“Since coming to Starfish Project, my life has changed significantly. I have not only grown professionally through opportunities to study computers and lead through my role as the Design Quality Control Manager, but emotionally as well. I received healing counseling sessions and have become a more mature, patient, and loving person. I also have the tools to care for my daughter and am a better mother now.” Since becoming employed at Starfish Project, Bai has thrived in the creative sphere and discovered new passions. Additionally, Starfish Project’s education grants have made it possible for Bai’s daughter to receive a quality education at a new school.  

“Before coming to Starfish Project, I worked in a brothel with an abusive owner where I was constantly surrounded by violence. Starfish Project’s outreach teams visited me and offered me the opportunity to experience freedom through a job at their jewelry company.” Bee did not have the opportunity to complete her education, however, through Starfish Project she has been able to take literacy classes and receive a certification in Microsoft Word. Through her work at Starfish Project, Bee has been able to develop new passions and explore different careers, stating that one day she hopes to become a makeup artist.  

"My years at Starfish Project have been the best years of my life." Zi Yun had a difficult upbringing, growing up as the youngest of nine children in an impoverished household. Due to her family’s socioeconomic situation, she was forced to drop out of elementary school to support her family’s income by selling eggs. A few years later, Zi Yun was married off as a child bride. After her husband abandoned her when she was just 15 years old, Zi Yun was forced to find work to support herself. Because she couldn’t read or write, she had few options for employment and began working in a brothel where she remained for many years. As Zi Yun got older and became a mother, she knew that she needed to make a change. Luckily, some friends helped her find a way out and Zi Yun began to heal. After overcoming her past traumas, she began volunteering with Starfish Project to help women and girls like herself find a way out of a dark life of exploitation and help them experience true freedom.