Restore Corps

On Wednesday, our team gathered for the official launch of our new client advocacy management system! This swap, which has been months in the making, will strengthen how we walk alongside survivors every day.

Swipe to see how we’re feeling about .direct 🫧

For years, we’ve worked within a system that wasn’t designed for the complexity and nuance of survivor advocacy. Thanks to the incredible team at Vela by Element 74, we now have a platform built by advocates, for advocates.

Vela prioritizes survivor confidentially, while streamlining data collection, reporting, and service tracking. The platform they’ve created reflects the realities of the work we get to be part of and ensures our team can spend more time supporting survivors.

A special thank you to Katie Allaway Hughes, Vela Product Director, for leading this process and facilitating training for our team. We are incredibly grateful for your partnership and for a system that was so thoughtfully designed for organizations like ours.

We’re excited about what this means for the future of our work! Thank you .direct 🫧🥳💕

Happy Birthday Memphis!! 🥳

The most beautiful land in the world turned 207 this past Friday, and members of our team joined over 100 vendors to celebrate at Memphis Hope Fest! We had such a great time speaking with families and partners as we gathered to promote hope, healing, resiliency, and joy.

“Hope is the belief that goals can be achieved, and the motivation to pursue them. It’s not just feeling good; it’s measurable.

Hope is more than a feeling. Hope is an actionable mindset, tied to setting goals, seeing pathways to reach them, and believing in community support to get there. Community members and neighborhoods with higher levels of hope tend to be more resilient, adaptive, and healthier overall.”

Showing up matters!

The first photo in this post shows the feet of our team members doing just that. Showing up for a survivor, who we hadn’t heard from in some time, but who still knew she could call when she needed support.

Sometimes our role is direct advocacy. Sometimes it’s helping navigate difficult systems. Sometimes it’s just our feet in a court room, a familiar face in a room that feels overwhelming and uncertain.

Survivors of human trafficking are often criminalized for actions tied to their exploitation and survival, known as the Victim-Offender Intersect (VOI). It is essential to view the actions and behaviors of human trafficking victim-offenders through the lens of trauma.

Swipe to learn more about VOI and how Restore Corps supports survivors navigating it!

If you’re interested in leveraging your knowledge, expertise, or influence to help bring greater awareness to VOI, we would love to connect with you. There’s a need for these conversations in systems, courtrooms, communities, and professional spaces.

It's Mental Health Awareness Month!

MAY this month remind you:
- your past doesn't define you
- it's okay to ask for help
- to be kind to yourself
- bad days ≠ bad life
- you are good enough
- to feel the feelings
- healing's not linear
- to protect your peace
- rest is productive, too

Celebration is part of restoration. Joy belongs here, too.

Yesterday evening, during Youth Group’s last session of the semester, our team got to celebrate one of the young women in our program as she graduates high school!

We’ve had the privilege of walking alongside her for years, and culminating moments like these remind us of the incredible resilience of survivors. Proud is an understatement.

In September, she will continue to reclaim her future as she ships out to Basic Training with the Air Force!

Disclaimer: Youth survivors were present for this celebration. For the safety and privacy of our program participants, their photos will not be shared. Each person photographed in this post is a Restore Corps staff member.

We went to Paris!
…Landing State Park 🏕️🏞️

Members of our team spent the end of last week at the TJCSA West Division Mini Conference alongside juvenile courts and service providers from across West Tennessee. While there, Alexis, Jennifer, Angel, and Haleigh participated in sessions focused on youth support and prevention and were able to share information about Restore Corps programs!

We are always grateful for opportunities like these that allow us to connect with others across Tennessee, while also strengthening our collective response to vulnerabilities that may lead to exploitation.

Thank you TJCSA!
(Tennessee Juvenile Court Services Association)

Thanks to one of our corporate champions , our Co-Founder & CEO, Rachel Haaga, had the opportunity to join the Pinnacle Financial Partners Forum last week featuring Tim Tebow, former NFL quarterback and current advocate for vulnerable people and those experiencing exploitation.

While she was there, Rachel was encouraged by Tim’s conviction to leverage his voice for the Gospel and those being exploited. They were able to reflect on the last time they connected in Nashville (2021) and the ongoing anti-trafficking work across our state and country.

Thank you to Phil Gray at for arranging for Rachel to join the meet and greet!

Cheers to Haizley and Carla! 🥂🎓
Yesterday, our team celebrated our two incredible MSW Interns as they move on to the next steps in their academic journeys. We are so grateful for our time together and have been blessed to have the both of them as part of our team throughout their internship.

Haizley Smith will graduate from the University of Memphis this Saturday with her MSW. Congratulations, Haizley!

Carla Tucker, also at the University of Memphis, will graduate with her MSW next May. Well wishes as you finish strong, Carla!

Thank you, Interns! We are all encouraged by you and your futures as change makers and community advocates! 🩵🧡

Thank you to for making a delicious lunch for us to enjoy while celebrating!! Check out her page!

To close out April, Restore Corps Justice-Involved Program Manager, Natasha Means, and CEO, Rachel Haaga, attended the GRIT Conference in Billings, Montana!

Hosted by and , the Greater Rockies Immersive Training on Exploitation & Trafficking (GRIT) was designed to cultivate sustainable change in how multidisciplinary teams respond to, investigate, and prosecute exploitation-based crimes.

Members of our Survivor Care Team started off May at the 2026 Psychiatric-Advocacy Collaborative Teams Summit (P.A.C.T.S.): From Silos to Synergy - Advancing Child Mental Health Through Collaboration! This convening invited local experts across various fields to learn different strategies to improve care for youth impacted by adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).

Thank you for hosting !! 🩵🧡💚