Love Drop-In Center

The Problem

In Columbus there is limited access for mothers with children struggling with substance abuse disorder to receive help. On Sullivant Ave there are women and girls who have been brutally murdered by men with and without uniforms. Some of the stories made national headlines. Trans-women are more prone to violence than women and there are no safe houses for those who are over 24 years of age. There are women who are deaf and who do they contact when they are violated? In 2020, the Hilltop’s Infant Mortality was 13.6% compared to 6.9 in Franklin County, 7% at the state level and 5.7% at the national average. The numbers are worse when you look at specific ethnic groups. Only in Ohio’s capital an extinct baby kangaroo born in the Columbus Zoo has a better life expectancy than a baby born in the Hilltop.

Some officials push Columbus to be a “smart city,” prioritizing economic growth over people. Fixed-income retirees who own homes are pushed out by rising property taxes. The working poor must choose between rent, utilities, and food. Health insurance is often unaffordable.

The Hilltop has the city’s highest crime rate and the most abandoned properties. Absentee landlords—sometimes living out of state and occasionally tied to drug networks—worsen the problem.

Our Street Sisters frequently face rape; trans women are also targeted for sexual assault and murder. They come to our Drop-In Center for safety and have their basic needs met. They often tell us, “THANK YOU FOR TREATING ME LIKE A HUMAN.” Homeless individuals and Street Sisters are moving from Franklinton and nearby areas into abandoned drug houses and moving mores west toward Grove City and Hilliard. Leaders must address problems locally instead of pushing them to the west side.

The Solution

The Love Drop-In Center has become a haven for women, their children, caregivers, and transwomen. We acknowledge homeless men need Drop-In Centers too. We do not mix the genders since most of the perpetrators are men. We need 3 more Drop-In Centers one in each corner. The trained volunteers are trauma informed and responsive. The victims receive services at the pace they choose. On January 2021, we opened the FIRST Full-time Drop-In Center in Franklin County. In the past few years, the Drop-In Center is open part-time in the evening since there are two other Drop-In Centers operating during the day. We are still doing the Love Bug-Street Outreach two nights a week. It is important to address our organization is overlooked operational funds due to political reasons and nepotism.

Our nonjudgmental approach brings women for dinner, rest, and have a nurse treat their MRSA+ abscesses and other wounds. They shower and put on clean clothes. Our Harm Reduction approach involves providing condoms, Narcan, Safe Needle Kits, and linkage to health services. Women ready to go into recovery are escorted by a volunteer. We see an increase of children visiting the Drop-In Center who enjoy coming for a meal, playing in the kids’ room and connecting with people who care.

Operating the Love Drop-In Center is a big undertaking—so partnership with neighbors, city and public health leaders, grassroots groups, and nonprofits is essential to meet women’s needs. Human trafficking is vastly underreported. Since 2017 our Love Tribe has served an average of 1,250 women and 85 children and transgender community members annually on Columbus’s West Side, and through Love Bug Street Outreach we’ve reached nearly 15,000 trafficking survivors across the four corners. Together, we can keep rescuing, restoring, and reclaiming lives. To support our efforts, please consider donating to us including purchasing items from our Amazon Smiles Account.

Research

Drop-In Centers are conduits to help remove women from their current high-risk situation and introduce them to treatment programs. The research on women Drop-In Centers that are child friendly and provide individualized care with peer support and focus groups had positive outcomes in the community. They were successful in meeting the needs of women with high-risk behaviors prostitution, addiction HIV, Hepatitis C and other type of infections dropped significantly. This type of harm reduction approach contributed to good parenting skills, sobriety, and empowerment and women retain their children. Women overcame the stigma obtained from hospital health care workers that made them reluctant, worthless, and develop a low self-esteem which diminished their interest to seek addiction treatment. Many of the Drop-In Centers in metropolitan cities that serve our West Side population who use IV, pain killers, and vaping methods to self-medicate had positive outcomes.

The Human Trafficking Victims depended on the commitment and dedication of harm reduction service providers. The providers delivered outreach services, counseling, Sexually Transmitted Infection (STIs) services, syringe exchange program (SEP), as well as educational, training and skills programs that all contributed to holistic healing through a nonjudgmental approach. Even though there are multiple studies that agrees with the above findings in both rural and urban areas in developing countries Franklin County HAD NOT ONE operating full-time even on the epicenter. Our goal was to be the FIRST ONE at the Epicenter and we did it for the first two years through God’s help, Next Level 24 team, community contributions, and last-minute city and county funding. The remaining 3 corners are requesting our help to serve men and women.

We Need Your Help

Help us continue to spread love by helping those in need! The more we have the more generous we will be and the ripple effect of LOVE will be seen!

2026 SPECIAL REQUEST

As of December of 2021, we outgrew our space. We finally broke ground on August 12, 2023, and the long needed 320 sqft multipurpose room is now complete as of February 2024. It hosts programs and services for all those impacted by human and drug trafficking. It is a safe place for partners to host special events with our Street Sisters, their children, and caregivers. We thank the City of Columbus and the amazing folks who contributed to fund this project. A special thanks to DesignGroup, Korda Engineering, Kolbe Construction, LOWES, and the contractors in making the dream a reality.

With God’s help and yours, our NEXT project for 2026 is already taking shape: a compassionate duplex on the lot now known as the Hilltop Butterfly Garden. This home will welcome pregnant women who are survivors of human trafficking, domestic violence, and substance use disorder — offering safety, dignity, and a pathway to renewed life.

Architectural plans have been approved, and we are deeply grateful to Melissa Green, our west side City Council Person, for championing our cause. Thanks to generous capital funding, the foundation for this dream is secured. Now, we urgently need operational support and committed partners to turn these walls into a living, breathing sanctuary that elevates women and their children out of poverty.

Join us on this journey of healing and restoration. Walk with us as we continue our compassionate outreach on the streets and at the epicenter of human trafficking. Together we can create a place of refuge, hope, and transformation — one family at a time. Please read the Spring 2022 edition of the OSU Alumni Magazine. 1DivineLine2Health made it to the cover story here is the link Servant on the streets. You can donate via ZELLE and PayPal via 1divineline2health@gmail.com, and $1DLH or click the donate button on the top of this page.