Central Valley Justice Coalition is a faith-based non-profit organization made up of churches, agencies, and passionate individuals who are responding to God’s heart for justice to prevent human trafficking in California’s Central Valley.
Our mission is to partner with the church and community to prevent human trafficking.
The Justice Coalition began as an all-volunteer group in 2009, eventually becoming a ministry under the wing of Fresno First Baptist Church. In late 2015, we hired Ryan Townsend and filed for our 501(c)3 status, becoming a stand-alone organization in 2016.
Our partners in fighting human trafficking in the Central Valley include Breaking The Chains, Fresno EOC, Fresno Police Department Vice Unit, Homeland Security/I.C.E., F.B.I, Margaree Mason Center, Made For Them, Beauty For Ashes, Police Chaplaincy, Youth For Christ, Centro La Familia, Department of Labor, and many local faith congregations.
Ryan Townsend, our executive director, has 12 years of experience in nonprofit work. He has a degree in Communications from Cal State Fullerton and is progressing toward an M.A. in Leadership from Fresno Pacific University. Currently, Ryan is the chair of public awareness for the Central Valley Freedom Coalition which includes nearly every agency involved in Central Valley anti-human trafficking work and a co-founder of Pledge 2 Stop Trafficking, a collaborative project organized alongside Central Valley Regional Foundation. Justice Coalition staff also includes Jessica Pittman, founder/associate director (M.A. Bakke Graduate University), Christa Wiens, prevention education coordinator, Vanessa Mahlman, adminstrative assistant and Danielle Robinson, office manager.
