Salvation Army Tour Leaves Corrections Employees in Tears
Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC) employees from nine state prisons toured three Salvation Army centers in Minneapolis last month to learn how the centers serve men and women released from incarceration.
What the employees saw reduced some of them to tears.
“They couldn’t believe what The Salvation Army does and the impact we have on people’s lives,” said Jeanna Bailey, an official at The Salvation Army Rehabilitation Center in Minneapolis, a free, long-term men’s treatment facility. “Some of them were speechless, and some were even crying.”
Their emotional response stemmed from witnessing the support The Salvation Army gives to former offenders, many of whom are people society could care less about. For other DOC employees, it was seeing firsthand how the lives of ex-cons have changed through faith in Christ.
“What I saw at all three Salvation Army programs was so much more than I expected,” said one DOC employee, a transitions coordinator whose job is to help ex-convicts reenter society. “I think we all feel at times we are just banging our heads against the wall and get nothing back, but when I left (the tour) I felt like what I do does matter. I wish I could send every single offender that I work with to you.”
Indeed, working with offenders can be a frustrating and thankless job. Although much help is available to offenders through the DOC, Salvation Army and other organizations, many of them revert to criminal activity. Since 2003, about 35 percent of felons in Minnesota have been reconvicted of another felony within three years of being released from prison, according to the DOC.
The Salvation Army remains committed to curbing recidivism through stable housing, rehabilitation programs and – above all – spiritual guidance.
Many of these services are offered in partnership with the DOC.
“It makes sense for us to work together because the populations we serve overlap almost continually,” said Captain Adam Moore of the Harbor Light Shelter in Minneapolis, another tour site. “If we can be proactive in this relationship, the benefit to those we serve will be much greater.”
The employees also toured H.O.P.E. Harbor, a 96-unit permanent-supportive housing facility.
“The tour has inspired me,” another DOC employee said. “I was able to see firsthand how the programs that The Salvation Army offers are packed full of emotional, spiritual, physical and mental support. As I returned home, it put my life back into perspective; each person has many blessings in life, but the greatest is love.”
DOC personnel are scheduled to meet with The Salvation Army again in March to discuss the topic of faith-based initiatives.
“Partnering with other treatment centers, businesses, professionals, churches and legal authorities helps us to help others even better,” Bailey said.
