Keynote Description:

Operation Underground Railroad (O.U.R.) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to eradicate child sex tracking. Because this problem is so vast, we have gathered the world's experts in both extraction operations and in anti-child tracking with a goal of bringing an end to child slavery.

O.U.R. Mission

To shine a light worldwide on the global epidemic of child sex tracking, and in so doing rescue more children from slavery and assist law enforcement to seek justice for those who violate children. We place survivors on a path to recovery by partnering with vetted aftercare providers.

Presented by Tim Ballard & Carrian Cheney

Tim Ballard is the Founder and CEO of Operation Underground Railroad (O.U.R.). He is also the CEO of The Nazarene Fund.  Ballard spent over a decade working as a Special Agent for the Department of Homeland Security where he was assigned to the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and deployed as an undercover operative for the U.S. Child Sex Tourism Jump Team. He has worked every type of case imaginable in the fight to dismantle child trafficking rings. Ballard has worked undercover in the United States and in multiple foreign countries to infiltrate child trafficking organizations. In this effort, he has successfully dismantled dozens of these organizations and rescued countless children from sex slavery. He is an expert at managing Internet investigations, particularly those dealing with file-share networks where pedophiles and traffickers go to trade in child pornography. He has trained hundreds of law enforcement officers and has testified before the United States Congress on best practices to liberate children from sex slavery.

Ballard has been featured on many national news outlets to discuss his efforts to combat child trafficking. He has appeared on Fox & Friends, Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace, The Meredith Vieira Show, CBS Nightly News, ABC Nightline, CNN Headline News, MSNBC, The Glenn Beck Program, The Eric Metaxas Show, The Dennis Prager Show, The Hugh Hewitt Show, as well as many local news programs.

Tim is the principal subject of two full length documentaries: The Abolitionists, by Academy Award-winning producer, Gerald Molen, and Operation Toussaint, by Emmy Award-winning director, Nick Nanton.  His life story is also depicted in the upcoming feature film, The Sound of Freedom, where he is portrayed by actor Jim Caviezel and his wife, Katherine, is portrayed by Academy Award Winner, Mira Sorvino.

After serving a church mission to Chile, Ballard graduated Cum Laude with a BA in Spanish and Political Science from Brigham Young University. He went on to graduate Summa Cum Laude with an MA in International Politics from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey. He resides in Utah with his wife and children.

Ballard is the best-selling author of “The Covenant: One Nation Under God,” and is the author of the sequel to that work, “The Covenant, Lincoln, and The War.” He has taught American and International Politics courses at Imperial Valley College, San Diego State University, and American Heritage School. He has been featured regularly on both local and national TV and radio programs to discuss American history and politics and the role America has played in defending liberty at home and abroad. He has often commented on how his academic work in American history has provided him the inspiration and motivation to rescue children–to carry on the American tradition of liberating the captive. He recently received the distinguished George Washington Honor Medal from the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge.

Carrian Cheney is half of the husband/wife duo over at ohsweetbasil.com, a food blog all about reinventing family dinner. Carrian was born and raised in Vancouver, Washington so she grew up loving fresh produce from the garden, granola and all things green and lush. She believes that cooking is about more than just food, it’s about the stories and people behind it. She spends her time cooking with her husband and three children, getting outdoors and traveling and of course there’s nothing better than a cozy night at home in jammies.