Divinity student and Secret Service officer leads ministry to fight human trafficking

A trip to Greece in 2015 with Liberty University’s Department of Psychology was an eye-opening experience for Charles Carpenter (’16, ’17). On the trip, students met with victims of human trafficking and gained knowledgeable hands-on experience and training in caring for them.

Exposed to the harsh reality of modern-day slavery, Carpenter felt called to action.

“It kind of opened my eyes to the reality that human trafficking is not just something you see in a movie and that it was not fiction,” he said. “I realized that this was something that happened in the United States as well. After my experience in Greece, I knew that I wanted to spend the rest of my life doing whatever I could to help stop human trafficking.”

In 2019, Carpenter co-founded Saving Sparrows, a nonprofit organization that collaborates with governmental and non-governmental leaders and organizations to combat human trafficking. They do so by taking their message into local schools, rotaries, churches, community based organizations, and by supporting other organizations that have the same mission of desiring to see an end to human trafficking. While speaking they give a Human Trafficking 101 and a internet Safety Course.

“As a Christian-based nonprofit, we put emphasis on how we as believers can show Christ when such horrendous crimes are occurring,” Carpenter said. “We have to be the light in the darkness just as Christ tells us to do.”

The Macon, Mo., native enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in 2004 after graduating high school and served for two years on active duty where he was deployed once to Iraq as an anti-tank missile launcher. Upon returning from Iraq, he entered the reserves in 2006 and in 2008 he moved his family to Northern Virginia, not far from Washington D.C., to work with the Secret Service.

“It can be a lot of stress,” he said regarding his profession. “There can be a lot of stuff that you don’t agree with, but when it comes down to being a Christ-follower, Christ teaches us to be a light in a dark world, so even if we can’t see the good in whatever situation we are in, we still have to be Christ-like.”

After protecting some of the nation’s highest-ranking officials for many years, Carpenter realized that he wanted to accomplish something no one in his family had done before — graduate from college.

“In my family, higher education was out of reach, so Liberty has helped me break through that generational curse, so to speak, and become more educated,” he said.

Having heard about Liberty’s online programs from a friend at church, Carpenter did some research and discovered that the school was exactly the place for him.

“I saw it was Christian-based, and that was something that I was definitely looking for,” he said. “What also got me was that it was very friendly toward people who were working. Since starting classes in 2014, I never looked back.”

Through Liberty, Carpenter has earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a Master of Arts in Teaching- Special Education. He is currently pursuing his Doctor of Education in Christian Leadership through the John W. Rawlings School of Divinity.

“Liberty has helped me to reach higher than I ever thought I possibly could,” Carpenter said.

Although he is well established in his career, he said his college education has prepared him in many ways for his ministry and for life.

“The leadership courses I’ve taken through Liberty are not only teaching me about the fundamentals of leadership, but how to properly lead others,” he said. “We hear about all of these good and bad leaders throughout history, but these courses have helped communicate to me exactly how to be an effective leader.”

With the insight Liberty’s courses have given him, Carpenter said that he desires to model Christ-like character and strong leadership at home with his wife and six children, on the job as a Secret Service officer, and in his work with Saving Sparrows. In fact, Carpenter said, “One of my favorite verses is where Paul says, ‘Follow my example as I follow Christ,’ (1 Corinthians 11:1).”