In a recent visit to Portage Evangelical Church, Joy Smith, founder of the Joy Smith Foundation and a 78‐year‐old former MLA and former Member of Parliament from Winnipeg, speaks directly to members of the church’s Trusted Faithful Love program about protecting children from the dangers of sex trafficking. The session comes at a time when digital threats are intensifying, with previous reports highlighting concerns—from allegations around Oak Tree Towers to last year’s Portage trafficking ring bust.
Foundation insights and digital risks
Joy Smith explains the mission of her organization with resolute clarity.
"What my foundation does is bring awareness all over Canada about human trafficking and we go into many schools. We go into churches, we go into service providers, police officers, judges. We've worked just under 8000 cases now of traffic victims and their families, and we also work on forced labor. So, the bills that have passed in Parliament include both sex trafficking and forced labor."
She continues to detail the digital dimension of the crisis.
"Every kid has a cell phone, and every kid has access to the Internet. You can live in a remote area, but if you have a cell phone or access to the Internet, you are subject to being lured by sex traffickers … The Internet is the most active way for young people to be lured into sex trafficking and how they do it nowadays is with artificial intelligence. They're able to change their face, they're able to change their voice."
Smith’s account is a stark reminder of the pervasive vulnerability in today’s digital age, where the lure of online interactions can quickly spiral into dangerous situations. She recounts a harrowing case.
"We had a case very recently where a girl was living at home, and she was on the Internet. She met what she thought was a 16-year-old boy... It turned out to be not one, not two, but three 30-year-old men. They took her and they forced her to sexually service men at a hotel... they took her back home, and her parents had no idea. But this is how they operate. They earn over $280,000 per victim per year."
Smith underscores the need for parents to remain vigilant, emphasizing that these deceptive practices can occur in less than 45 minutes.
"Research has shown that underage persons can be affected by these traffickers in less than 45 minutes. … They get young, vulnerable people. The younger the better because they're not experienced."
Community response and preventative measures
Les Kroeker, Pastor of Church Ministries at PEC, stresses the church’s proactive approach.
"This is an organization that has been very involved in speaking out against sex trafficking... I would highly recommend her as a speaker to anybody that wants to learn more about this. We were especially interested in getting this information out to our people at this time because of what's been happening even right here in our city."
Twyla Weibe, who oversees the Trusted Faithful Love training at the church, adds her perspective on the importance of the program.
"We do try to do training three times a year and bring in different people that speak to things that might be happening in our community. This last session, for example, focused on recognizing dangerous people and the grooming process — identifying the early warning signs so that young people can be saved from exploitation."
For parents seeking practical advice, Smith provides a comprehensive list of safety measures.
"Well, first of all, the parents should always have a computer in the open… the children should set all their social media accounts to private, turn off location services, and accept friend requests only from people they know in real life. Block, unfollow, and unfriend people you don't know on social media. Chat only with people you know personally. No meet-ups with online acquaintances. Avoid adding gaming friends to your social media. Don't share or text explicit videos or photos. Disable or block your webcam and other cameras; this is very important because often the perpetrator will take a picture of the person they're talking to. Be cautious — don't open attachments from unknown people. Keep your personal information private… only share it with trusted individuals. Use a secret code word to text someone you trust in case you're in trouble."
Smith’s detailed guidance resonates as a crucial resource for parents, especially amidst growing concerns highlighted by past local news stories on trafficking at Oak Tree Towers and the recent human trafficking ring bust in Portage.
As the Trusted Faithful Love program continues to serve the congregation with up-to-date safety training, church leaders emphasize working as a team to protect children from these modern threats. With the ongoing evolution of technology, both community vigilance and education have become vital tools in the fight against human trafficking.