By Lisa Sergent
Baptist Press
Lindsey Yoder, right, was surprised to see Christian recording artist Natalie Grant show up to accompany her on the last mile of her 300-mile trek from Arthur, Ill., to Nashville. She walked to raise funds and awareness for human trafficking.
ARTHUR, Ill. — Fourteen-year-old Lindsey Yoder walked 15 miles a day along the dusty back roads of southern Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee in a quest to raise awareness about human trafficking.
She departed from Arthur (Ill.) Southern Baptist Church, where she and her family are members, on May 28 and arrived at Nashville’s Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park on June 24.
Her mother Regina provided support throughout the entire 300-mile journey. She shared how attending a women’s ministry conference in 2015 for teen girls played a role in Yoder’s passion for fighting human trafficking.
“Human trafficking was the focus and that fueled her interest in the issue,” Regina said. What Yoder learned at the conference remained with her and she was ready to make a difference.
Carmen Halsey, director of Illinois Baptist State Association’s Women’s Missions, shared, “What Lindsey’s doing now is she’s learning. God has her attention, she sees the people through His eyes. She’s put feet to the vision. She learned something and she did something. Lindsey’s not just sitting in a pew.”
According to the Shared Hope International, a nonprofit that fights human trafficking, “the common age a child enters sex trafficking is 14-16, when they’re too young and naïve to realize what’s happening.” Most victims are girls, but boys are trafficked and sold to pimps as well.
Yoder was also impacted by the movie “Priceless,” which addressed human trafficking and was produced by Hope for Justice. Yoder shared, “My heart was broken at the thought of all the girls who are in this horrible situation and I asked God specifically to tell me how I can help.
“When He gave me the idea to walk, I knew He would provide everything I needed to make it happen,” she said in an e-mail interview.
Yoder walked to Nashville because it is the home of Hope for Justice, an organization that works internationally to stop human trafficking with additional offices in Cambodia, England, and Norway.
She said she could not have made the journey without the support of her family.
As she neared the finish line at Bicentennial Park in Nashville, Yoder had a surprise waiting for her — Natalie Grant, Hope for Justice co-founder and Christian recording artist. Grant had heard about Yoder’s effort and was waiting to walk the last mile with her.
“A lot of times we’re moved by an issue, we’re kind of upset, and it kind of bothers us, but then we just go back to living our lives,” Grant told a local news station. “But this 14-year-old girl said, ‘No, I’m going to do something.’ ”
Grant shared a video with her Facebook fans the day before, telling them about Yoder’s journey urging them to donate to the cause. With the additional help from Grant, the walk has raised nearly $38,000 and donations are still being accepted.
