TRAFFICKING HAS A "BEFORE"
Trafficking rarely begins with a stranger grabbing someone off the street.
It can begin with:
Attention.
Trust.
A relationship.
Someone meeting a need.
Slowly crossed boundaries.
Isolation.
Control.
That process can be grooming.
Recognizing it earlier creates an opportunity to intervene before exploitation occurs.
P.E.A.R.L.
Five areas that guide our work.
PREVENT - Help communities recognize grooming before exploitation.
EDUCATE - Provide survivor-informed prevention education.
ADVOCATE - Bring lived experience into systems and communities.
REGULATE - Promote stronger safeguards and accountability.
LEGISLATE - Advance laws that strengthen prevention and survivor protections.
WHY PEARL AT THE MAILBOX?
Sometimes one person noticing can change everything.
While being trafficked, Sheri met a woman named Pearl at the group mailbox of the apartment complex where she was being held.
Pearl noticed something wasn't right. She didn't pressure Sheri or demand answers. She simply offered kindness, consistency, and a promise to be there when Sheri was ready.
She kept that promise.
Pearl noticed. Pearl stayed. And when the time came, Pearl helped Sheri find a way out.
Today, Pearl at the Mailbox carries her name as a reminder that noticing what others may miss can change the course of someone's life.
LEARN TO RECOGNIZE WHAT OTHERS MAY MISS
LEARN FROM LIVED EXPERIENCE
Through the Survivor Informed Learning Institute, Sheri Lopez offers online, self-paced certificate courses that bring lived experience into prevention education.
Featured Courses
Recognizing Grooming Before Exploitation Master Class
What You Might See™ — Industry-Specific Training Series
The What You Might See™ series is designed especially for industries and professionals Sheri personally interacted with while being trafficked. Drawing from those real-world encounters, the courses help professionals recognize situations, behaviors, and warning signs they might encounter in the course of their everyday work.
Additional courses explore grooming, exploitation, human trafficking, and the warning signs that are often difficult to recognize—helping parents, professionals, industries, and communities better understand what may be happening before exploitation occurs.
Learn at your own pace. Gain practical knowledge. Earn a certificate of completion.
Prevention doesn't stop with education.
Pearl at the Mailbox brings survivor-informed perspective into conversations with lawmakers, community leaders, and professionals to help strengthen prevention, accountability, and protections for those vulnerable to exploitation.
From educating policymakers to supporting meaningful legislative change, we believe survivors should have a voice wherever decisions are being made.
Lived experience doesn't just tell us what happened. It can help us change what happens next.
HEAR FROM SHERI
Why prevention must begin before exploitation. Hear directly from survivor and prevention educator Sheri Lopez about
grooming, exploitation, and why recognizing what happens before can create opportunities for prevention.
Watch. Learn. Recognize.
BRING A SURVIVOR VOICE TO YOUR STAGE
A presentation audiences won't just hear. It's one they'll remember!
Sheri Lopez brings lived experience to the stage with a powerful perspective on grooming, exploitation, human trafficking, and the warning signs that can be hidden in plain sight.
Her presentations go beyond statistics and textbook definitions, helping audiences understand what grooming can actually look, and feel like, and what others may have an opportunity to recognize before exploitation occurs.
Available for conferences, professional organizations, schools, child welfare, law enforcement, faith communities, businesses, and community events.
Bring a survivor-informed voice to your next event.
HELP US KEEP PREVENTION MOVING FORWARD
I do this work because I don't want another child to experience what I did.
I know what it is like for grooming to go unrecognized until exploitation has already begun. That is why I am committed to helping children, families, professionals, and communities recognize the signs earlier, when there may still be an opportunity to intervene.
But prevention takes resources.
Your donation helps Pearl at the Mailbox provide prevention education, free resources, community outreach, advocacy, and educational materials, and helps cover the everyday costs of getting this information into the hands of people who need it.
You don't have to give a lot to be part of this work.
$10 helps. $25 helps. $50 helps. Every gift helps us keep prevention moving forward.
Thank you for helping me turn what happened to me into something that may help protect someone else.
STAY CONNECTED
Prevention starts with what we know.
Join our email list for survivor-informed prevention information, new resources, educational opportunities, and updates on our advocacy and legislative work.
CONTINUE LEARNING
Sheri has written a collection of books rooted in lived experience, prevention, education, and awareness. From her personal story of grooming and trafficking to practical resources for children, teens, parents, and professionals, each book is written to help readers better understand, recognize, and prevent exploitation.
FEATURED BOOKS
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Pearl at the Mailbox - Sheri Lopez's memoir of survival, resilience, and the woman who helped her find a way out.
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6,000 - A powerful look at the reality and impact of human trafficking through lived experience.
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Smart, Safe, and Strong - Helping children learn body safety, boundaries, and how to speak up.
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Don't Fall for It - Helping young people recognize grooming, manipulation, and fake love.
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LET'S TALK ABOUT IT PODCAST
Continue the conversation with Sheri on Let's Talk About It, a survivor-led podcast exploring grooming, exploitation, human trafficking, prevention, victim behavior, and the issues affecting children and vulnerable individuals today.
A new episode every Thursday.