(Detroit, MI) – August 16, 2016 – TV host and Detroit native Shaun Robinson, in partnership with the Ford Motor Company Fund, will launch her new nonprofit, the S.H.A.U.N. Foundation for Girls with a grant to Alternatives For Girls. The kickoff event will feature a human trafficking prevention panel on Saturday August 20, 2016, 8:30am -11:00am at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. The event is being held in conjunction with the museum’s African World Festival.
The panel will include community experts and trafficking survivors who will offer advice from their experiences, and engage in discussion about how to end trafficking in our community. The event, The Empowered Girl: How NOT to be a Victim of Human Trafficking, is free and open to the public. Shaun Robinson will facilitate the panel, which will include:
- Joyce Haskett, author and survivor;
- Alice Jay, author and survivor;
- Nicole McGee, FBI-Detroit, Victims Specialist;
- Debra Munroe, activist and survivor;
- Deena Policicchio, Alternatives For Girls, Outreach Director;
- Mary Sheffield, Detroit City Councilmember;
- Celia Thomas, Alternatives For Girls, Chief Operating Officer;
- Deborah Thomas, Judge – 3rd Judicial Circuit Court
“The Ford Motor Company Fund is pleased to join forces with this inaugural event for the S.H.A.U.N. Foundation for Girls here in Detroit while supporting such a dedicated, solution-based organization as Alternatives For Girls,” says Pamela Alexander, director of community development, Ford Motor Company Fund. “It is imperative that we educate and empower young girls and women to be vigilant of those who prey on our communities“.
Human Trafficking is happening everyday right her in Michigan. The Detroit Free Press recently reported that Michigan has seen a 16 percent increase in human trafficking cases with 152 cases reported by Polaris, an organization that helps fight human trafficking across the globe.
All young ladies, their sisters, nieces, girlfriends, and parents are invited to attend this honest and candid discussion. They will provide advice from women who are on the front lines battling this epidemic.
About Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services
Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services works with community partners to advance driving safety, education and community life. The Ford Motor Company Fund has operated for more than 60 years with ongoing funding from Ford Motor Company. Ford Driving Skills for Life teaches new drivers through a variety of hands-on and interactive methods. Innovation in education is encouraged through programs that enhance high school learning and provide college scholarships and university grants. Through the Ford Volunteer Corps, more than 25,000 Ford employees and retirees each year work on projects that better their communities in 30 countries. For more information, visit http://community.ford.com
About S.H.A.U.N. Foundation for Girls
The S.H.A.U.N. Foundation for Girls is a grant-making, 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to improving the quality of life for girls and young women. It provides support for local, grass-roots charities that are doing work in one of five key areas: (S)TEM, (H)EALTH, (A)RTS, (U)NITY and (N)NEIGHBORHOODS. More information can be found atwww.ShaunFoundationforGirls.
Shaun Robinson is an Emmy Award-winning journalist, producer and former host of the entertainment show, Access Hollywood. She is the author of the book, ‘Exactly As I Am: Celebrated Women Share Candid Advice With Today’s Girls On What It Takes To Believe in Yourself. She served on the national board of Girls, Inc. and is currently on the board of the United Nation’s Foundation’s adolescent girl campaign, Girl Up. Shaun is a Detroit native and a graduate of Spelman College in Atlanta.
About Alternatives For Girls
Alternatives For Girls is a Detroit-based 501(c)3 nonprofit serving homeless and high-risk girls and young women. Since 1987, AFG has provided critical services to the girls and young women it serves, including safe shelter, street outreach and educational support, vocational guidance, mentoring, prevention activities, and counseling.
AFG’s mission is to help homeless and high-risk girls and young women avoid violence, teen pregnancy and exploitation, and help them to explore and access the support, resources and opportunities necessary to be safe, to grow strong and to make positive choices in their lives. More information about AFG can be found at www.AlternativesForGirls.org.
