Dee’s life-changing journey with 100 Jesus figurines
- deansimpson7
- Apr 23
- 7 min read
Dee Fraser is a woman on a mission. A big one. And it’s deeply personal. A survivor of child exploitation, her passion for supporting vulnerable children has recently taken her across countries and cultures, armed with 100 tiny Jesus figurines and a heart full of purpose inspired by the Salvos. From Vietnam to Rome, her journey was not just a global spiritual pilgrimage but deeply transformative, as Salvos Online journalist LERISSE SMITH reports.
Dee still remembers the incident as if it were yesterday.
Walking through Qatar Airport, she clutched her carry-on for dear life. Inside were 100 tiny Jesus figurines: precious and priceless. Her heart raced as she approached the security checkpoint. What would they think? A bag full of miniature Jesus figurines wasn’t exactly standard luggage. She braced herself.
Then something miraculous happened. The airport officials glanced her way and simply waved her through. No questions. No inspection. Just a silent, almost divine pass.
Letting out a deep sigh of relief, Dee then embarked on her long-awaited global journey of faith and service last month, which she named ‘A Pilgrimage of Hope Revealed’.
It was to be a trip of a lifetime.
Joining a group of her Catholic church friends and people worldwide, she headed to Rome for the 2025 Jubilee Year-themed Pilgrims of Hope – and to distribute the tiny figurines to those who needed them the most.
“It is really, really important for me as a survivor of child exploitation that I am supporting as best I can those countries who have an influx of exploitation, which at the moment is all through Europe,” says Dee, who is The Salvation Army Doorways Regional Manager of South NSW/ACT.
“When we have a war or a disaster, we know the risk of children being exploited rises. I feel that The Salvation Army has a really abiding faith in God’s children, and for us to do everything we can physically, mentally, professionally, emotionally to support these vulnerable children, irrelevant as to where they are globally.”
For three weeks, Dee and her church community travelled through Vietnam and Italy, handing out the small white and blue Jesus figurines, bought online, with the words ‘Jesus Loves (symbolised by a heart) You’ etched across the front to vulnerable children – from orphanages and low-socioeconomic schools to soccer fields.
The reason? She wanted to take something tangible to give to children that conveyed a simple yet powerful message.
But the trip wasn’t just about distribution. It was about empowerment and connection, too.
“I went over as a Catholic woman but also wanted to donate back to The Salvation Army,” she reflects.
“I wanted to understand how The Salvation Army operated overseas, particularly with child exploitation and engagement. Typically, when I go overseas, it’s about me giving back to the community services globally that are working with children who have been exposed to trauma and exploitation. I try to give something back in countries where they perhaps don’t have as much access to resources.
“For me, working with The Salvation Army, I could pick up the phone and ring any number of experts in their field ... but in some countries, though they may appear to be progressive, they don’t have access to resources. Sometimes it’s encouragement, sometimes it’s just letting them know whom they should be speaking to and what agencies are available.”
Dee also spent time with police teams from across Europe, including Italy, Portugal and Switzerland, sharing information about agencies working with survivors, advocating for the work of The Salvation Army and ensuring the police knew they were heard and valued.
“We can’t do anything per se other than pray for their wellbeing and build that relationship,” she reflects. “That means we are going to go to our corps in that country and perhaps start that relationship. Also sourcing specialist help, too.”
A vital part of Dee’s work was her ‘little book’ – a compilation of global Salvos contacts, from corps officers to area leaders, plus specialists. While overseas, it was a vital tool that helped connect people in need with the appropriate support.
“If I had my way, I would have a whole team sitting at Qantas ready to fly,” she says.
“But the reality is we literally can’t do that. But what we can do is support in regard to who needs the information, and who are the most appropriate organisations in that country, including locals on the ground, corps officers and area offices. It’s so important because they are all embedded in community.”
While in Rome, Dee stayed at The Salvos Mission accommodation and liaised with staff to connect with child-focused organisations in France. Her lived experience of child exploitation helped bridge the cultural and emotional gap in delicate conversations.
Additionally, her work with the global staff including orphanages, police personnel and local child services, also involved sensitivity and understanding and alerting the locals about the importance of appropriate physical connections and using soft tones when supporting vulnerable children.
One deeply spiritual moment struck her while standing inside St Peter’s Basilica.
“I was wearing an old Salvation Army T-shirt, which I know was a bit cheeky,” Dee recalled.
“But everybody was so very friendly. Lots of clergy were there because Pope Francis was so very unwell. A lot of people were flying in from different parts of the globe, and I remember one person stating: ‘Oh, you know The Salvos Mission? They are lovely people. They get things done.’ That was the main message you would get. You just get things done. And it was like, wow, they know us, which was beautiful!”
Another powerful encounter came when a Monsignor approached her and remarked in English, “The Salvos Mission do such good work, great work.”
“You are standing in St Peter’s Basilica, you are in the Vatican, and they know what we do and do well,” Dee reflects.
“And I was just like, this is ‘Jesus-focused, Spirit-led and hope revealed!’ It was literally what Miriam (Territorial Commander Commissioner Miriam Gluyas) has been talking about for the past three years. It was beautiful.
“It wasn’t until I was in St Peter’s Basilica with the Monsignor that I realised how extraordinary an opportunity and how powerful God was to turn this damaged kid to standing with a Monsignor at St Peter’s Basilica, remembering all these beautiful words and grace from The Salvos Mission. It was the highlight. It was a moment of “Ahh, I get it. I get it!”
The significance of the moment overwhelmed her.
“It was a profound moment. I walked out and was in tears,” she says. “I was just not weeping, crying my heart out. It was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m not the kid back there. I’m the woman employed now.’”
That shift in identity – from survivor to leader – was momentous.
“It was a huge shift that I’m not just that child,” she says. “I’m the woman who walked, who boarded planes, went through three different countries, and got to where I was. And I look back and think, how did I do it? Well, I got through it because I have great leadership and stewardship in my organisation and great faith from both organisations. So, that was really monumental for me.”
Now, thanks to her journey with the Jesus figurines, there are 98 people around the world carrying a small message of love and hope.
“Children, when they are exploited, are literally removed from all sensitivities due to the violence that they are exposed to, so that they lose everything,” Dee explains.
“They don’t own their clothing, they don’t own shoes, they don’t own anything. They don’t own their little precious bodies. So, when we give out the little figurines, it’s theirs. Their eyes lit up. And for them to hang on to it physically is fabulous, but psychologically and spiritually, it is really an extraordinary opportunity to take the first step. It was quite symbolic that the figurine represented God, The Salvos Mission, and the message ‘We care for you.’”
Journey to healing Dee remembers her own childhood when a quiet gesture helped start her path to healing. She recalls a moment from her childhood in a remote Northern Territory community that sparked her journey to healing.
Without judgment or pressure, a corps officer in the role of a flying padre gave her a small book. “I didn’t like people near me,” she says. “But he simply offered it and said I could read it if I wanted.”
Unlike other churches that threatened her with spiritual condemnation, the padre prayed it would bring her peace. Years later, Dee was amazed to meet his sister at a work event.
“It was God’s greatest plan,” she says. “That’s the power and blessing of Christ. I hold deep gratitude for The Salvation Army. They came with grace and helped me find faith and healing.”
And gratitude was shown in abundance when Dee and her team brought fruit, vegetables, and suitcases full of hygiene essentials to the orphanages, including hundreds of toothbrushes, tubes of toothpaste and soap.
Whilst undertaking the support work, another confronting reality for the team was that many of the children did not even know where they came from due to being taken at a young age with no memory of home.
“It is up to us ... to remember, when we give back, it’s self-denial,” Dee remarked. “It’s a form of supporting those vulnerable people right across. We have got wars obviously going on, and that’s sadly where they target these little ones, these precious little souls.”
To bridge the language barrier, Dee relied on something more powerful than words – hope, heart, and faith. And every step of the journey was soaked in prayer. She says the volume of people praying for them was extraordinary. One night, they worked from 9pm to 4am on a homelessness support mission.
Now that Dee has returned home, she is planning yet another trip and hopes to return to northern Italy later this year, with the team also travelling to France after an invitation to collaborate with staff working with exploited children.
“We want to lend as much support as we can in that space,” she says. “So, it’s time to save my money – and get back to work!”
