Christian Ministry Regains Place In Ohio Foster Care After Lawsuit
The anti-trafficking ministry Gracehaven can once again continue its ministry in Ohio to young female survivors after Montgomery County settled a lawsuit brought by the group for excluding it from the county’s foster care system.
Gracehaven, an affiliate of Central Ohio Youth for Christ, provides sex trafficking prevention services and “empowers youth rescued from sex-trafficking to thrive with dignity in a renewed life.”
In 2024, the ministry, represented by Alliance Defending Freedom, sued Montgomery County and its Department of Jobs and Family Services. It said it was excluded from public programs that it was otherwise qualified for because it committed to hire only employees that agreed with its religious beliefs.
“The government can’t deny public benefits to a Christian ministry that is caring for young survivors of sex trafficking solely because of its religious character and exercise,” ADF Legal Counsel Jake Reed said in a press release. “Gracehaven is a force for good, offering comprehensive care, support, and a safe place to call home to the most vulnerable girls in Ohio.”
The county agreed to pay over $120,000 in attorneys’ fees as part of the settlement agreement reached. Last April, the trial court granted a preliminary injunction in favor of Gracehaven, allowing it to participate in the foster care system.
ADF took the case as part of its strategy of seeing courts extend Free Exercise jurisprudence to protect the religious practice of hiring those who share the program’s Biblical views of gender and sexuality.
Since 2008, Gracehaven has been conducting its ministry to sex trafficking survivors, including through state-license therapeutic group homes.
According to ADF, Gracehaven’s group homes “provide a trauma-informed treatment model designed to meet the needs of young sex-trafficking survivors, who often struggle with serious emotional or behavioral consequences from their abuse.”
Female sex-trafficking survivors come to the group homes through the foster care system administered through the county.
Montgomery County contracted with Gracehaven for several years to provide “substitute” care services, by which it would reimburse the ministry for the care using public funds.
However, in 2024, Gracehaven claimed the county decided to exclude the ministry from foster care when Gracehaven told county officials that it was not waiving its right to employ those who share the ministry’s religious beliefs.
“Gracehaven empowers young girls rescued from sex trafficking by helping them thrive with dignity in a renewed life,” Gracehaven Director Scott Arnold said. “Our team of Christian employees is paramount to this work. As we help these girls work through their pain and trauma and move toward living healthy, fulfilling lives, our ability to hire like-minded people of faith to carry out our mission is essential.”
In the MinistryWatch database, Central Ohio Youth for Christ has one out of five stars for financial efficiency, an ‘A’ Transparency Grade, and a Donor Confidence Score of 80, meaning donors can “give with confidence.”
This article was originally published at MinistryWatch.
Kim Roberts is a freelance writer who holds a Juris Doctorate with honors from Baylor University and an undergraduate degree in government from Angelo State University. She has three young adult children who were home schooled and is happily married to her husband of 28 years.