Staff of The Landing, with Marti MacGibbon, celebrating a successful event and reaching their fundraising goal.
The Landing in Houston, Texas is a drop-in center for victims and survivors of human trafficking. The Landing provides victim-centered, trauma-informed services to clients, and coordinates with many service providers in Houston. Drop-in centers are very important because they meet needs of survivors where they are — the trauma of being trafficked, whether for sex or labor, often leaves victims and survivors homeless, physically injured, lacking identification documents and other basic needs. And victims/survivors may still be within reach of their trafficker, under threat or actively being attacked or pursued. Drop-in centers help with victim identification and can assist law enforcement in apprehending perpetrators. The Landing is a model of a drop-in center, a safe place where a victim/survivor can find empowerment and assistance at every step of the way on the journey to exiting the trafficking situation, and beyond that, to finding employment, housing, education, career, achievement, and happiness.
A 2016 University of Texas research study found that 313,000 Texans are now human trafficking victims.
Marti signing copies of Never Give in to Fear: Laughing All the Way Up from Rock Bottom. Marti donated thirty percent of her sales.
Keynoter Marti MacGibbon is a nationally renowned professional speaker, an internationally known author, and a nationally recognized human trafficking survivor leader and advocate. Her experiential knowledge, combined with expertise in anti-trafficking — she served on the Indiana Attorney General’s anti-trafficking task force from 2012-2017 — makes her an ideal speaker for anti-trafficking events. And Marti has the ability to bring humor to her presentations. She’s a certified mental health expert with a background in professional standup comedy. At The Landing’s 2nd Annual Breakfast Fundraiser, the audience roared with laughter as she shared stories that connected with everyone’s common experiences, overcoming everyday challenges and fears. Marti’s speech also included deeply moving insights into the courage and resilience of survivors. The Landing reported they’d actually reached their fundraising goal during the period after Marti’s talk. The event was attended by law enforcement, attorneys general, community leaders and faith leaders, citizens and businesses, as well as social services providers, anti-trafficking advocates. Marti signed copies of her bestselling and nationally award-winning memoir, Never Give in to Fear, Laughing All the Way Up from Rock Bottom, donating thirty percent of sales.
Special thanks for permission to publish the three photos in this post. All photo credits to: Hung Photo
Marti MacGibbon delivered the opening keynote speech at the North Sound Recovery Coalition’s inaugural National Recovery Month Event in Mt. Vernon, Washington. Five counties in the North Puget Sound area, north of Seattle, participated. The event was sponsored by National Alliance on Mental Illness, North Sound Behavioral Health, and others. 
Humorous inspirational speaker Marti MacGibbon delivered the keynote speech at the Keys to Sustaining Recovery Conference in Asheville, North Carolina. The conference is designed for substance abuse, mental health, psychology, criminal justice, human services and other healthcare professionals. It was held at Mountain Area Health Education Center (MAHEC) Mary C. Nesbitt Biltmore Campus on May 3rd, 4th and 5th of 2017. Marti is author of two nationally award-winning memoirs, Never Give in to Fear: Laughing All the Way Up from Rock Bottom and Fierce, Funny, and Female: A Journey Through Middle America, the Texas Oil Field, and Standup Comedy. Ms. MacGibbon is a nationally renowned speaker, internationally known author, and expert on trauma resolution and addiction. Her personal story of triumph over adolescent sexual assault/abuse, addiction, mental illness, human trafficking, domestic violence and homelessness is inspiring, and she’s gifted in that she can tell her story with humor. She has been interviewed in Investors Business Daily and Entrepreneur, and articles she wrote have appeared in the AMA Journal of Ethics, and over 100 corporate and trade magazines. 
Marti MacGibbon delivered the closing keynote speech at the Women in Criminal Justice Conference in Galveston, Texas. She followed the keynote with a workshop on stress management, stress reduction and emotional resiliency. The conference, held at the San Luis Resort, featured educational presentations from experts in the criminal justice field. Criminal justice professionals include probation officers, parole officers, correctional officers, legal experts, healthcare in correctional settings, and law enforcement. Marti is both a clinical and experiential expert on trauma resolution and addiction. Her powerful personal story of overcoming adversity, combined with her skill and talent as a humorist, make her presentations both fun and informative. Her message empowers, uplifts, and entertains audiences. 
Los Angeles: — The 11th Annual National Indie Excellence® Awards recognized Fierce, Funny, and Female in the category of Womens’ Health as a winner in this year’s competition. This title also received recognition in the category of Humor in this year’s competition.
Humorous inspirational speaker Marti MacGibbon spoke to over 350 business leaders in Chillicothe, Ohio at the city’s annual Chamber of Commerce dinner held at the Shoemaker Center on Ohio University Chillicothe campus. The theme of the event was Progress, Pride, and Perseverance, and focused on resiliency and overcoming challenges. The audience responded with a standing ovation. Chillicothe, Ohio is a thriving, closely-knit community, home to the ancient sacred Hopewell earthworks, also known as America’s Stonehenge. The community’s businesses and leaders are role models, since their energy, innovation, and unity help to build local economy while confronting issues that affect all their citizens.The Chillicothe Gazette’s Chris Balusik covered the event, and he’s a terrific writer.
