Celebrate Black History Month by exploring Seattle through the neighborhoods that Black entrepreneurs and makers help shape every day. We’ve put together a curated guide of Black-owned businesses in and around Columbia City, Rainier Valley, Hillman City, and the Central District, plus easy “day out” itineraries to make supporting local simple and fun. Read the full blog to discover the list, plan your route, and find new favorites!
January at REST was a quiet return to what matters most: routine, connection, and steady steps forward. With workshops restarting, community spaces reopening, and our team growing stronger, we’ve seen again how consistency helps survivors refocus, rebuild momentum, and move toward their goals. Read the full blog to see what’s been happening inside the ERC and how your support is making it possible.
Fifteen years ago, REST began with one bold belief: survivors deserve dignity, compassion, and real pathways forward. Since 2009, that belief has looked like calls answered when someone had nowhere else to turn, advocates showing up again and again, and a community refusing to look away. In our 15-year anniversary blog, we reflect on REST’s journey from our beginnings in 2009 through becoming an official 501(c)(3) in 2011, what this milestone truly represents, and why we’re more committed than ever to the work ahead. Read the full post to celebrate with us and see what’s next.
REST’s new Signature Tea Collection is here, and it’s steeped in purpose. These six bright and cozy blends on Adagio let you enjoy a cup you love while supporting survivors, with five percent of every purchase going back to REST. In the blog, meet each tea, discover our “tea mates” pairings, and learn how this simple ritual can help create safety, steady care, and new beginnings.
December at REST was filled with moments of connection, creativity, and hope. From a Winter Wonderland Open Mic Night where guests shared music and stories, to Holiday Spirit Week activities and a caroling visit that brought joy to seniors in memory care, this season reminded us how powerful community can be. We also celebrated making Christmas morning special for shelter guests and honored our team with quarterly Value Awards. Read the full recap and see what hope in action looked like all month.
REST’s new Signature Tea Collection is here, and it’s steeped in purpose. These six bright and cozy blends on Adagio let you enjoy a cup you love while supporting survivors, with five percent of every purchase going back to REST. In the blog, meet each tea, discover our “tea mates” pairings, and learn how this simple ritual can help create safety, steady care, and new beginnings.
This GivingTuesday (December 3), turn generosity into freedom, safety, and hope for survivors of sex trafficking. REST provides critical services like emergency shelter, counseling, and housing assistance, giving survivors the courage and resources to reclaim their lives. Your support—through a donation, sharing our mission, or volunteering—can make a life-changing impact. Together, let’s build a future where every survivor feels supported, valued, and free. Learn more about how you can help this GivingTuesday.
Snuggling up on your couch can be a powerful act of solidarity in our mission to end sex trafficking. With winter settling in and many of us spending our free time catching up on books, TV shows, and movies, now is the perfect time to hunker down and gain some new knowledge and perspective. By immersing yourself in books and movies, participating in virtual discussions, and supporting organizations actively engaged in the cause, you become a crucial part of the movement.
We’ve been getting questions about the movie, Sound of Freedom, and imagine you may have seen it too. The movie follows the journey of a former Homeland Security agent who initiates sting operations in foreign countries to find and recover children from sex trafficking. Here are some takeaways we’d like to share after watching the film:
1. Increased awareness of sex trafficking is good and should always center the voices and experiences of survivors.
The more people that know about the issue of sex trafficking, the more likely we are to build momentum toward real change. That’s why we think it’s important to learn from those who have experienced trafficking firsthand and can speak to the most promising practices in the effort to end sex trafficking. Here are a few organizations and accounts we recommend you follow to keep learning about this issue:
2. The film is a great conversation starter, let’s not stop there.
There is much more to understand about the realities of sex trafficking (and how to safely intervene) than was shared through the film. We can help fill in the information gaps at our virtual REST Training Day, open to all community members who want to learn more about this issue and find a way to engage. This training is offered quarterly.
3. Trafficking of children (and adults) happens worldwide, including here in the United States.
An estimated 500-700 youth and likely even more adults are trafficked in the sex trade in King County, WA. Over 600 individuals engage with REST for services each year. The majority are from the area, and many were trafficked for the first time by a parent or family member. By offering financial support or getting involved with REST or other local organizations that combat human trafficking, you can make a meaningful difference!
4. Efforts to address sex trafficking should never put victims in harm’s way and should always ensure adequate long-term safety and recovery support is in place.
While undercover stings can be portrayed as effective, the work to identify victims of trafficking, help them get to safety, and ensure they have access to the long-term resources and support they need requires significant time and resources. Even when reunited with family, or finally in a safe place to sleep at night, the journey of recovery is filled with peaks and valleys, and getting away from a trafficker is just one step in that long journey. It’s critical to ensure holistic supports are set up for the long haul.
By partnering with REST, you are contributing to the holistic support that enables victims and survivors of sex trafficking to find safety and find their pathways to freedom, safety, and hope, no matter how long it takes.
At REST, we know that there is a massive overlap in sexually exploited individuals and homelessness. Data shows that 84% of survivors of sexual exploitation have endured homelessness. A local study by Deborah Boyer, Commercially Sexually Exploited Children in Seattle/King County 2019 Update, demonstrated that 46% of sexually exploited youth in our community were homeless at the time of the study—and 66% of them had faced homelessness.
Most of the photographs representing survivors on this website are stock photography and feature models used for illustrative purposes only. With a few carefully evaluated exceptions, we do not publish or share photos of survivors at REST.
