Ashes & Beauty

In this episode of Ashes & Beauty , we sit down with Executive Director Julia Starnes for an honest and inspiring conversation about faith-filled leadership, calling, and the future of the organization. Julia shares her background, what led her to Switch after serving at a Christ-centered pregnancy resource center, and how her faith shapes the way she leads. We also discuss what has surprised...

How do we protect kids in a world where predators have greater access than ever before? We sat down with Krystal Nierman , from our Prevention Program at Switch, to talk about equipping students, parents, and communities to recognize warning signs before exploitation happens. Today’s youth are navigating a digital world full of hidden risks... from online grooming and manipulation to pornography e...

What does pizza, purpose, and protecting people from exploitation have in common? In this powerful episode, we sit down with John Todaro , owner of Todaro Pizza in Greenville, and Elliott Gibbs , founder of SPAR (Supporting Porn Addiction Recovery) , for a conversation that will challenge how you define success and how you live it. John shares his journey growing up in New Jersey in the pizza busi...

Sex trafficking in Greenville doesn’t always look the way we expect (and definitely not how the movies depict). We sat down with Krystal Nierman, Switch Prevention Lead, to unpack the reality of modern-day human trafficking: what it actually looks like, why many victims don’t even realize they’re being trafficked, and how this crisis is happening in our own community. We start by defining traffick...

Can prayer really make a difference in the fight against sex trafficking and exploitation ? In this powerful episode, Christie McMillan, Intervention Team Lead, explores the role of intercessory prayer as a tool for spiritual warfare and how faithful prayer can lead to real-world impact in the fight to protect vulnerable people. Scripture reminds us to keep knocking on God’s door and never stop pr...

In Part 2 of this important conversation, Switch Prevention Team Lead, Krystal Nierman , shares how traffickers groom, manipulate, and ultimately control their victims. While many people imagine trafficking as kidnapping by strangers, the reality is far more subtle. Traffickers often build relationships with children online first, slowly gaining trust before isolating and exploiting them. In this...

Children today are growing up in a fully digital world. From gaming platforms to social media apps to messaging features parents may not even know exist. Access is constant and often more dangerous than we realize. In this episode, we talk with Prevention Team Lead, Krystal Nierman about: How online predators identify and target children The tactics predators use to build trust Why pornography exp...

How do you find your identity in Christ after trauma, church hurt, or seasons that leave you questioning everything? In this episode of Ashes & Beauty , we’re joined by Rob Nelson from GracePointe Ministries for a powerful conversation about healing, identity, and learning to silence the cultural lies that shape how we see ourselves. Trauma has a way of distorting identity. Church hurt, cultur...

Porn addiction affects millions of men, often in silence. In this episode, we have an honest, hope-filled conversation about pornography addiction, recovery, and how men can break free . We're joined by Eric Nierman , Lead of the Demand Program at Switch, who courageously shares his personal journey out of pornography addiction and into lasting freedom. At Switch, we believe that if there is...

Sex trafficking isn’t something happening “somewhere else.” It is happening in communities across South Carolina, often hidden in plain sight. In this powerful episode, Pastor Rob Marks of Fellowship Greenville joins us for an honest conversation about the realities of sex trafficking in our state, the challenges within current laws and law enforcement, and why awareness is the first step toward p...

Today, we sit down with former Executive Director of Switch, Zaina Greene, to share her powerful, faith-filled journey into the fight against sex trafficking and exploitation. Zaina opens up about how she first became aware of trafficking, why she knew she needed to be part of an organization led by the Holy Spirit , and how Switch’s earliest outreach efforts began inside strip clubs meeting women...

In this episode of Ashes & Beauty , we take you inside Faith & Finance , a powerful class within Switch’s Restoration pillar that helps survivors of sex trafficking rebuild their finances and their lives. You’ll hear how vulnerable, low-income women in Greenville, SC learn practical tools like tracking their spending , creating a realistic budget , and understanding needs versus wants . We...

In this powerful episode of Ashes & Beauty , we go behind the Intervention pillar of Switch to uncover what it truly looks like to reach women facing sex trafficking and exploitation in Greenville, SC . Our guest from the Intervention Team, Christie, shares the most common questions they receive — including how outreach works, what happens during a club visit, and why a strip club would ever a...

Welcome to the very first episode of Ashes & Beauty , a podcast by Switch in Greenville, SC , dedicated to ending local sex trafficking and exploitation . In this introductory episode, we share who Switch is, the role faith plays in our organization, and how our five core programs— Awareness, Prevention, Demand, Intervention, and Restoration —work together to bring hope and healing to survivor...