| 14 inmates graduate from Jobs for Life in Nashville prison
Men of Valor holds first Jobs for Life graduation
Nashville, TN , August 2, 2006
In Nashville, TN, there is a renewed sense of hope at a local prison through the efforts of Jobs for Life (JfL) and The Jericho Project, an ambitious initiative run by Men of Valor (MOV), a prison re-entry organization with a long history of success. On August 2, 2006, 14 inmates participating in The Jericho Project graduated from the first Jobs for Life class in the prison. It was a significant celebration as several of them had not graduated from anything in their lives. The ceremony included a prosession to "Pomp and Circumstance", special music from one of the volunteer instructors, a word of encouragement from the story of Joseph in the Bible, and a closing charge to the men. Afterwards, the graduates were smiling from ear to ear as they had several of the volunteers and leaders of the class autograpgh their Jobs for Life workbooks.
The Jericho Project is MOV’s pre-release and aftercare program whose goal is to bring down the walls of alienation, despair, and hopelessness and restore men to a life that is God-centered. To strengthen this effort, MOV offers JfL training classes two times a week for 15-20 men participating in The Jericho Project.
Raul Lopez, the after care coordinator at MOV, oversees the JfL training class and builds relationships with local companies in need of quality employees. Raul and other MOV staff members feel that JfL helps them overcome a disturbing problem they consistently face in their aftercare program. Men were going back into society with support and a job, but without a long term plan for success. Raul says that now through Jobs for Life men not only have a plan but also a renewed sense of hope. “Before Jobs for Life, some men would come in late to our programs, sit back and be virtually unresponsive. As we have helped build a real plan through the training classes, we see them coming to class on time, attentive, and getting the basic skills it takes to be successful.”
Raul instructs the class with two other volunteers, Steve Wilson, a high school Bible teacher, and Bill Heim, CEO of Transaction Tracking Technologies, one of JfL’s Business Partners in Nashville. “Steve is very charismatic and a lot of the guys feel good when he is there,” Raul says. “Bill is very committed to making sure the men are prepared for what they will face on the outside.” With Jobs for Life, Raul says, “the men are excited to be in the class and have a sense of hope and direction.”
According to University of California, Irvine, criminologist Joan Petersilia, by 2010 annual releases of inmates may reach 1.2 million. Without intervention, close to 80% of these inmates will return to prison. Thankfully, with the help of Jobs for Life, Men of Valor is equipped to provide a solution to this critical issue.
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