COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
COME TOGETHER. MAKE AN IMPACT.
That headline is one that I’ve hashtagged a thousand times for an incredible local non profit that helps men and women build productive, stable lives after incarceration. For eight years, I’ve been helping with the marketing for Soteria CDC and Soteria at Work.
They provide housing, education, employment, affirmation, and advocacy services for 6-12 months after individuals are released from prison. The needs and the consequences that these men and women face are realities that are hidden from those of us without criminal backgrounds.
Take the time to check them out, and if you’d like to learn more - I know they’d love to hear from you.
WHY CRIMINAL JUSTICE?
1 in 3 Americans has a criminal background.
It costs $37,503 to incarcerate someone in South Carolina for a single year. In-state tuition at Clemson University is $14,308. We spend more to incarcerate than to educate — and because so many individuals return to prison, we absorb this cost again and again.
98% of the prison population has at least one Adverse Childhood Experience
At Soteria, you’ll hear a phrase that “hurt people hurt people.” By meeting basic needs with food, shelter, and employment and then surrounding people with resources and a community of support - Soteria heals each person that walks through the doors which in turn heals families and reduces recidivism.
Over the past 4 years, not one person has recidivated who completed Soteria’s 6-12 month program.
Never doubt that a small group
of thoughtful, committed citizens
can change the world; indeed,
it's the only thing that ever has.
Margaret Mead