Ranch Hands Rescue Proves There is Life After Trauma and Trailblazes the First Shelter of its Kind in the Country
You’ve probably seen the tear-jerking commercial from the late ’90s featuring images and videos of abused and neglected animals with Sarah McLachlan’s “In The Arms of An Angel” streaming in the background.
This heartbreaking video put out by the ASPCA ignited emotions of sympathy, devastation, and a righteous passion among Americans to fight against animal cruelty.
People watched, and people responded.
This moving commercial appealed to the hearts and ethics of many, and roughly $30 million was raised, making it the ASPCA’s most successful fundraising effort and landmark in nonprofit fundraising.
But what if that very commercial showed images and videos of men, women, and children being exploited, suffering from addiction, or living with the daunting realities of PTSD?
Would the public have the same response?
In the commercial, Sarah made the claim that thousands of animals had been rescued through the ASPCA. Yet in reality, there are:
Hundreds of thousands of victims of sex and labor trafficking in Texas alone, experiencing trauma, abuse, and exploitation.
Hundreds of thousands of veterans who are struggling to live with the realities of PTSD.
Hundreds of thousands of children who experience continual abuse or maltreatment on a daily basis.
Hundreds of thousands of men, women, and children who have experienced life-altering traumas.
Where is the call to action for them? Are they not worthy of a 30-second commercial?
No.
They are worthy of more—much more.
Having a one-time fundraiser to help fight their enemies would not, and does not, do them justice. They are worthy of consistent and continual efforts that bring healing, restoration, and redemption.
They are worthy of committed and determined care.
Because there is life after trauma.
From rescue to restoration
Ranch Hands Rescue is a nonprofit organization that was originally established as a place of refuge and rehabilitation for abused and neglected animals that offers them a new life that honors their worth and dignity.
Since their founding in 2008, 567 animals have been rescued, rehabilitated, and proven that even the worst of situations can be healed through loving care and support.
You might be wondering how animals’ worth and dignity can be honored. It can’t simply be through the rescue and removal of bad situations. It has to be deeper—much deeper.
The lives of these precious animals are restored through their ability to bring restoration to people. Specifically, the victims of abuse, neglect, and maltreatment who have experienced similar parallels as these very animals.
Ranch Hands Rescue offers various counseling programs for:
Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing
Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Nature Therapy
Faith-Based and Grief Counseling
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Addictions
Autism
Abuse and Neglect
Eating Disorders
Post Traumatic Stress Disorders
Veterans and their families
As of today, 1,615 men, women, and children have experienced treatment, change, and healing.
Ranch Hands Rescue specializes in helping people overcome the negative effects of trauma, through EAAC (Equine and Animal Assisted Counseling). This therapeutic modality helps traumatized individuals build a relationship with a horse or other animal to bring about transformation and healing.
It’s people helping animals, and animals helping people.
Many hardships in life can cause intense emotional trauma such as abuse, neglect, domestic violence, divorce, mental illness, substance abuse, death or imprisonment of a caregiver, or living in a war zone.
Research has shown that the effects of traumatic childhood or adult experiences can be long-lasting and change social, emotional, and cognitive functioning. At Ranch Hands Rescue’s innovative counseling center, they seek to intervene to change these outcomes.
This program is specifically designed for people who do not necessarily respond to traditional therapy, and more specifically, the 1-8% of individuals who need alternative mental health counseling.
It’s people helping animals, and animals helping people.
“Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened,” – Anatole France.
The bond between abused/neglected animals and abused/neglected people is almost magical.
Many times, individuals will find themselves disclosing pieces of their trauma to an animal before a person, and once that happens, healing can begin.
But that’s just the tip of the iceberg …
Trailblazing into 2021 for boys and young men
A year and a half ago, Ranch Hands Rescue started the initiative to fight the epidemic of human slavery in our country, and specifically, in Texas.
The sex-trafficking industry has stayed expertly hidden across the country and is more prevalent than you may realize.
Human trafficking is the sale of human bodies through force, fraud, or coercion. And the severity of this modern-day slavery is rampant in our own backyard. (You can learn more about this issue, and how you can join the fight against it here.)
Traffickers are highly attracted to Texas for its long corridors of un-tolled highways such as I-10 and I-35 that share a border with Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico, and the diverse industries and international airports.
In fact, Texas has one of the main trafficking routes in the United States.
To break this down, there are approximately …
79,000 minor and youth victims of sex trafficking in Texas
234,000 workers who are victims of labor trafficking in Texas
313,000 victims of human trafficking in Texas
… and half of these victims are boys.
Every night in Dallas, over 400 minors are sold into slavery, with over 50% of those cases being boys.
Surprised?
To add to their near invisible victimhood, “only 4 out of 25 shelters for commercially sexually exploited children serve boys, leaving them no choice but to return to their homes or to the streets where they face potential re-exploitation,” according to JJIE.org.
And out of the 64 trauma care beds in Texas, none of them serve young men who have been trafficked.
Because of this, Ranch Hands Rescue has been working diligently to open America’s very first long-term shelter for boys and men who are recovering from life in sex trafficking. “Bob’s House of Hope” is set to open as soon as January of 2021.
The decision to open this home of refuge for young men ages 17-24 was simply because, until now, there hasn’t been one. Ever.
These young men are worthy of a place where they can be seen, cared for, and provided the tools toward healing to live productive and healthy lives.
Every night in Dallas, over 400 minors are sold into slavery, with over 50% of those cases being boys.
Founder of Ranch Hands Rescue, Bob Williams, explained, “If we don’t provide shelter for victims of sex trafficking, their abusers are extremely likely to find them and bring them back into the trade. No person should be subjected to such a monstrous situation, but trafficking boys, in particular, are being overlooked. We’re going to change that, now.”
Because of Bob’s House of Hope, these young men will be forgotten no longer.
The success of this innovation is a win not just for our community or even our state, but for our entire country.
Having the wisdom and ability to adapt and overcome challenges, not even the COVID-19 pandemic could slow the progress of this incredible organization, Ranch Hands Rescue.
Be the voice for the voiceless
How long must the innocent suffer before help steps in?
Don’t wait for the commercial that will never come. Listen to the cry for help in your own backyard.
The innocent victims, both human and animal, do not deserve the maltreatment and abuse they have been subjected to. They deserve the opportunity for hope to return to their souls, and light to return to their eyes.
You can be a part of that.
There have been over 5,000 volunteers that have worked alongside Ranch Hands Rescue to be a force for good in this broken and hurting world. Join them.
For more information about this incredible partner organization of Serve Denton, and what you can do to contribute to hope and healing, click here.
Advocate for those who can’t advocate for themselves, and watch the miracle of healing take place before your eyes.