A bus that once ferried retirees around a St. Lucie County senior living community is being transformed into a mobile forensic interview unit for children who have been sexually exploited or trafficked. The vehicle, donated by Watercrest Senior Living, is undergoing renovations that organizers hope will make it operational within four months, giving law enforcement across the Treasure Coast a new tool for helping child victims.
Watercrest resident Bobi Kruemberg said the community had considered simply selling the bus before choosing what she called an extraordinary purpose for it instead, according to WPBF. Kruemberg said the older generation now has a chance to help save children through the bus's new role. The vehicle was donated to United Against Child Trafficking, known as U-ACT, which is transforming it into a mobile forensic interview space equipped with what investigators need to conduct interviews with children in the field.
U-ACT founder Lynne Barletta said the bus will provide forensic interview space specifically for exploited and trafficked children, per the same WPBF report. The organization said the mobile unit will be made available to law enforcement agencies across the Treasure Coast whenever it's needed, with the stated goal of bringing a safe, private space directly to children when and where police require it.
A Regional Network Built Over Years
U-ACT operates as the secular, community-wide division of Florida Faith Alliance, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded by Barletta to expand trafficking prevention and intervention work beyond religious organizations and into municipal governments and businesses, according to U-ACT. Barletta presented the organization's regional expansion at a City of Stuart Commission meeting in February, telling commissioners that its awareness and law enforcement coordination work spans five counties across the Treasure Coast, according to footage from the City of Stuart. Local commissioners issued a proclamation recognizing U-ACT's anti-trafficking efforts in the region.
James Billig, U-ACT's Chief Compliance Officer and Law Enforcement Liaison, works directly with Homeland Security and local police departments to share intelligence on predators and standardized investigative strategies, per U-ACT's executive team page. Billig said he hopes the bus will fill a gap for local law enforcement, noting that the demand for these services is ongoing and constantly increasing. Law enforcement liaisons like Billig help structure child forensic interview environments so that gathered evidence remains admissible in court.
Free Labor Speeds a $50,000 Renovation
Turning the retired senior living bus into a specialized pediatric care and forensic interview unit is expected to cost roughly $50,000 in interior modifications, according to SLC Scanner. Crown Car Care in Palm City is completing work on the vehicle at no cost, while volunteer mechanics and medical professionals are also donating free labor and services alongside the funded interior work. U-ACT has said it plans to expand the initiative with several more units beyond this first bus.
Statewide law enforcement efforts have resulted in more than 2,000 arrests since last year, officials say, underscoring the scale of the problem the mobile unit is meant to address. Florida consistently ranks third in the nation in reported human trafficking cases, behind California and Texas, according to data cited by the Florida Department of Health. The Florida Department of Children and Families recorded 2,254 human trafficking reports involving 1,601 children during the 2024-2025 fiscal period, including 596 verified cases of Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children, per state data compiled by Path2Freedom.
State Mandates and Funding Back the Effort
Florida has moved in recent years to widen who is required to spot and report signs of trafficking. Under Florida House Bill 1237, enacted in 2025 as Florida Statutes Section 1006.481, all public school instructional, administrative, and support personnel who interact with students must undergo human trafficking awareness training and follow state reporting protocols, as Hoodline reported in its coverage of a Miami Gardens survivor. Port St. Lucie itself joined the state's 100% Club initiative in 2024, requiring all 1,400 city employees to complete specialized online training to recognize trafficking in local neighborhoods, according to U-ACT.
Money to support victims once cases move to law enforcement also flows through a dedicated state fund. Launched in March 2024, the Florida Human Trafficking Victims' Fund, administered by the Florida Sheriffs Association, has supported more than 20 law enforcement operations and assisted over 100 survivors with immediate medical, trauma, and emergency housing care through 2025, according to the Florida Sheriffs Association. Separate 2024 legislative directives established the state's dedicated helpline at 855-FLA-SAFE and shifted primary incident reporting toward state-managed dispatch systems, according to the Florida Attorney General's office.
For now, the St. Lucie County bus remains in the shop, its senior-shuttle seats and fixtures giving way to equipment meant for a very different kind of passenger. If the four-month timeline holds, it will become the first of what U-ACT hopes will be several mobile units serving the Treasure Coast, bringing forensic interviews directly to children rather than requiring them to come to police stations or clinics.
