We are excited for our 14th annual Justice Matters Sunday on February 2, 2025. Once a year during the service we focus on the issue of Human Trafficking and God’s heart for justice.  This year, our guest speaker is Former Ambassador John Cotton Richmond. We are so honored to have him again! John has an extensive history working in this field, both domestically and abroad. He is full of wisdom and strategies, as well as faith, love, and lots of hope!
 
We will also be offering 4 different workshops to help further our education and learn ways we can all help in the fight against trafficking. We hope you can spend the day with us and learn how together we can make a difference, and “Speak up for those who can’t speak for themselves” as it says in Proverbs 31:8-9. We will also have about 20 different ministries and organizations represented in the Fellowship Hall that would love the time to connect with you and share more about what they do, and how you can partner with them. Mark your calendars and invite some friends.

JOHN COTTON RICHMOND

Former United States Ambassador to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons

Ambassador Richmond is an attorney and diplomat focused on ethical business, human rights, democracy, and rule of law. His career has taken him to the front lines in the global battle against human trafficking. Ambassador Richmond currently leads the Libertas Council that works to galvanize global leaders to shape solutions that affirm human dignity by combatting human trafficking. He also serves as the Chief Impact Officer at Atlas Free, working to resource and accelerate organizations fighting human trafficking.  

Previously, the U.S. Senate unanimously confirmed Ambassador Richmond and he served as the U.S. Ambassador to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons from 2018 to 2021. Serving in the nation’s highest-ranking position dedicated to human trafficking, he led U.S. foreign policy related to modern slavery and coordinated the U.S. government’s response to the crime.

Ambassador Richmond also served for over a decade as a federal prosecutor with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit, where he prosecuted numerous victim-centered labor and sex trafficking cases. He also lived in India for three years pioneering International Justice Mission’s slavery work.

Ambassador Richmond has received numerous honors and commendations, including being named a “Prosecutor of the Year” and receiving the “Wilberforce Award for Exceptional Leadership in the Fight Against Human Trafficking” and the “David Alred Award for exceptional contributions to civil rights”. His work caused the former head of the FBI’s human trafficking program to call him “every trafficker’s worst nightmare”.

Ambassador Richmond received his undergraduate degree from the University of Mary Washington and his law degree from Wake Forest University. He is a Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council, Senior Advisor to Love Does, and frequent speaker on topics of faith, justice, and vocation. He lives in Virginia with his talented wife and they have three wonderful children.

These organizations that we partner with will have tables at Justice Matters Sunday.

“He gives justice to the oppressed and food to the hungry. The Lord frees the prisoners. The Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are weighed down. The Lord loves the godly. The Lord protects the foreigners among us. He cares for the orphans and widows, but He frustrates the plans of the wicked.”

PSALM 146:7-9