Houston Lifestyle & Homes: Running to Raise Awareness
Houston Lifestyle & Homes: Running to Raise Awareness
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October 1, 2014 8:55PM
Houstonian to run 850 miles across Texas to highlight human trafficking
Jason Arcemont, a Houston-based family man and entrepreneur in the marketing and advertising industry, will run 850 miles from El Paso to Orange with not one but two goals in mind. After learning his hometown of Houston is a major hub for human trafficking, he was horrified and wanted to make a difference. Combining his athletic drive with a noteworthy cause, Arcemont will poise his journey as an educational movement and call to action for the prevention of human trafficking and sex slavery. The 30-day journey — 30 marathons in 30 days — will begin Oct. 1 and and is called the Texas Freedom Run.
A while back, Arcemont and his family were sitting in church on a normal day. Love146, an organization working to end child trafficking and exploitation by caring for survivors, prevention and awareness, came to their church that day and spoke on the horrors and the truths of child slavery in the local community. As an attentive father, loving husband and avid runner, Arcemont’s ambition to run the impossible and his passion to serve collided.
He learned that 300,000 children are enslaved for prostitution annually in the U.S. and that his hometown of Houston notoriously stands as a major hub for human trafficking. He thought long and hard about ways to make a difference; to spread the word and wake people up so that maybe – just maybe – he could set off a chain reaction that would cripple the sex slave industry.
“It only takes a tiny spark to start a wildfire,” says Arcemont, who lives in Spring with his wife Amber and family. “We want to get people talking. Get them informed. Tell them what to look for, and who to go to for help. In Texas, we pride ourselves on being free. If every Texan was aware and on the lookout for signs of abuse and human trafficking, these criminals would be out of business and on the run, and that’s exactly what we’re going for.”
Arcemont will visit with influencers in major Texas cities including El Paso, Austin, Fredericksburg and Beaumont, along the way in the hopes of sparking a grassroots campaign to create awareness of modern day child sex slavery. In addition, Arcemont will chronicle his Texas experiences in a book to be released shortly after he returns. Running 30 miles a day, he will still take time to meet with local and statewide politicians, churches and shelters.
“It’s nothing compared to what these children go through every single day,” said Arcemont. Companies can sponsor Jason’s journey and individuals can “buy a mile.” All proceeds from the run will go directly to Love146, an organization working to end child trafficking and exploitation by caring for survivors, prevention and awareness.
“Even if we only save one little girl,” says Arcemont, “just one little girl from the hands of these monsters, then we’ll have done a truly great thing.”
Though the run itself will end Oct. 31, fundraising efforts will continue through November, and the Arcemonts will present a check to Love146 at the beginning of December.
For more information on Texas Freedom Run, a list of cities and dates where Jason will be during the run, or to “buy a mile”, visit texasfreedomrun.com. For more information on Love 146, visit love146.org.
