Marion County Reentry Initiative

The Marion County Reentry Initiative is all about return on investment. Helping former prison inmates successfully reintegrate into the community is less expensive, financially and socially, than having them commit new crimes.

That is why area businesspeople joined law enforcement officers, politicians, social service providers, the faith community and others at the 14th annual “Giving People a Second Chance” fundraising breakfast on October 24th.

“The Marion County Reentry Initiative is premised on a very simple idea: Nearly every individual who goes to prison from our community will return,” County Commissioner Colm Willis explained in his opening remarks.

“And just as we held that individual accountable for the harm they caused in our community, we now welcome them back. And we give them the resources they need to lead a good life. Because ultimately the safety of our community is not an ‘us’ and ‘them’ thing. It’s an ‘us’ and ‘us’ thing.”

MCRI has successfully reduced recidivism and increased ex-inmates’ compliance with post-prison supervision. The work may begin when the individual is still incarcerated and then continue in the community with treatment, counseling, transitional housing, training, employment opportunities and other assistance.

“Before I started working at the sheriff’s office, I never really gave a lot of thought to reentry, what that process looks like and how it impacts families in our community,” Camille Brignon, a program coordinator in the Community Corrections Division, said. “I get to work directly with clients facing barriers as they navigate the reentry process.”

The annual breakfast fundraising helps reduce those barriers. During the last fiscal year, Brignon said, about $18,000 was spent on items that individuals needed to get back on their feet and find a job. Their money paid for bus passes, eye exams and glasses, clothing, driver licenses and government IDs, deposits for housing and admittance to treatment facilities, education fees and more.

MCRI exemplifies how businesses come together for the community’s good. Over 200 area employers have signed up to provide job opportunities for qualified MCRI clients.

Individuals need these jobs for their life changes to stick, District Attorney Paige Clarkson told the 300 people gathered at the Keizer Civic Center. Recapping the history of MCRI, she spoke about some amazing local small businesses that partnered with us early on in the county.

“They were committed to hiring folks who were formerly incarcerated and giving them a second chance to learn a skill or a trade, and truly set them on a course for success, so that they could avoid one huge known risk for criminality – and that’s poverty.”

In videos shown during the breakfast, program participants Lyuba Endicott and Judith Nix recounted how they’d turned around their lives through MCRI and had been reunited with their children.

Businessman and philanthropist Dick Withnell capped off the event by asking participants to invest in MCRI. “There’s nothing better than a turnaround of an individual,” he said. ”There is nothing better than someone straightening out their life.”

Within a week, the event raised between $5,500 and $6,000 with more donations on their way.