The mission of Defending Dignity is to reach women trapped in sexual exploitation to facilitate healing and restoration. Just two years ago, God began awakening co-founders, Holly Hudleson and Andrea Graver to the needs of women in their own community in Tulsa, Oklahoma. They were aware of the larger global issue of human sex trafficking and passionate about promoting awareness and helping to identify victims, but believed more could be done to reach those who were victims in their own backyard.
Prayer drives over known areas of prostitution and sex trafficking led to a deeper desire to befriend and meet women right where they are in the midst of their exploitation: in massage parlors, seedy hotels, strip clubs, convenience stores, even in county jail. Outreach efforts in the first year were fruitful, reaching over 50 suspected locations of illicit massage in the city of Tulsa. Resources and over 300 gifts were given to women working in suspected front businesses.