Cambridge woman raises $10,000 for survivors of human trafficking

KITCHENER— Meaghan Martin started small, asking for donations of pyjamas.

In her first year, she collected 500 pyjamas for survivors of human trafficking.

She continued collecting pyjamas but then received more than she could give away.

This year, at the fifth annual Sleep Tight PJ party at Hacienda Sarria in Kitchener, Martin raised $10,000.

It is no small feat, acknowledges the 34-year-old Cambridge woman.

“It has kind of evolved,” she said.

Martin raised most of the money through tickets sales and a raffle at the event earlier this month.

The money will be given to Restorations, a Stoney Creek-based charitable organization that offers specialized long-term care to victims of sexual exploitation.

The group has a home, outside the region that it hopes to renovate and open it by 2020, she said.

Martin said a survivor of human trafficking spoke to the group at the fundraiser about the impact Restorations has had on her life.

“I wanted her to feel comfort in knowing that people want to make a difference,” she said.

Martin, a child welfare advocate, left home when she was 15 and never returned.

Her mother was an alcoholic and she went into foster care until she was 21.

Martin said she has raised money for victims of sexual and domestic violence, and now focuses the Sleep Tight event on raising money for human trafficking survivors.