Get Up Nation® Podcast Episode 82 Guest: Lisa McCormick, Anti-Human Trafficking Speaker, Educator &

Get Up Nation®! My name is Ben Biddick. I’m the Creator and Host of Get Up Nation® and Co-Author of Get Up: The Art of Perseverance. Recently I had the honor and privilege of speaking with Lisa McCormick. Lisa lost her son Jeffrey when he was 17 years old to a drug overdose. Lisa later learned Jeffrey had been sex trafficked prior to his death. Lisa speaks and advocates for systemic change that enables American systems to hold traffickers and buyers accountable, prevent human trafficking, and effectively rescue and serve those who have been trafficked. Because of the sensitive nature of the interview, I chose not to end the show with my usual six questions. Instead we focus heavily on the resilience process Lisa uses of transforming her pain and grief into advocacy, awareness, and a relentless drive to educate others in hopes of preventing future exploitation.

Lisa is a member of the Wisconsin Anti Human Trafficking Advisory Council and is featured in the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families documentary film on youth sex trafficking in Wisconsin to be released in 2019. Lisa speaks on the topics of sex trafficking, drug addiction, bullying, acceptance, and her faith throughout her personal journey as a parent of a sex trafficking victim. She educates groups to recognize the signs of at risk youth, how to overcome barriers of fear in talking with them and showing them you care, and to give them someone to trust. Lisa has made it her life’s purpose to share her family’s story so others understand trafficking and how easily our vulnerable children can be exploited. Lisa walks alongside suffering parents, grandparents, and caregivers, supporting them with the knowledge that they are not alone in this journey.

In this episode of the Get Up Nation® Show, we are confronted with the truth that human trafficking exists only because there is a demand for it. If there was no demand, it would not exist.

And now, I present to you, Lisa McCormick.