|
Mentors needed
for just-freed prisoners
Community support would help them readjust to society
By Nancy Bowman
Dayton Daily News
TIPP CITY | John Graham
knows most people aren't interested in opening their homes to a man or
woman just released from prison, but he is hoping there are a few around
who'll open their minds — and hearts — to help someone readjust to life on
the outside.
Graham, a minister and director of Greenville's Koinonia House program for
men released from prison, is hoping to help the Ohio Department of
Rehabilitation and Correction establish community readjustment programs in
Miami and Darke counties.
Reginald Wilkinson, state corrections director, said
Tuesday it's people like Graham helping to establish the Citizen Circles
mentoring effort across the state. He said two of the circles have been
formed in Dayton.
The program, though, is too young for any reliable
statistics on whether the mentors are reducing the offender recidivism
rate, Wilkinson said.
He was among those who spoke to around 30 people —
including parole officers, counselors, a mayor and a judge — attending the
first of two Tipp City information meetings on the Citizen Circle concept.
Graham invited people from the two counties hoping for at least a dozen
volunteers.
Those at Tuesday's sessions were invited to fill out a
form requesting more information or possibly training for the program.
Among the goals, Graham said, is to promote a mind set of "we're not here
to punish you, but to help you."
Wilkinson said the Citizen Circles effort is not a fad.
"It is a very critical part of all that we do. . . . Our mission is to
return people to the community and have a positive impact on public
safety," he said. The department has only enough money to provide
information and staff support, which Wilkinson said forces a community to
rely on own its efforts.
Bobbie Herron-Boyer, a social worker and consultant who
helped set up a Citizen Circle in Toledo, said people have a choice of
working with the former prisoners and their neighbors or worrying about
the problems the recently released could cause. "They're coming home to
our neighborhoods whether we like it or not," she said.
Graham said the mentoring could range from helping
someone find a job to arranging housing and helping get finances in order.
For more information on the Citizen Circles effort, call
Graham at 547-6337 or the Adult Parole Authority in Cincinnati at (513)
821-4804.
All information herein is
©2006, Good Samaritan Home
Any use of the contents of this website without the
express,
written consent of Good Samaritan Home is strictly prohibited.
|
.jpg)
