Our Programs
The What Happened to You Foundation was created in 2020 to end child abuse and remove the stigma around discussing trauma.
Since its founding, the Foundation has supported its mission through a primary focus of creating and releasing video content that normalizes conversations about trauma, and professional speaking engagements in support of child advocacy.
Highlights:
In 2024, the What Happened to You Foundation released its first documentary, ‘What Happened to You’, starring Tom Jorza and Sebastian Scales. The documentary has received 25 film festival awards, and the trailer has received an incredible 250 million views across social media platforms.
The Foundation offered early access to the documentary to help further the Foundation's mission of supporting trauma survivors. 1,800 people from around the world purchased the documentary, raising a total of $9,000. The Foundation is allocating those funds to purchase a Tobii Dynavox eye-tracking communication device for Tom Jorza, which will significantly increase his words per minute and give him more independence in conversation. The Foundation is also using AI and audio from the documentary to rebuild Tom’s voice from before his accident and integrate it into his new speaking device.
Between 2023 and 2025, Sebastian has presented his story across 7 conferences to audiences of thousands of child advocacy professionals, including victim advocates, prosecuting attorneys, therapists, and more .
The ‘What happened to you?’ Podcast, where guests with all different types of traumatic experiences share their stories, has amassed over 300,000 downloads across streaming platforms,
Goals:
In 2026, the Foundation will support its mission with the following programs. If we are fortunate to count you as a donor, your donations will go to supporting:
Educator Curriculum and Certification Program
We believe that child abuse can be prevented when educators and parents are trained in what to look for, what what to do when they see the signs. In 2026, we aim to develop a curriculum that can train and certify that adults are equipped to deal with every possible instance of child abuse.
Legal Reform
When abuse does occur, we believe there are opportunities for the legal system to improve in how it represents and protects survivors. We will dedicate resources in 2026 to discovering and working towards legal reform that will change the way kids and adults experience the judicial process.
Video Content Creation
Sebastian has amassed a following of over 600,000 across social media platforms by creating content aimed at removing the stigma around discussing trauma. In 2026, we will double down on content creation to expand of viewer base by 2x.
Public Speaking to Child Advocacy Professionals
We are in the process of developing a What Happened To You Foundation conference, live and online, where people and professionals from around the country can join and raise awareness about child abuse and how to prevent it.