Karen with Marley (Picture: Karen Anstiss)
Sitting on the sofa, Marley reached out to Sheela as she was knitting.
‘Hello sweetie pie,’ she said to Marley, a seven-year-old cat, whose paw was now on Sheela’s leg.
Looking on, I was astonished. This woman had been kept mute for over 20 years as a slave in London, and in three months of knowing her, these were the only words in English I’d ever heard Sheela speak.
Sheela is a guest at Caritas Bakhita House – a safe house for women who have been trafficked, enslaved or exploited.
As part of the support team at the organisation, I assist these women as they recover. We cover any medical needs, physiological and physical, and we help them to return home or seek asylum and find safe employment, if they are legally allowed to and wish to.
For Sheela’s first few months with us, she’d been closed off, unreachable. Now Marley had reached her – conveying his compassion and care without the necessity of speech.
Through that friendship, my colleagues and I found a way to interact with her too. Marley was the bridge we needed to gain Sheela’s trust – and all it took was one little paw.
It was the first time I’d seen Sheela’s eyes free of fear.
I have been honoured to witness the bravery of the women (Picture: Karen Anstiss)
I helped open Caritas Bakhita House in 2015, after a 31-year career with the Metropolitan Police. I’d been on the Trafficking Team, helping survivors of the most brutal crimes I’d ever investigated – people who had been trafficked, enslaved and exploited.
I’m passionate about female victims having a safe place to recover – a home that feels like a family, where they know they are safe.
Ever since its opening, Caritas Bakhita House has assisted 198 women – aged 15 to 70 – from 50 countries. We’ve been touched to welcome 16 babies who were born here, which has brought joy to us all.
These survivors have been deceived and then totally controlled by others; every daily decision made for them. I have been honoured to witness the bravery of the women as they take each step towards recovery and give evidence in court against their abusers.
Their testimonies have led to defendants being given custodial sentences totalling 205 years.
Marley is a big part of every success story (Picture: Karen Anstiss)
When they come to us, they have a lot of healing to do. So when a woman is presented with her first ever birthday cake or makes an independent trip to the supermarket, I feel like a proud parent. Every success, however small, is important.
I’ve been there when guests – never having attended school – write their names for the first time. And then there are those who have continued their studies, and graduated from university.
And Marley is a big part of every success story.
His original owners asked if we could offer him a home four years ago. He’d been adopted from a
Source:: Metro
