We need to see things we desire
​and learn about it through the eyes of those who have lived it.
​


​"I am not defined by my past, however, I do not reject it’s importance in shaping me into the person I am today. Healing isn’t linear. You may not always fully heal from the things you have walked through, but hope is the key to continually working towards piecing ourselves back together."

"I believe that the mission statement pulled me in immediately to AwareNow. The idea of allowing advocates and survivors to speak without boundaries is something I firmly believe as both healing for those who have lived the trauma, and educational to those who are seeking to understand cultures outside their own."

Hope is the key
to continually working towards
​piecing ourselves back together.

About Leyna

Leyna Luttrull was born in the small town of Beaverton, Michigan and found herself a high school student quickly ushered into a world of drugs, dancing, and ultimately Human Trafficking. After 15 years in the industry, she had a life altering accident that gave her a second chance to step back, see the damage that had happened and start to heal from over a decade of abuse. She started a street team in Grand Rapids dedicated to feeding and clothing the homeless, started speaking about her own past of trafficking and homelessness and their connection, and created the “Poor Man’s guide to Mental Health” to allow access to therapists from those without insurance seeking immediate help. In 2018 she entered ArtPrize with a visual and interactive piece allowing people to walk through mental health disorders, offering on site suicide intervention, and it earned her a humanitarian award The Butterfly Award. Since then she has been a public speaker for Human Trafficking Awareness, teaches educational seminars on her lifelong passion, Foraging, is the owner of ShatterBake Studios Apothecary, a member of the Michigan Legislative Team For Informed Patient Consent, and utilizes her past trauma as a way for others to see what steps they can take to welcome those seeking to leave the sex industry.
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AwareNow is a purpose-driven media platform dedicated to raising awareness and advancing advocacy through powerful human storytelling. Through intimate interviews, documentary filmmaking, and original editorial content, AwareNow amplifies voices and lived experiences that illuminate critical social, health, and humanitarian issues. By pairing emotional truth with thoughtful context, AwareNow does more than tell stories. It builds understanding, fosters empathy, and equips audiences, institutions, and policymakers with the insight needed to drive meaningful change. Each story is designed to move awareness into action, supporting advocacy efforts that influence dialogue, shape policy, and strengthen communities. At its core, AwareNow exists to ensure that the stories behind the issues are not only seen and heard, but felt and acted upon.
​PRIVACY POLICY