My husband and I volunteered to actually host a family
who was transitioning out of polygamy.
We were really shocked at the gravity
of what they dealt with.
I couldn't turn a blind eye after realizing
all these people that were being kicked out
of the FLDS or choosing to leave.
This is one of our emergency shelters.
So when someone comes out of polygamy,
this is the very first place that they will actually land.
We essentially provide the basic necessities
of food, clothing, shelter, and safety.
Once the basic needs are met,
then we move onto education, job skills.
This is one of our host homes
and you get to meet the heroes of this home.
This is Tamara and Art.
As you can see, they love Christmas,
which is kind of ironic, all these gifts are for
six of the children they've raised from polygamy.
We both very much believe in helping people be successful.
So it was very natural for me and Art
to take kids into our home and to give them a safe place.
I think the most important thing
I can bring to the table is a good father figure.
I have been in this host home for 13 months.
They've provided a safe place for me,
a place where I feel loved and appreciated.
My goal is that we could get these clients
to become self sufficient, productive citizens here,
and just free of their past lives.
(audience applauding)
Tanya, I don't even know what to say.
I should get you a special chair
where we can put your wings on the outside here,
'cause you've gotta be some kind of angel
with what you're doing.
How did you start making these connections
and finding these displaced young people?
We essentially started back in 2008
after we received an email from a pastor friend of ours
just saying would you open your home
to be a safe house for people leaving polygamy?
And for me, I was shocked, number one that polygamy
was happening in the United States of America.
Right.
And then number two, what was happening,
how they were using this platform,
this so called religion, the polygamy,
to abuse men, women, and children in the name of God.
And so we said yes and took in a family of six,
and it kind of rocked our world.
You actually started advertising by placing billboards
in front of prominent polygamist family homes, right?
So we put one billboard right outside of one of
the communities, one of the prominent communities,
and we put another billboard right in the heart
of where we knew all these businesses were.
So that's how we got started,
and now it's kind of word of mouth.
We've taken those down and we don't,
everybody knows who we are, so.
Well, they're gonna now for sure.
And so the first year you helped how many?
About 30 people.
Okay, and so now you've helped how many total?
Probably over 1,700 men, women, and children.
(audience applauding)
1,700.
And Marrilynn, you're actually with
a host family now, right?
I am, yes.
And how's that helping you?
She's changed my life and I would not be here
without her or Tanya.
I have a little surprise for Marrilynn.
Her host family has a special message for her.
Marrilynn, you're the most brave person I know.
She has grown so much.
When she first came, she would sit in the dark
in the couch with her hair hanging over her face.
I was very worried that she was not gonna choose to live.
But now she is vibrantly alive
and full of light, as you can all see.
She came with a second grade education
and she's now gone to school and she is
a cosmetologist and a master esthetician.
My hope for her is that she is able
to break free from her past.
We love her so much.
(audience applauding)
(crying)
Completely different experience, right?
Unconditional love can go a long way.
Yeah.
You know, my son, Jay, and I, we've both been involved
in tracking this and trying to expose it for a long time.
He and I have started a company called Doctor on Demand,
which is the premier telemedicine company in the country,
if I do say so myself.
You can go to the app store, iTunes, or Google Play,
and you download the Doctor on Demand app, which is free,
and then you using that app you can register
and you can be in front of a, face to face,
with a board certified and license physician
with an average wait time of about two minutes.
We also have psychological services
when you can make an appointment and be face to face
with a doctor level therapist
to have sessions with on a scheduled basis.
We would like to make Doctor on Demand,
both medical side and psychological side,
available to your organization for every single person
that comes through your organization to help for you.
That would be awesome.
Moving forward, okay, thanks, all right.
Thank you so much.
(audience applauding)