Overcoming stigmas through faith and friendship
The weekly meetings are all voluntary moments that converge into guided conversations and more meetings until, eventually, a community of friends forms.
Led by small groups of volunteers through local churches, Churches Embracing Offenders (CEO) has been changing people’s lives for about ten years. Brought to the area in 2013 and launched in 2014, CEO is designed to help non-violent, justice-involved individuals walk through the Celebrate Recovery program while building a relationship with Christ and creating community connections.
The program is mainly shared through brochures at the jail and word-of-mouth through participants or guards and caseworkers in corrections. Anyone seeking to participate fills out a multipage application and undergoes a screening process. They also have to agree to work through the Celebrate Recovery program and attend church services at one of the participating churches.
The chosen church provides a committee to work with the participants. The three trained volunteers dedicate weekly time to meet with them over the progression of the program. Weekly discussions are guided by the Celebrate Recovery program booklets but as relationships develop, those discussions blossom into friendships through shared faith.
Though the program aims to reduce recidivism, that is, the likelihood of an individual committing another crime after being released, the path to achieving the goal has multiple intrinsic benefits for the participant–and, often, the committee members themselves.
Tyler O’Keefe and April Blackwood have both recently graduated from CEO.
April
April’s smile beams even in moments of grief as she talks about the recent passing of a loved one. The grief is apparent — her eyes glisten behind colorfully framed glasses. But in the community centered around a shared faith that began meeting about nine months ago, she is comforted by the other three women with her.
In her recent past, this pain could have been an entryway into the well-worn path of substance use. A path to numb the reality.
But these days, she leans into a faith that has helped her overcome so much — finding joy even amid the struggle.
Like many justice-involved individuals in Dubois County, she suffers from substance abuse disorder.
April’s life changed when she was arrested. In a way, it was a relief; she wouldn’t have access to alcohol or meth anymore. Maybe the liminality of losing her freedom led her to be ready to step further into faith and recovery.
“I had a moment of repentance in county jail before I was sentenced,” April said. “I mean, the fear and the anxiety and just the thought of using or drinking again, it was just gone.”
Then she learned of the Churches Embracing Offenders program.
April decided to join and work with a committee from First Baptist Church in Jasper. She and her husband, Will, had been attending there since they first walked through the doors. It was their church home. Where they were eventually married, and Sara Harris, a member of April’s CEO committee, even sang at her wedding.
But returning was hard.
“I walked back into this church after leaving prison, and I was scared to death. I was like, ‘You know, I’ve let these people down. Are they going to accept me?'” April questioned. “But the pastor’s wife met me at the door and just hugged me. She’s like, ‘You’re home. You’re home. You’re home.'”
A prodigal return.
April recently graduated from the CEO program. Kendra Jasper, Rhonda Russell, and Sara Harris, her CEO committee, have become her friends. Seeing April’s struggles and her tested faith grow as they walked with her through the program has impacted their lives.
“It just brings such a light to me every time I come here because April is going to be happy no matter what happens,” Sara said. “She’s gonna have a smile on her face, and it’s always like that.”
April’s faith and dependence on Jesus inspire her friends.
“She knew Jesus before, but she loves Jesus now,” said Sara.
Rhonda agreed.
“Well, she inspires me to be better because she’s living it,” she said. “I mean, she’s living what God says.”
Opening pathways to reconciliation with the people they may have hurt is healing for the participants. In that reconciliation, they can find renewed relationships and continued sobriety.
“Everybody needs that second chance,” said Kendra. “Everybody needs help with that second chance to have a better life.”
April is now conducting a bible study at Community Corrections–the first one led by an inmate–and prays for moments to share her faith whether at work or in corrections. She meets with her friends and attends First Baptist each Sunday. Her husband is also working through the program.
“My recovery strengthens my faith, and my faith strengthens my recovery,” April said. “I don’t think I could have either one without the other.”
Tyler
Faith and community are the goals of the program.
Tyler was released from community corrections last week. He is no longer required to meet the men–Danny Carr, Nick Pfau, and Todd Jasper–who have been working with him through CEO. But he and his friends are still gathering and making plans to continue doing life together.
A life that centers on a strengthened faith and community.
“I knew God before I got involved, but I wasn’t ever serious about it,” Tyler admitted. “And you know, after getting involved with the CEO, my faith has grown tremendously. I’d never be this close to God if it wasn’t for the program and these guys working with me and just coming to this church.”
He joined the CEO program about two months after being transferred from Branchville Correctional Facility to Dubois County Community Corrections.
He admitted it wasn’t easy.
His history was weighing him down. Tyler, who is now 31, had begun using drugs when he was 12 or 13 years old, and it continued through his time at Forest Park High School. That dependency grew after he graduated and spiraled to the point in which he ended up in prison.
Returning to Dubois County with the end of his incarceration in sight was a wake-up call.
“I’m not gonna lie, I kind of felt uncomfortable being pretty much a prisoner coming into the church for the first time,” Tyler said. “But I was at a point in my life where I knew that I had to do something different or else nothing was gonna change.”
He got baptized a year ago and is now volunteering at the church, even helping at vacation bible school.
“He was working with the kids, and they loved him,” said Danny. “Some of them still want to hang around with him.”
Carr is also a recovering alcoholic and sees faith as the strongest path to overcoming addiction. A path that the group of men guided Tyler on from the beginning.
“We want them to get clean, but ultimately, we want them to come to know Christ,” Nick said. “And that changes everything.”
With him completing the program, the men are starting a bible study together. Tyler’s transition from CEO participant to community member is complete. But he acknowledged early on with the group that once he had regained his freedom, he would likely need this new community to gather around him to help him continue his sobriety.
“I’ve told them that that’s when I’m really going to probably need them the most,” he said.
They have plans for more than bible studies, though. The men have brought him into all aspects of their lives and plan on sharing those lives fully.
“I think everybody here would tell you we have all gotten so much out of this,” said Danny. “And we’re really good friends with this clown.”
Tyler is looking forward to when he can be sitting next to someone helping them walk through CEO.
He is ready to be one of the people ready to help.
Todd recognizes the importance of what they are doing and wants people to know “that there’s a group of folks that want to help people who are in that situation,” he said. “And we want to help them without judgment.”
By the numbers
Kenny Schnell is the chairman of the board of volunteers that operates Churches Embracing Offenders in Dubois County. The board comprises a mixed group of individuals representing the churches and community corrections.
About nine churches in Dubois County have volunteers on committees helping participants now or have committees available for new participants. Those churches include Redemption Christian Church, First Baptist Church, Victory Temple, Holy Family, Shiloh, and Crosspoint in Jasper, True Vine Baptist in Ferdinand, Central Christian Church, Calvary Baptist and New Life Church in Huntingburg, St. James Lutheran Church in Holland, First Pentacostal in Birdseye and St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Haysville.
Three CEO graduates serve on committees now as well.
“These committees are the hands and feet of Christ,” Kenny explained.
Since forming, Kenny counted about 30 individuals who have completed CEO in Dubois County.
“It’s encouraging to know that we can make a difference through this program,” Kenny said. “We can see the results.”
Anyone wanting to help Churches Embracing Offenders or to become involved is invited to reach out to Kenny by email at jklschnell@spectrum.net or by phone at 812-827-6789.
We misidentified April in the story. We originally wrote Blackgrove as her surname. However, it is Blackwood. We also misspelled Tricia Neel’s name in the cutline for the photo. Both mistakes have been corrected. Our apologies.