Hi,
If you are reading this you likely don’t know me and I figured this was a chance to fix that because I am not just starting a nonprofit, I am starting a movement. (You can get to know me here.)
As with any visionary I have just enough vision and just the right amount of “crazy” to get the ideas on paper, but unlike them: I have the tools to get this job done.
That said I CANNOT DO IT ALONE AND NEED YOUR SUPPORT.
So … if you aren’t here because you saw my intent to pitch a bid for a Great Wolf Lodge and a human trafficking survivor R&R on the old Portage Manor on July 21, 2026 (which will be available on the county website here), then welcome! This is what I am talking about first.
I have created a change.org petition to create a human trafficking R&R in South Bend, Indiana, which will scale to grow into a United Nations NGO Consultant.
The only two United Nation NGOs we have in South Bend are Notre Dame and United Way – and neither of them are speaking on behalf of our survivors despite it being the best worst kept secret that South Bend and Niles are both in the human trafficking corridor nexus that lives between Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, and Indianapolis. I would know — I’ve worked for the prosecutor’s office in the Special Victims Unit. I’ve interned with Polaris. I’ve performed intakes for our trafficked women at our local homeless shelter, and I have watched some of our own advocates at my level cry and say “I didn’t realize trafficking could look like that” while describing their own experiences.
The truth of the matter is:
1.1 million people are being trafficked in the United States at any given moment.
If she was born in the U.S.: Statistically, she is a BIPOC woman living with an abusive partner, without a job or high school diploma, who experienced sexual assault under the age of 13—and there is a 67% chance her abuser left a tattoo, brand, or scar.
If he was born in the U.S.: Statistically, he lacks a high school education and works in high-pressure physical industries like factory work or agriculture (both prominent across our region).
The United Nations is already formally addressing AI technology and the intersection of human trafficking which is targeting minors – and yet no one is protecting the kids in our area.
I say we fix that. We already know that when COVID hit that Polaris noted that trafficking in Niles shifted from forced prostitution to child residential trafficking. Do you know how awful this is when Polaris has clearly stated Michigan has the sixth highest identified trafficking rate in the United States?
Indiana ranks around 25th and if you think this should make you feel better please note that ITVAP through Polaris in 2024 noted:
4,077 hotline calls originating from Indiana.
1,235 unique human trafficking cases established INSIDE the state.
2,689 total victims were identified within the state.
That means:
4,077 calls were made to a human trafficking hotline
Note: the DOJ reports less than 1% of all trafficking is reported.
More than three new cases a day were created because someone got trafficked from inside our own state.
We know at least 2,689 total people were personally trafficked in/through here.
All I am saying is, hear me out: Come to the city meetings. Meet with me.
Sign my petition. Join my movement.
As the Founder of Labyrinth Initiative I promise if get this land:
As a hyperverbal Autistic you will not hear me stop talking (see also: I will create blog-style versions of President Roosevelt’s Fireside Chats to keep you updated during project management -- I value tranparency and this is a lot of lives and a lot of jobs on the line for our city -- 700 in construction, more than 500 total and enough to say it should generate a $33M impact with $19M of that being direct employer income on a zero dollar budget to the city which is coincidentally the amount it takes to fund our county justice system).
You’ll watch me chronically ill roll along (that was an inside wheelchair joke) my way through education while bringing this nonprofit and its survivors voices with me all the way to the United Nations floor.
I will protect this land and the people on it with more intensity than I wrote this message.
So please, with transparency, feel free to:
For the technical, legal, and curious minded who wish to constructively help: give me legitimate and technical feedback on my actual proposal at labyrinthinitiative@gmail.com. If I can fix flaws now, the city is less likely to say no later.
You can check out my personal wishlist for supplies for my office needs as I volunteer my time to launch this initiative (since I am not working I have no HR to petition for ADA assistance to my own environment; and new diagnoses means new office needs). Please note: this is personal direct assistance for me as an individual advocate, not a tax-deductable donation to the nonprofit.
You can check out my personal wishlist for supplies for my medical go-bag as I volunteer my time to launch this initiative (please note: like the other GiftList, this is personal direct assistance for me as an individual advocate, not a tax-deductible donation to the non-profit!)
Conversely, you can contribute to my UGift using code K8B-25V (again, not a donation; this is an Indiana INvest ABLE account that helps cover my personal medical bills and qualifying expenses -- it is not a nonprofit donation).
Most importantly: spread the word and convince other people to sign my petition.
My thanks in advance for however you choose to help,
Anne Mayer, JD among other things.
P.S. To any celebrities that this might reach: I never want to be the person who says they made it big and started getting gifted fancy cars like a Lexus because they made new rich friends but .... the 501(c)(3) would totally take some donated armored cars to transport our survivors. 🖤