"I Was Just a Child": Surviving Trafficking, Finding Freedom, and Fighting Back 

“I didn’t even know what being pregnant meant. I just knew I couldn’t take care of myself, so how could I take care of a baby?” 

At 15, Omaly stood at the edge of a bridge in Alaska, ready to jump. She had already swallowed six bottles of pills in a desperate attempt to end her life. She was pregnant. She was alone. And she was exhausted. 

The world had already taken too much from her. 

The First Wound: A Stolen Childhood 

Omaly was born in the Dominican Republic and separated from her mother before she was even a month old. Together with her grandmother, who raised her, Omaly immigrated to the U.S. at age 9 and moved to Anchorage.  When her grandmother's health declined, Omaly's mother, who had rejoined the family but was still grappling with the unresolved traumas of her own past, left Omaly and her siblings in an apartment in Anchorage. Alone. 

Omaly was 10. Her little siblings were 5 and 3. 

By 11, she was caring for them like a mother. And like many children who grow up far too fast, she was vulnerable. At that tender age, she met a man 10 years her senior. A man who didn’t see her as a child. A man who groomed her, exploited her, and began trafficking her to other men under the guise of helping her "bring income home." 

“I didn’t see the danger. I didn’t even have language for what was happening. I thought I was just doing what I had to do to survive,” Omaly said.  

The trauma piled up — sexual abuse, exploitation, abandonment, and the constant pressure to provide for her younger siblings. Eventually, the weight became too much. At 15, Omaly attempted suicide for the first time. 

Turning Point: A Bridge, a Baby, and a Lifeline 

When Omaly stood at the edge of that bridge, news cameras rolled and police swarmed. The world was watching, but few knew the story behind the scene.  

She was hospitalized and admitted to a mental health recovery unit for young people in crisis. And when the staff there realized she was about to give birth with no family, no income, and no safe home to return to, they reached out to Covenant House Alaska. 

That call changed everything. 

Passage House, a Covenant House transitional living program for young moms in Anchorage, became Omaly’s lifeline. She arrived eight months pregnant, still carrying the trauma of her past and the burden of parenting at an age when she had never been parented herself. 

But she found something new at Covenant House: unconditional support. 

Omaly recalls that staff like Kathy Moon and Chena saw past the chaos. They didn’t judge. They didn’t label. They stood beside her, even when Omaly struggled to believe in her own worth. 

“There were moments I wanted to give up, but they never gave up on me,” she said. “They taught me that what I experienced wasn’t love. It wasn’t friendship. It was abuse. And I deserved more.” 

But healing was not linear.  

After giving birth to her son, Omaly left Covenant House and returned to the only life she had ever known. Back to her trafficker. Back to a man who called himself her boyfriend but treated her like property. She was young, traumatized, and still trying to make sense of what love was supposed to look like.  

“Like they always say,” she later reflected, “you go back to your abuser.” 

Two months later, she was pregnant again. 

It was a devastating blow. But Covenant House didn’t close the door on her. Instead, the staff opened their arms wider. 

Omaly returned to Passage House, this time with more fear, more baggage, and more heartbreak. And still, the staff didn’t shame her. They saw her potential. They offered therapy, stability, and space to breathe. They helped her see the difference between survival and safety, between being controlled and being cared for. 

“I was scared to admit it out loud,” she said. “But they already knew. And they were helping me break free.” 

A Second Chance...Then Another 

With the help of Covenant House staff and federal authorities, Omaly cooperated with the FBI. Her traffickers were arrested and jailed. At just 17, with two children in her arms and the weight of justice behind her, she started over. 

She earned her GED, got her driver's license, landed her first real job. And when life knocked her down again, when she faced homelessness, postpartum depression, and the end of another relationship, Covenant House was still there. 

Omaly returned to Passage House, this time with her third child in tow. She was 20 and pregnant with her fourth. “I just kept thinking, ‘Omaly, you need to get it together,’” she said. “You’re not even 21 and you have four kids. But they never judged me. They just said, ‘We’re here. Again.’” 

She was referred to a program that temporarily housed her children with a volunteer family so she could get back on her feet. “It wasn’t the system. It wasn’t punishment. It was support,” she said. 

And she made the most of it. Omaly found stable work, secured housing, bought a car, and then reunited with her children. For the first time, she wasn’t just surviving, she was living. 

Running the Show Now 

When COVID hit in 2020, Omaly was the only passenger on a flight from Alaska to Massachusetts. A new chapter was beginning, but the challenges kept coming. With jobs scarce, she became a medical assistant, working 12-hour shifts while her best friend watched her children. The trauma of witnessing death during the pandemic gave her PTSD all over again, but now she had savings, experience, and vision. 

“I realized I was too smart to keep working for other people,” she said. “I’d spent my whole life being controlled. Now I wanted to control my life.” 

So, she launched her own cleaning company.  

Then a staffing agency.  

Then a multi-service business offering immigration help, tax prep, and English classes.  

Eventually, she founded a nonprofit back in the Dominican Republic, supporting children and single mothers with school supplies, community events, and hope. 

Her companies have employed others in need. Her story has inspired thousands on TikTok and Instagram. And now she wears her past with strength. 

The Work Continues 

Today, Omaly lives in Pennsylvania but sometimes travels back to Anchorage to give back as a volunteer at Covenant House Alaska. She speaks at events, shares her story with young mothers, and mentors women rebuilding their lives after trauma. She knows firsthand that not everyone gets a second chance. She’s determined to make hers count. 

“Covenant House changed my life,” she said. “They were my angels. They saw me when I couldn’t even see myself.” 

She believes no young person should have to fight alone to survive abuse, to escape trafficking, to raise children in isolation, or to battle the lie that they’re broken beyond repair. 

A Message to the World 

On World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, Omaly shares this message: 

“There’s always someone going through worse. Be grateful, but also, be brave. Ask for help. Don’t wait until it gets worse. Don’t carry shame for someone else’s crime. Your life can start again.” 

And to those who support Covenant House: “Even one dollar can change a life. It changed mine.” 

July 30 is World Day Against Trafficking in Persons. Learn what you can do to help trafficked youth and survivors.