AAUW Flagler welcomes Sarah Symons, author, founder, and Executive Director of Her Future Coalition on Saturday, April 23, 2022, from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm at Palm Coast Community Center. Human trafficking is slavery, it is oppression and abuse, and it is happening day in and day out all over the world. What happens to women and girls who have been rescued from human trafficking?
Sarah started Her Future Coalition with her husband John Berger in 2005 and has educated, sheltered, trained. employed, and provided mental health support to thousands of survivors and vulnerable girls. Symons and her husband John Berger started the organization with their own money and the contributions of a few concerned friends.
Sarah will be discussing her most recent book, “Standing in the Way: From Trafficking Victim to Human Rights Activist “ was written with former trafficking victim Anjali Tamang. Despite having suffered the most heinous abuse imaginable, Anjali is now working to combat trafficking and protect the next generation of girls in her community. The book sensitively portrays the difficult life of a young girl in a brothel. It is suitable for readers 15 and up. Anjali was eventually rescued, and the book tells that part of the story from the perspective of the rescuers as well as the girls themselves. Standing in the Way describes the innovative counseling and loving care that Anjali received after being rescued.
Her first book, “This is No Ordinary Joy: How the Courage of Survivors Transformed my Life” is the story of Sarah’s work in India and Nepal.
Before starting Her Future Coalition, Symons toured the country as a singer-songwriter and keyboardist, and recorded songs for television, as a solo artist and with the acoustic duo ‘The Syrens’. She released five CDs and later ran a source music company and recording studio for TV music. Symons’ music was frequently heard on national network TV and the radio. Before that, she was a counselor and art teacher at Creative Arts Workshops in New York City.
Sarah graduated in 1990 from the University of Pennsylvania, with a magna cum laude degree in Communications. She and her husband John Berger are the parents of two socially conscious young adults – Maya, 21, and Luke, 20. They live in St. Augustine, Florida with their two raucous dogs.
The Author’s Tea is scheduled for Saturday, April 23, 2022, from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm (Doors open at 12:30 pm) Palm Coast Community Center, 305 Palm Coast Pkwy NE, Palm Coast, FL 32137. Tickets are $25 per person or $180 for a reserved table of 8. Buy your ticket online at https://aauw-flagler-branch.square.site or email AAUWFlagler1984@gmail.com for other purchase options. Books may be purchased at the event. There are a limited number of tickets available, so get yours now. Please consider carpooling because parking is limited. Unable to attend? Donations are gratefully accepted and appreciated.
Media Release: AAUW Flagler Chapter
