Bravely

Bravely is a residential community for women who have survived lives of commercial sexual exploitation (trafficking and prostitution), violence and addiction. Located in the Old North neighborhood of St. Louis, we help women heal and rebuild their lives through free long-term housing, medical care, trauma therapy, education, and job readiness. Our work is rooted in social justice, with a goal of total transformation. Bravely is based on a belief in the transformational nature of relationships acquired through community-style living (Stevens, 2008). Located in the Old North neighborhood of St. Louis, we help women heal and rebuild their lives through free long-term housing, medical care, trauma therapy, education and job readiness. Our program provides direct services for up to 7 women at a time as well as reaching hundreds more through advocacy and referral services each year.

Throughout the program, Bravely provides residents with housing, educational and job opportunities, legal intervention and support, group therapy, transportation, medical and mental health treatment, case management, and individual therapy referrals. This vast spectrum of services is provided at no cost to the women. For services not provided in-house, such as drug and alcohol recovery meetings or medical and dental care, we are fortunate to work with several other partner organizations. The agencies we partner with vary based on the needs of each individual woman, but examples include Queen of Peace Center, Affinia Healthcare (previously Grace Hill Health Centers), Safe Connections, YWCA Sexual Assault Center, Perennial, and Connections to Success.

In addition, Bravely has a social enterprise, Wear Bravely, that offers employment to residents and graduates of the program. Bravely provides residents with job training and, ultimately, economic stability through acquisition of upper-level job skills and a living wage.

The most important outcome for the women is lifelong sobriety and freedom from a life of sexual exploitation. In order to achieve these outcomes, the objectives of our program are for the women to have the following at the completion of the two-year program:
• Two years of sobriety, with a lifelong community in place to keep them on the path to recovery.
• Employment or education/job skills that make them a prime candidate for employment.
• The capacity to be excellent parents to their children, if they have any.
• The ability to advocate for other women who are trapped in sexual exploitation and drug abuse and for changing systems that objectify and commodify women.
• A deep sense of self-worth rooted in a lifelong sisterhood of love and support.