Excellence in Action: Our Partnership with Aruna

One of our core values is excellence. It’s not the only thing we look for in a partner, but it’s always something that stands out to us — and it’s exactly what drew us to Aruna.

For nearly seven years, Bullen has been a charitable partner with Aruna, an organization working to give survivors of human trafficking a path to lasting freedom. Aruna isn’t just a nonprofit with a mission to help others. It blends nonprofit services with for-profit business practices to provide survivors with sustainable employment and holistic care.

Why Aftercare Matters

Retrafficking is one of the greatest threats survivors face after being rescued. Eight out of every ten survivors who are freed end up retrafficked. Too often, organizations remove someone from a trafficking situation and then leave them to figure out what comes next on their own — and that gap is exactly when many are pulled back in.

In the areas where Aruna works, that story looks different. Their approach has helped raise the success rate of keeping survivors from being retrafficked from just 20% to 86%.

Aruna’s own core values echo ours: “What we do impacts lives. We strive to achieve the best in all we do. From top to bottom, attentiveness matters.” That commitment shows up in both halves of their work — the nonprofit side and the for-profit side. They don’t just remove someone from harm; they equip that person with real resources and a stable job, so freedom actually lasts.

The numbers reflect it. So far, Aruna has helped free and empower over 250 people, reduced risk for more than 900 children and families, and provided direct care services to over 11,200 survivors of human trafficking. You can read more of their stories on their website.

More Than a Donation

Aruna relies on direct donations from individuals and organizations like Bullen, but there are smaller ways to get involved too — attending an Aruna event, or simply buying the products their survivors craft.

What I love about Aruna’s products is that they’re things I actually use. A lot of organizations sell artisan goods — ceramics, jewelry, one-of-a-kind pieces — that are beautiful but, if I’m honest, often end up gathering dust. Aruna’s products aren’t like that.

I received my first Aruna bag as a gift from my mother-in-law over six years ago, and I remember thinking it was the sturdiest drawstring bag I’d ever owned. I still have that bag today. Since then, I’ve added a Sonu backpack for myself and a Rani backpack for my husband. Every piece we own has held up beautifully through years of daily use.

Seeing It Firsthand

I’m not the only one who’s been struck by Aruna’s work. Heather Beatty, our Director of People and Culture at Bullen, has visited Aruna’s operations in India in person — twice. Here’s what she shared about her experience:

“I have had the privilege to visit Aruna’s operations in India on two occasions. On one of those visits, I met Priya. When Priya was young, her father sent her to Mumbai with a man offering to find her work. When they arrived in Mumbai, Priya was sold into slavery for $400. She was only 13 years old. For years, Priya was exploited and eventually learned she was HIV positive. When Priya was very sick, she met an Aruna staff member who spoke about hope and a future they could help her attain outside of her circumstances. By the time I met Priya, she was strong again. Even though she was quiet, she had a contagious smile. She had become an invaluable employee at Aruna and a mentor to many of the women coming to work there.

While I am inspired by the staff and incredibly impressed by the excellence of their products, it is the unrelenting spirit of the women who work at Aruna that leaves me in awe. These women have survived abuse and exploitation, sometimes even at the hands of those they should have been able to trust the most. Many women in India are relegated to life in a brothel, every move and encounter watched and controlled. They are treated as a commodity — and when their health fails due to HIV/AIDS or another illness, or their ‘value’ diminishes, they are thrown out on the streets with nothing.”

Freedom Close to Home

What surprised me most when I first learned about Aruna is that their work isn’t confined to South Asia. Aruna is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, and alongside their operations in Mumbai, they employ and support survivors of trafficking right here in the U.S. Human trafficking isn’t a distant problem — it happens in American cities and towns too, and Aruna built their model to respond to both realities at once.

Ashley, a US survivor, recently shared “Aruna has completely changed the direction of my life and given me hope and a future where I can grow into the person I was meant to be.”

Experiences like Priya and Ashley have had are why Aruna’s model resonates so much with us. It’s the same commitment to excellence and care, whether it’s showing up in Mumbai or Cincinnati.

A Message Worth Carrying

Aruna shares a message of love and dignity with every woman they help — and through their products, that message travels further than any single conversation could. Their products, like the Sonu backpack I use for work, are something you carry every day that becomes a talking point.

“Where did I get my work bag? Have you heard of Aruna? Let me tell you all about it.”

Visit arunaproject.com to learn more about Aruna’s work and impact, donate to their Freedom Process, or shop their products.

Kadie Beatty

Marketing and Communications Specialist, Bullen Ultrasonics