Location: Home of Staci and Dr. Quang Henderson

Staci Henderson and  Bela Thacker recently co-chaired  the Love To Give Back Affair benefitting Love 146, with Courtney Gilmore serving as mistress of ceremonies. The event was held at the beautiful Memorial home of Staci and Dr.Quang Henderson.There was a tremendous turnout of supporters for this cause, donating funds and bidding on beautiful auction items, including jewelry donated by Bela Thacker of Zayver Jewels. An evening of lovely weather allowed guests to enjoy the pool and gardens area, with an acrylic stage set up over the pool for presentations.

Love146 is an international human rights organization working to end child trafficking and exploitation through survivor care and prevention. The trafficking and exploitation of children is a dark fact and, unfortunately, Houston holds the title of being leader in this most severe of human rights abuses. But for the people of Love 146, the hope of ending it is a reality. This organization is helping grow the movement to end child trafficking while providing effective, thoughtful solutions.

So why is it called Love 146? In 2002, the co-founders of Love146 traveled to Southeast Asia on an exploratory trip to determine how they could serve in the fight against child sex trafficking. In one experience, they were taken undercover with investigators to a brothel where they witnessed children being sold for sex.They  found themselves standing shoulder to shoulder with predators in a small room, looking at little girls through a pane of glass. All of the girls wore red dresses with a number pinned to their dress for identification.

The girls sat blankly watching cartoons on TV. They were vacant, shells of what a child should be. There was no light in their eyes, no life left. Their light had been taken from them.

But there was this one little girl who wouldn’t watch the cartoons. Her number was 146. She was looking beyond the glass. She was staring out at them with a piercing gaze , for there was still fight left in her eyes and life left in this girl.  The girl who wore #146 was later no longer there and they don’t  know what happened to her, but the co-founders say they will never forget her and that she changed the course of all of their lives.

Visit love146.org to learn more.

Photos/Assistance: Angie Fanelli