St. Charles East grad helping children in Nepal
Ever since Katie Hilborn was a child, she had always wanted to do something to change the world.
“As a little girl, I would just see the injustices on TV, and I knew it wasn’t right,” said Hilborn, a former St. Charles resident. “I wanted to help.”
After Hilborn graduated from St. Charles East High School in 2001 and completed her college studies in 2006, she began to travel the world. Eventually, she formed the nonprofit organization that would become Global Orphan Prevention, which helps keep children with their mothers through social entrepreneurship and clean birthing centers.
Hilborn is currently raising money to make a late spring return to Nepal, a country located in south Asia between India and China. Hilborn has been to Nepal several times, including a safe schools mission in 2014 and also to help provide earthquake relief in 2015.
While she was in the country for earthquake relief, she found out that several police checkpoints had been compromised as a result of the natural disaster. This led to more child trafficking agents luring girls from their village and escaping from authorities, Hilborn said.
The trafficking agents target girls who don’t go to school, haven’t gone past fifth grade, or who create a conflict within their family. The agents promise them a job and better life in Katmandu, Nepal’s capital, Hilborn said.
“They take the girls to India and sell them to the brothels for prostitution. It’s really messed up; it’s heartbreaking,” Hilborn said.
To fight child trafficking, Hilborn wants to help the small mountain villages generate their own income. This will provide the finances needed to send children to school, which can be costly in Nepal, Hilborn said.
News Source: kcchronicle.com