In 2012 New Hampshire began intentionally working on anti-trafficking efforts, understanding the scope of trafficking and starting to consider appropriate responses. This effort and learning led to the development of the New Hampshire Human Trafficking Collaborative Task Force. In 2016, New Hampshire was awarded Department of Justice funding which enabled Task Force partner agencies to hire two case managers and a lead detective. In 2017, through the work of the case managers, detective and other service providers on the Task Force, it was evident that a consistent challenge for survivors of human trafficking was housing. At monthly meetings, members of the Task Force continued to identify long-term safe housing for female survivors of sex and labor trafficking as a great need in the state.

Bethany Cottrell, was a member of the Task Force through her role as the Director of the Merrimack County Advocacy Center. She began exploring what was being done to address the identified housing need, who was taking action and how she could help. She learned that although it was the largest gap in service, no agency had taken on the challenge of meeting the need.  Bethany decided it was time to step in. She began inviting key professionals to join with her in building Brigid’s House of Hope.

Brigid’s House of Hope took first steps in March of 2018.  After seven months of preparations, we launched our first awareness and fundraising campaigns in October 2018 and became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in March 2019.  

Brigid’s House of Hope has been featured in the Laconia Daily Sun, the Union Leader, the Manchester Ink Link and the Concord Monitor (see Recent media), and highlighted as an up-and-coming organization at the New England Faith and Justice Summit on Human Trafficking.