Domestic Survivor Gives Back to Community with Divine Purpose Transitional Living

Israeio La’eida Holloway is the Founder/CEO of Hope and Divine Purpose Transitional Living Home, Inc. At the age of 22, Israeio became a victim of Domestic Violence. She had experienced firsthand the effects of being verbally, physically and psychologically abused. She had lost her identity. Her self-esteem was so broken she sank into major depression. Yet, due to a praying mother that spoke change into her situation, she was determined to get her life back.

Once she found the courage to release herself from her abuser she vowed to never allow herself to become a victim again. It was then she decided it was time to be effective and use her traumatic experience as a testimony to uplift and revive other women. Israeio progressed through her pain and now has over 15 years+ experience in the social services, education and mental health field combined.

She has obtained a Bachelors of Science in Psychology from Ashworth College. She is listed on the Illinois State Board Of Education with a Para-Educator Assistant Teacher License with an Endorsement in Special Education. She is listed as a Qualified Intellectual Disabilities Professional(QIDP) on the Illinois Department of Human Services Division of Developmental Disabilities Bureau of Quality Management Database. She also has an ECE (Early Childhood Education) Credential Level I from The Illinois Department Of Human Services Bureau Of Child Care And Development. She is also a Certified Trauma Specialist with emphasis on Sex Trafficking and Exploitation.

In 2015, GOD had revealed her purpose and his vision for her to be a blessing to others that had lost Hope. She formed Hope and Divine Purpose Transitional Living Home, Inc. a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that advocates for young women ages 16-32 who were victims or survivors of Human Trafficking/Exploitation and Homelessness.

An estimated 98 percent of women and adolescent girls become victims to human trafficking and exploitation within 48 hours of homelessness. As a result of homelessness these women and adolescent girls become prey to male predators often forced, coerced and manipulated into Human Trafficking. Human Trafficking primarily involves exploitation which comes in many forms, including: forcing victims into prostitution, victimized into slavery or involuntary servitude and compelling victims to commit sex acts for the purpose of creating pornography.

An estimated 80% of trafficking involves sexual exploitation, and 19% involves labor exploitation. There are approximately 20 to 30 million sex slaves in the United States today.

According to the U.S. State Department, 600,000 to 800,000 individuals are trafficked across international borders every year, of which 80% are female and half are children. Between 14,500 and 17,500 individuals are trafficked into the U.S. each year. Human trafficking is the third largest international crime industry (behind illegal drugs and arms trafficking). It reportedly generates a profit of $150 billion every year.Hope and Divine Purpose Transitional Living Home,Inc goal is to rescue and provide immediate protection to victims in a structured nurturing environment to support personal growth.

Since being incorporated, in 2017 she became a Board Member of The Southland Human Services Leadership Council. An organizational member of the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, The Will County Childrens Advocacy Center: Will End Exploitation Coalition (WEEC). Israeio Holloway is the author of Body Safety For Children: No Secrets a multi-cultural interactive discussion book for parents on how to appropriately educate their children on body safety/body boundaries for child sexual abuse prevention. In 2019 she created a sister company called Growth Mindset Consulting, LLC a consulting company to educate, share resources and provide business services to emerged/aspiring entrepreneurs to assist in personal and professional growth.

Israeio Holloway has been featured in The Chicago Defender and The Herald News-Joliet newspaper to raise awareness on Human Trafficking/Exploitation and Homelessness. Israeio Holloway was a 2018 She Rocks It..Woman You Should Know Award honoree. Hope and Divine Purpose Transitional Living Home, Inc. mission is to raise awareness about predators who solicit individuals who display risk factors including psychological or emotional vulnerability, economic hardship, or lack of a social safety net(dysfunctional familial living arrangements/homeless, or no family support system). These risk factors enable a predator to control and disconnect the victim from anyone that is beneficial to their well-being. On May 7th 2019 Israeio Holloway will receive a Proclamation from the City of Joliet to incorporate May 13th as Human Trafficking-Exploitation Prevention & Awareness Day.