Event Hosting, What a Rush!

The peril

Like a ride on the Zoomba Floom, there was a cold-water plunge that caught my breath.

I loved everything about ramping-up to our big anti-slavery awareness event on Friday, May 3 with Victor Malarek.

Everything except the dip into doubt. That came at the end.

My brother says that our family has a weird kind of perfectionism. He told me, “I won’t risk doing something that could fail. If I try something I need to know the result will be perfect”.

Crap.

I have that! I’m not afriad of taking a risk, no, that part is fun. I cower and sink after jumping in.

I never thought of myself as a perfectionist, but I feel sunk when I make a mistake.

And I am not talking about big blunders either, no, little things: I forgot half my introductory comments on Friday night–and I had funny stuff too. Rats.

I read Victor Malarek’s intro, so nothing was left out there. Then I handed the microphone to Victor and sat down, and rumpled inside. I made a mistake.

Failure. I had already felt that night. Why? Little thing. Because when Malarek and his very special guest, Sandie Rinaldo(!), arrived from Toronto they took my advice, they went for a walk to our lovely harbour. But, they walked from the hotel. That is too far to walk. I outlined the walking path by the beach on a map but didn’t note that they should first drive to the harbour.

May 2nd at the beach in Kincardine

I felt the icey hand of failure around my stomach because of that mistake too.

They had time to enjoy the gem of Kincardine: our boardwalk. And instead of that they got row housing and rusty fences on old Durham street! They walked part way in the open sun and had to turn around, and go back to the hotel and drive to the harbour.

Not that a big deal right? They got to the beach after all. My head says, so what? My stomach felt like it took on a bucket of cold water.

I used to soak in that cold bath, but on Friday night, by the time Malarek’s talk was over, I was fine, it went away.

By the time Victor was done, nobody was thinking my mistake.

It wasn’t about me. So what if forget some stuff. Move on!

Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. Dale Carnegie

The reason we did this event was for Victor’s talk. And that has lasting impact. The story is hot off the press today in our local paper. Our Facebook page has received way over 600 views and we have recruiters signed up for our big fund raiser, the RIDE on Oct 5, 2013!

Now that is better than any perfect performance on my part!

Plus, I get my picture taken with Sanide Rinaldo, and Victor Malarek!

I get my picture taken with Sandie Rinaldo, and Victor Malarek!

Have you made a mistake and decided not to risk making one again? Have you ever told yourself not to try something because of the icy hand of fear around your belly? Lets challenge that fear.

Talk about it here in comments or email me direct at marilynluinstra@gmail.com

The Freedom Tour

by Marilyn Luinstra | Leave a Comment

First stop, Barrie Ontario, Sunday, April 21, 7:00 pm.

I was there.

I wanted to meet these freedom fighters: Miss Canada, Jaclyn Miles, and survivors, Katarina MacLeod, and Caroline Pugh Roberts.

Stan Burditt of Men Against Sexual Trafficking (MAST) from London, Ontario leads the tour that will cross Ontario raising awareness about human trafficking.

For anyone interested in the new anti-slavery cause, this event is a must see. For two reasons:

One education. Stan lays down all the facts in his power point presentation. The survivors compelling stories validate these facts. This IS happening in our backyard.
Two. You will see how very small this new movement is, barley on the cusp of public awareness. We need you. We need communities who will raise a core of liberators. Create a team–two people can be a team!–then reach out and join forces with others. Others like Stan from London, or [Free Them] from Oakville, or the Alliance Against Modern Slavery in Toronto. Or me. I am in Kincardine.

There are more of us out there. Just ask. I will hook you up with an anti-slavery community near you.

You will be glad you did.

Welcome to the resistance. Together we will make a difference to the most vulnerable in our country, and in our world.

Connect here, in the comments section, or call or text me at 519- 389-1037.

Risk-Anxiety. Try it!

by Marilyn Luinstra | Leave a Comment

Thinking of taking a risk? Going out on a limb to promote the anti-slavery cause? Yes. Go. Do it.

But first, if you want to know what the risk will be like, here is the best advice out there. Find someone who IS doing that risky thing–not has done it, someone who is doing it–ask them what it’s like.

What it’s like. I am in it. Right now. My team and I have 10 days to sell over 100 tickets.

I feel like Cinderella, not ready, and late for the ball. My mind is like a popcorn machine, frantic with how? How will we fill this banquet hall? I scramble to catch all the to-dos. But that won’t work. I have to unplug in order to slow down the popping and spilling.

Now the nervous popping collects inside–fidgety. I tell my hands to stop feeling for rough spots to pull away on my fingernails and cuticles. It always peels too deep, bleeds, stings. Stop that.

The body teaches the mind.

Fold your hands. Try it. Pay attention to what it does. It opens the ears to the voice of your better angels.

Listen to the higher calling you have. Serve the captive, voiceless. Do it with all your heart. Not all your fears.

For sure you will get whelmed. That’s what makes it exciting!

I lose sleep over this stuff. And that is good. If nothing causes me to lay awake at night (and not much does, I can fall asleep blinking) then I wonder how alive I am inside.

I am alive and awake right now! And afraid. Afraid of failing (more to the point: I will be embarrassed to introduce Victor Malarek to a half-full dinner hall).

What if I fail?

I am not defined by a bad game of baseball. R.A. Dickey said that on a CBC radio interview on Monday. The Toronto Blue Jays pitcher has learned to grieve and accept loss, and not be defined by it. How hard is that‽ They guy signed a 30 million dollar contract to win, not lose.

He knows loss. He lost his childhood at the hands of an abuser. Now is a voice for the anti-slavery cause.

There is peace and wisdom in his words. The slow and calm way he says them is sage like. Click to see his autobiography http://www.amazon.com/dp/0452299012 here for the radio interview http://www.amazon.com/dp/0452299012

The success of this banquet night is not about me. I need to accept that.

Not about me.

It is about them. The captive, voiceless, suffering, stolen children. I work for them.

Join me in this work won’t you?

Take a risk. Make a plan for your community. Talk about here.

You wont’ be alone in it.

Events for April, 2013

by Marilyn Luinstra | Leave a Comment

[Free Them] Boot Camp, Saturday, April 13, 2013

I Called the RCMP

by Marilyn Luinstra | Leave a Comment

My first, tentative step, into the anti-slavery cause was a Google search, “modern slavery”—pretty simple right.

I ordered books, and I noticed all of them were American. Then I ordered a flyer from the EFC* with Canadian stats, and charts. It had a contact number for the RCMP.

Do I call? Yeah, I could call, I did have a ligit question to ask . . . I’ll call . . . later. EFC

The EFC flyer said that 8,000 people are trafficked into Canada yearly. Really, how did they know?

The contact number, 519 640-7394, was for Marty Van Doren, Human Trafficking Awareness Coordinator, “O” Division (what’s “O” Division, I wondered–Ontario, ah).

No answer, just a recording, “leave a message after the tone”, beeeeeep. Ok, breath in, “um, Hi. My name is . . . and I was wondering if you . . . ”. Click. Exhale.

It’s a little bit intimidating, from the titled-RCMP professionals to the glossy flyer with stats and charts. It wasn’t until I made a real-person connection, that I could relax my shoulders and begin to listen.

Marty Van Doren
RCMP Human Trafficking Awareness Coordinator “O” Division

That reassuring conversation happened within fifteen minutes of my message. Marty returned my call from his cell phone while walking downtown Toronto.

He was on his way to a speaking event, yet he spoke to me like my call was important. Like answering a question about human trafficking is what he is hired to do. It is.

Marty is perfect for this job. He is probably super over-qualified for a part-time awareness post (his full-time job was national defense!).

He answered my question: No one knows how many people are trafficked in, though, and out of Canada. What is known is that it is happening, mainly to woman and children. The eight thousand a year, is an estimate—a low estimate. We are just beginning to research and measure it.

So this is real.

Score one for non-profits and their bell ringing. The EFC wasn’t the only Canadian organization sending up the alarm. I soon discovered, Canada Fights Human Trafficking, and host of other start-ups working to get the attention of the public ear.

In the spring 2010, my local anti-slavery group met with Marty at Coffee Culture in Wingham, Ontario.

Marty told us about Canada Fights Human Trafficking, (CFHT), lead by Naomi Baker.

The news clipping above is from March 26, 2011, when my team hosted Marty and Naomi in Kincardine.

CFHT folded in 2012.

There are many start-up organizations working to get a foothold in this cause. Sometimes first-tries fail.

When CFHT closed, Marty recommended my local group to Karlee Sapoznik of York University, and her newly-formed Alliance Against Modern Slavery. AAMS has been around as long as long as my team, 2010.

AAMS is doing an amazing job. Check them out here, http://allianceagainstmodernslavery.org/

If you have questions, would like to attend an event, or have Marty speak to your group, you can contact him at the phone number above or this email, marty.vandoren@rcmp-grc.gc.ca

You will be glad you did.

If you haven’t made that first call yet you can talk to me at 519 396-6469. I would love to hear from you.

Or leave a message in the comment section below.

*EFC Evangelical Fellowship of Canada

The Alliance Against Modern Slavery, 2013, Conference

by Marilyn Luinstra | Leave a Comment

Me, Laura, and Joanne, volunteering at AAMS Confrenece
AKA Photography

I arrived downtown Toronto at 6:30 am. all by myself, on the cool, grey morning of February 23. The start time for volunteers at the Alliance Against Modern Slavery’s (AAMS) conference wasn’t until 7:00 am.

Parking, at 6:30 am., was a cinch; finding a Starbucks that opened before 7:00 am., on the other hand, was not. I found one, deep in the lobby of the Marriot, located across the street from the YMCA conference venue at 20 Grosvenor Street.

Navigating the city made a townie like me feel pretty good, almost cosmopolitan. What felt even better was entering the Y and seeing the warm and friendly faces of the AAMS volunteer team decked in alliance-red T’s and excited for the day. What a welcome!

This conference felt different than the last AAMS conference, which was held at York University in October, 2011. That event was dense in research and expert documentation. AAMS built a solid foundation in 2011 and used it like a launching pad for 2013.

Karlee Sapoznik, President AAMS
AKA Photography

Karlee Sapoznik, president, AAMS, and her team, created a fantastic lineup of speakers: front-line workers, experienced law enforcement, survivors, educators and, activists.

One activist, Aura Burditt, who spoke at the afternoon session, said something that made me smile. It was good coaching to everyone who has felt that taking it on this cause is like trying to hold back a tsunami with a broom.

Aura was talking about her husband, Stan, and his 210 km Freedom Walk from London, ON, to Queen’s Park, in September, 2012. She said,

“After the walk, Stan’s toenails turned black and fell off”.

Stan and Aura Burditt at the AAMS Conference Feb. 23, 2013
AKA Photography

Stan and Aura spend themselves for this cause and it costs them: toenails, sleep, weekends. It’s worth it.

These sacrifices can make a difference, affecting one person makes a difference. One event can inspire someone new to be a voice for the enslaved.

All it takes is action. One person with no plan won’t liberate 27 million slaves. But when each of us does our part we can achieve exactly what Sapoznik illustrated in her opening words at the conference.

In 1787, twelve people sat around a table in a bookshop in London, England. They founded an anti-slavery organization. It took those people just twenty years to achieve the legal end of the slave trade across the entire British Empire, including Canada. What they’ve done is ours to finish.

So what do you say? Are you ready to roll up your sleeves? You can do one thing right now that will make a difference, contact me. Join a team, join my team or create a team. And stay plugged in. Leave a comment or shoot me an email, marilynluinstra@gmail.com with your ideas, questions, thoughts or plans. I’d love to hear from you.

This Community is for You

by Marilyn Luinstra | Leave a Comment

Harriet Beecher Stowe. World Changer. She Didn’t Work Alone

Are you a lone ranger working for the anti-slavery cause?

You’ll get tired without a team, and worse, you’ll become numb to the need. We all do.

Community creates energy. Who doesn’t want more of that?

That’s why a small town is all wrong for me. It’s not a big enough community. I would rather be energized in the city by all the movers and shakers in the anti-slavery cause.

That’s why a small town is perfect for me. I am an outpost for all that cosmo action. So are you. If you are in a place where the anti-slavery message is still new then you are in the right place too.

Communication is key. So is community. Take Harriet Beecher Stowe for example–daughter, sister and wife to abolitionist ministers–she had plenty of like-minded community. Her book, Uncle Tom’ Cabin, was published in March of 1852 and spread like wild fire.

Woman of the 1800′s were society’s lower-class, and like Stowe, they were sympathetic to the slave’s plight.

By speaking up for the oppressed, women built a platform for their own equal-rights cause. Whatever you do for the oppressed will enrich your life. But don’t do it for that reason.

Do it because it’s right.

What would you do in your town if you had the support of an anti-slavery community cheering you on?

Shoot me an email marilynluinstra@gmail.com or, better yet, talk about it in the comments section. Let others know your thoughts.

“I WILL BE HEARD”

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William Lloyd Garrison

On January 1, 1831, William Lloyd Garrison published the first copy of the anti-slavery newspaper, The Liberator. He started out in New England as one-man, one-issue-a-week operation.

The Liberator grew to 3,000 subscribers, (mostly un-enslaved, African-Americans).

Small by today’s standards.

The Liberator had a huge impact on America’s anti-slavery movement.

Garrison was known for his uncompromising tone:

I am aware that many object to the severity of my language; but is there not cause for severity? I will be as harsh as truth, and as uncompromising as justice. On this subject, I do not wish to think, or to speak, or write, with moderation. No! No! Tell a man whose house is on fire to give a moderate alarm; tell him to moderately rescue his wife from the hands of the ravisher; tell the mother to gradually extricate her babe from the fire into which it has fallen; – but urge me not to use moderation in a cause like the present. I am in earnest – I will not equivocate – I will not excuse – I will not retreat a single inch – AND I WILL BE HEARD.

And you will be heard too.

Step out and speak up.

Make a difference in your community.

Talk about your ideas and plans in the comments section. Or post a question. I’d love to hear from you.

What I learned from Drinking and Driving

by Marilyn Luinstra | Leave a Comment

Drinking and Driving. I did it, then lied about it.

I was a reckless teen in the ‘80s, just as MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) began to change public opinion about drinking and driving. So I have a few memories—spotty memories—of driving drunk.

I am ashamed to admit that. And I am glad for the shame, why? Because shame, plus public opinion, had the power to change my bad behavior.

I wish I could say the same about my abuse of child slaves.

Oh I don’t own any slaves or anything like that. I don’t get my hands dirty. I just exploit slaves, mainly children, so I can enjoy comfort and safety from the products that I buy. So do you.

Thanks to slaves I can text message my kids at school and know they are safe.

My car brakes are another way I stay safe thanks to slaves who often are burned, maimed or killed in making of brake lining.

I drink slavery for breakfast in my coffee and I enjoy slavery as a treat in my chocolate.

Not anymore, I have given up slave-coffee and slave-chocolate. You can too if you buy fair trade.

If enough of us used our influence we could get slavery out of our brake lining and cell phone components and a thousand other products we use too.

Influence is everything

I cracked up my mom’s car while driving drunk. Then I lied about it. I lied because I was ashamed to tell the truth (sorry Mom).

Shame by itself wasn’t enough to change my behavior. I needed the influence of a community in order to change. I needed influence en masse–public opinion–it’s big.

But it starts small.

It starts with people with the same goals getting connected.

Friends helping friends create change.

How can I help you?

Do you need more information?

Do you have an anti-slavery event to promote, a book to sell?

Do you have a story to tell, a success to share? A question to ask?

Talk about it here.

Your involvement makes the difference, so say something in the comments section. While you are at it, sign up for regular updates. I would love to stay connected with you.

Liberator

The Freedom Tour

Risk-Anxiety. Try it!

Events for April, 2013

I Called the RCMP

The Alliance Against Modern Slavery, 2013, Conference

This Community is for You

“I WILL BE HEARD”

William Lloyd Garrison

What I learned from Drinking and Driving

Liberator

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