help Reduce the Number of At-Risk Children to ZERO!

CHICAGO, Jan. 7, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Children who have been abused, those living in poverty, foster kids aging out of a broken system, and those who don't have enough to eat are easy targets for those who wish to misuse them. You want to help, but you don't know where to begin. What can one person possibly do that will make a difference?

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You can't do everything, but you can do something! And you'll find that "something" in the pages of Make it Zero: The Movement to Safeguard Every Child (Moody Publishers).

"When each one of us begins to take action, it really adds up," author Mary Frances Bowley explains.

"Each of us is only one person, but one person determined to act is powerful. Moments can multiply into movements and create groundswells of change," says the author and founder of Wellspring Living (http://www.wellspringliving.org), an Atlanta-based haven and home for women and girls who have been trafficked for sex.

A rallying call for readers to unite and reduce the number of at-risk children to ZERO, Make It Zero reveals the opportunity behind a single moment of compassion. Contained within its pages are stories of many "ones" … ones who, learning of a need, reacted and stepped up—often joining other "ones" to make a difference in the lives of countless individuals.

Candid and compelling, Make It Zero demonstrates the power each of us has to change lives, communities, even the world. Moreover, it helps put intention into action by providing tools that will help each of us to do what we can, where we are, with what we have … right now.

The author concludes: "You never know how one spark of kindness can shape the future."

All profits from the book will go to help Wellspring Living serve more survivors of trafficking.

INTERVIEWS WITH MARY FRANCES BOWLEY
Email Janis Backing or call 312-329-2108.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mary Frances Bowley is the founder of Wellspring Living, an Atlanta-based organization fighting childhood sexual abuse and exploitation since 2001. A leader in the fight against child sex-trafficking, she is the author of The White Umbrella and A League of Dangerous Women and resides in Peachtree City with her husband, Dick.

Mary Frances wrote Make It Zero with multi-platform journalist and editor Jennifer Bradley Franklin, whose work appears in USA Today, People and many other publications.

SUGGESTED INTERVIEW TOPICS

Make It Zero
Thousands of children here in the U.S. are at risk each year for commercial sexual exploitation. Author and activist Mary Frances Bowley reveals how even the simplest act of kindness can help bring that number to ZERO.

Human Trafficking, In My Town?
We often hear that it's a problem overseas. But here in the United States, thousands of children are trafficked for sex. Who are these children, and what can concerned citizens do to help?

A Shelter From the Storm
In 2008, Wellspring Living launched a program in Atlanta for child survivors of forced prostitution and sex trafficking. Founder Mary Frances Bowley shares the heartbreaking stories of these survivors and how ordinary people are coming alongside them in extraordinary ways.

Traits of Trafficking
Is your daughter in danger? Learn the warning signs and intervene before it's too late.

SUGGESTED QUESTIONS FOR THE AUTHOR

1. You founded a home for survivors of sex trafficking called Wellspring Living. Can you talk about the program and how you became involved with these women and girls?
2. Thousands of children are being forced into sex trafficking in the United States. Who are these children, and how did they fall prey to those who would do them harm?
3. You say that children and adults who are victims of the worst kind of exploitation have one thing in common. What is that one thing?
4. In the book, you describe how hunger can snare girls in the clutches of a trafficker. ("I hadn't had any food for a couple of days, and this seemingly nice guy bought me a Happy Meal.") What are some of the other tactics traffickers use?
5. What can concerned parents do to keep their own children from becoming victims?
6. Are there warning signs parents should look for?
7. The Bible has much to say about our responsibility to care for "the least of these." What holds churches back from engaging with the vulnerable?
8. How do we move from intention to action?
9. What are some practical things any person can do to help at-risk children?
10. Some would say the goal of creating a world where all children are safeguarded is an unrealistic one. What would you say to those who wonder whether this problem is just too big to solve?

SOURCE Moody Publishers