OUR MISSION
We strive to provide abused and trafficked children with safe and loving homes through properly supported, trained and equipped resource families, allowing them the space they need to heal and chase after the unlimited future they deserve.
We believe wholeheartedly that foster families are uniquely called to care for the most vulnerable children in our community. That is why we are passionate about providing the utmost care and support for our families so that they feel prepared to care for the child they are welcoming into their home.
We are licensed to find, training, equip, and license families and then place children into their care. On top of that, for families who feel called to help trafficked children, we are also uniquely equipped to support families who want to welcome in commercially sexually exploited children (CSEC) into their home.
Meet the Sought After Family
Loreal is the co-founder and president of Arukah Project, the non-profit that started Sought After. She graduated with a BA in Psychology from the University of Santa Cruz in 2013. She found her true calling in 2015 when she took a mission trip to YWAM in Perth, Australia where she worked toward the prevention, release and care of those enslaved in sex trafficking. Loreal returned from Australia with a resolve to rescue, restore and reintegrate survivors here in Santa Cruz, especially children. Along with having worked as an Early Intervention Behavioral Specialist and traveling on international missions and pastoral leadership, Loreal is a Certified Human Trafficking Case Manager in California and is graduated with her Master’s Degree in Intercultural Studies with a focus on Children at Risk at Fuller Seminary in June 2022. She enjoys hikes, playing with her Golden Retriever, Kaya, cats, Lily and Tucker, reading, and spending time with her husband, daughter, friends and family.
Loreal Weitzel
Administrator for the Sought After Agency
loreal@soughtafterffa.org
Tovah is a wife and mom of two children. Her family resides in beautiful Santa Cruz, California. She is a Social Worker with over 15+ years of experience working with children, families, and individuals in a variety of settings. She helps restore, renew, and rebuild the lives of survivors of sex trafficking. Her approach is to offer a safe, non-judgmental place to release shame and trauma as obstacles to personal freedom, and to discover new pathways to deepen and strengthen the inner self. Social Work has been at the core of Tovah's identity. Holding space for people to empower themselves and create change in their lives is truly a calling and a privilege. She believes every person has the right to a nonviolent life. Filled with respect, justice, personal power, dignity, prosperity, love, and hope. Today you can do more than just survive. You can thrive. Tovah loves working with people one-on-one, to help them see that the light within is the strongest force, and that they are not alone. Helping survivors find their voice and their inner strength, fills her heart. Every day is an opportunity to make the world a better place. Tovah holds a Master's Degree in Human Development with a specialization in Social Change from Pacific Oaks College in Pasadena, California.
Tovah Kolodinski
Volunteer
tovah@soughtafterffa.org
Anastasia will be joining Foster Family Agency as our Social Worker Supervisor. She graduated with her BA in Communications Studies from San Francisco State University and she received her Masters degree in Social Work from San Jose State University. During graduate school she did extensive research on human trafficking as she experienced working with human trafficking survivors at a local group home in Los Angeles. This is where she found her love for social work. Anastasia has been working with children and families for over 15 years in a variety of settings including the educational setting, non-profits, and government agencies. She strives to have a humanistic centered, trauma-informed, and strength-based approach to promote healing and wellbeing when working with children and families. She loves working with people one on one to form connections that promote light, love, and healing, but she also understands that it “takes a village” to help our communities prosper. Her hobbies include spending time with family and friends, cuddling with her dog Tango, working out, reading, and writing poetry or dabbling in art when she feels inspired.
Anastasia Nunez
Sought After Foster Family
Agency Social Worker Supervisor
anastasia@soughtafterffa.org