(National Catholic Reporter. Dan Stockman).
Ann Marie Jones, residential coordinator at Dawn’s Place, has a special connection to the women in the long-term residential program for survivors of sex trafficking. She understands their journey in ways no amount of professional training could ever provide. Because she is a graduate of the program. In 2011, Jones was freed from the bondage that had held her for 14 years. But just being free doesn’t heal the damage that’s been done, and it was the program at Dawn’s Place that let Jones rebuild her life. But don’t tell her you’re sorry she went through those years of hell. “Don’t be sorry,” she said. “I went through something like that to be who I am today.” Who she is today is no longer a victim, but a healer, and a professional who developed a 12-step sexual exploitation recovery group. “Ann Marie never really left here,” said Sr. Meaghan Patterson, a Sister of St. Joseph of Philadelphia and executive director of Dawn’s Place. “She graduated and five months later they offered her a job.”