This week’s guest on Next Steps Forward is Alina Donahue, a human trafficking subject matter expert and survivor. She co-created the Shelly Stayer Shelter’s 18-month Human Trafficking Residential Program, a nationally recognized residential program for adult female survivors of sexual human trafficking. She has been certified by the Florida Crime Prevention Training Institute through the Office of the Florida Attorney General. Alina was a mentor and teacher for Project Recovery, a program that helps inmates in Collier County overcome addiction and reintegrate back into society. In 2021 she made the Naples Illustrated Top 100 to Watch List for her continuous achievements. In January 2023, Alina was appointed as a Senior Advisor to the National Trauma Education Policy Board. Throughout her conversation with program host Chris Meek, Alina will take the audience through her upbringing and how a single night and a chance encounter with her trafficker changed everything in her life. She will also delve into the red flags that young women, their friends and their families should look for to prevent someone from being drawn into sex trafficking, the shift from victim to survivor and everything in between, and the realities of overcoming trauma.
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About the Author: Chris Meek
Dr. Chris Meek is an American philanthropist and finance officer. Meek is the co-founder and chairman of SoldierStrong, a charitable organization which provides support for U.S. service members and veterans. He is also the co-founder and chairman of START Now!, a non-profit which provides foreclosure counseling to homeowners, as well as senior director of global relationship management at S&P Global and a member of the Maxwell Advisory Board at Syracuse University.