Cultivating Awareness & Prevention of Sexual Violence

Agenda

8:30-9:00                   Registration

9:00-10:00                 Online Child Exploitation: Let’s call it what it is, it is Child Sexual Abuse Material Bobbi Jo Pazdernik, Special Agent In Charge- Predatory Crimes Section & Commander of MN ICAC Task Force for the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA)

10:00-10:05              BREAK

10:05-11:05              Carter’s Story

Jamie Bremseth, Carter’s Mom and President of the Carter Bremseth Memorial Foundation

11:05-11:15              BREAK

11:15-11:30              Lunch is served

11:30–12:30             Panel Discussion

Tony Rolling (Lyon County Investigator), Abby Wikelius (Lyon County Prosecutor), Danielle Leukam (Survivor), Nikki Sakry (Mom of Ariel Sakry, murdered by her husband in 2022), Julie K (WRAP Advocacy Director)

12:30-12:35              BREAK 

12:35-1:35                 From a Survivor: Improving our Response

Danielle Leukam, Author of “From a Survivor: Four Pounds of Pressure: A Memoir of Rape, Survival, and Taking Back My Power.

1:35-1:40                   BREAK

1:40-2:40                   Trauma- What I Wish I Would Have Known

Erica Staab-Absher, Executive Director of HOPE Center in Faribault, MN

2:40-2:45                   BREAK

2:45-3:45                   Case Study

Brittany Miller, Youth Program Director & Anne LaFrinier-Ritchie, Anishinaabe, Safe Harbor Regional Navigator for Someplace Safe

3:45-4:00                   Closing, Evaluations, & CEU Credit Handouts

Trauma- What I Wish I Would Have Known

We will cover trauma- what it is, what it looks like, we will learn how to identify and help clients who have been through traumatic experiences.  We will look at the window of tolerance and how that affects our ability to cope with traumatic experiences, we will learn more about SAMSHA's 3 E's and 4 R's and how this can impact policy and how we provide services for clients and our community.

From a Survivor: Improving our Response

In this session, we will hear from a survivor, advocate, author, and public speaker Danielle Leukam. She will share her experiences and how we can continue to improve our responses within our community.

Panel Discussion

In this session, we will hear from a panel that includes local advocates, local prosecution, a local investigator, the parent of an intimate partner homicide victim, and a survivor of sexual assault. The panel will answer questions regarding community resources, the effect of crimes on victims and their loved ones, as well as answer questions from participants.

Carter’s Story

In this session, we will hear from Jaime Bremseth, President of the Carter Bremseth Memorial Foundation. She is from Olivia, MN. Jaime lost her son, Carter, to suicide after he was a victim of sextortion. She will share Carter’s story. Jaime will discuss brain chemistry and how the brain reacts under these conditions. She will also share resources for both victims and family members of victims.

Online Child Exploitation: Let’s call it what it is, it is Child Sexual Abuse Material

Cases of Online Child Exploitation has exploded over the last several years, resulting in a 1000% increase in Cybertips received for Minnesota from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. One of the fastest growing child exploitation crimes is Sextortion. Children across Minnesota are being exploited and sextorted daily.  Prevention, education, and awareness are key to fighting this crime that is taking our state by storm.

Case Studies

The case studies presented are impactful and a representation of many barriers, services, and potential outcomes in cases that include sexual violence. The intersections of multiple crimes in each case study provide a broader understanding of the holistic and trauma-informed approaches that need to be provided to victims. It provides a deeper understanding of the process advocates go through with their clients and combines the silos of service providers to provide a key understanding of how many service providers are needed and the need to work collaboratively.

Erica Staab:

Erica Staab-Absher is the Executive Director of HOPE Center in Faribault, MN. The HOPE Center serves all of Rice County and strives to help victims of sexual and domestic violence, stalking and trafficking through the four pillars of Healing, Outreach, Prevention, and Education.  Erica has spent the last 26 years advocating on behalf of domestic violence and sexual assault victims at the local, state and national level. Erica is a Social Worker, Massage Therapist, Spiritual Director and author and has written a book, She Stays, examining domestic and sexual abuse and helping with community education.  She has advocated for policy change at the State and National Level, worked for the South Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault and is an expert witness in criminal trials for sexual assault and domestic violence. 

Danielle Leukam:

Danielle Leukam is the author of Four Pounds of Pressure: A Memoir of Rape, Survival, and Taking Back My Power. After surviving a heinous attack in her home in 2018, she finally pursued her dream of becoming a writer. Danielle is from the Rochester, Minnesota area and works full time at the Mayo Clinic. She is passionate about advocating against sexual violence through public speaking and writing. Danielle has taken back her power and strives to empower others to do the same.

Abby Wikelius:

Abby Wikelius is the Lyon County Attorney.  Prior to being elected in 2022, she served as an Assistant Lyon County Attorney for nine years and served as law clerk to the Honorable Michelle Dietrich. She received her Bachelor’s from Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut and taught High School English in Memphis, Tennessee as part of Teach For America for two years before attending the University Of Iowa College Of Law, where she graduated in 2011. 

Tony Rolling:

Tony Rolling has been a Peace Officer for approximately 28 years, and began his career as a patrolman for the cities of Balaton and Tracy.  For the past 21 years, Tony has been a Deputy with the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office, getting promoted to Investigator in 2008.  Tony has been trained in CornerHouse interviews and has attended numerous trainings involving sexual assaults and trauma-informed interviews.  Tony is also a founding member of the Lyon County SMART (Sexual Assault Multi-disciplinary Action Response Team) team, and a member of the board of directors for WRAP (WoMen’s Rural Advocacy Programs).

Julie Kosen:

Julie K. is a domestic abuse survivor and has dedicated the past 7 years of her professional career to advocating for victims of domestic violence. She has been an active member of the Lyon County SMART team since 2020. Julie also has expertise in sex trafficking/exploitation and homelessness prevention related to these victimizations. In her current role as the Lead Advocate Director for WoMen’s Rural Advocacy Programs, Inc., she has trained community partners and systems providers, such as law enforcement, prosecutors, and human service staff on these subjects. Julie is a proud mom of 3 children and 1 grandchild. Her bad habits include collecting mini donkeys.

Nichole Sakry:

Nichole, is a survivor herself of domestic violence. Nikki lost her eldest daughter to domestic violence homicide in 2022. After the loss of her daughter, Nikki, along with her family and friends, now advocates for all victims of domestic violence. They raise awareness for the various services in support of victims.

Jaime Bremseth:

Jaime is the founder and president of the Carter Bremseth Memorial Foundation. Carter was her first born, and becoming his mom was one of the greatest moments of her life. She is blessed to have two more children to spend her days with; but the ache of Carter’s death has never gone away. She is also a mental health professional, working primarily with children and adolescents; and those in crisis situations. She is very passionate about mental health, especially helping children and adolescents become the best version of themselves. She feels strongly about spreading HOPE, teaching children how to grieve the losses in their lives, and is transparently sharing Carter’s story to reduce stigma around suicide and mental health. Carter’s life mattered, and even though his death was unexpected and tragic, it was still preventable. Our family did not believe a tragedy like this would ever become our reality. We simply want to help other families avoid similar pain.

SAICBobbi Jo Pazdernik:

SAIC (Special Agent In Charge) Bobbi Jo Pazdernik of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension has over 32 years of law enforcement experience, which includes 18 years as an undercover state narcotics agent and the last ten years investigating and now supervising the Predatory Crimes Section. 

In 2017, SAIC Pazdernik created the statewide MN Human Trafficking Investigators Task Force, which she built to over 50 members that reach from corner to corner in our state.   In 2019, the MN Women’s Police Association awarded the Excellence in Performance Award to SAIC Pazdernik for her work in Human Trafficking Investigations. SAIC Pazdernik received her Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice Leadership from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota.

               Brittany Miller:

Brittany Miller has worked in victim services for over seven years at WoMen's Rural Advocacy Programs. She has held three roles: Redwood County Domestic Violence Program Coordinator, Youth Sex Trafficking and Regional Domestic Violence Program Coordinator, and her current position, Youth Program Director. Brittany has worked with hundreds of people who have experienced crime, including domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, and exploitation. Brittany is a co-founder of WRAP's Youth Program and a Human Trafficking Leadership Academy Fellow through the Office of Trafficking in Persons, which received a proclamation for their recommendations to the federal government. Brittany is a passionate advocate, a leader for social change, and a lived-experience expert in sexual assault.

Anne LaFrinier-Ritchie, Anishinaabe:

Anne LaFrinier-Ritchie, Anishinaabe, works as a Safe Harbor Regional Navigator for Someplace Safe in West Central Minnesota. Anne has been working in the anti-trafficking field in direct services and training and technical assistance since 2016. She is a 2020 graduate of NHTTAC's Human Trafficking Leadership Academy Class 5, which developed recommendations on how culture can be used as a protective factor against human trafficking among Indigenous youth. Anne consults federally on several projects and has created an Indigenous trafficking curriculum. Anne serves on the boards for the Indigenous Association of Fargo-Moorhead, YWCA Cass Clay, and Mending the Sacred Hoop, and is a member of Minnesota’s MMIR Office Advisory Committee. Anne also provides training and technical assistance on the state and federal levels on providing culturally responsive services to Indigenous youth and families.