From the CEO
Happy Spring!!! It’s a new season - a time for growth and for us to plant seeds of investment into our community. In Failsafe, our goal is to meet the needs of families impacted by incarceration so that the returning citizens can become law-abiding citizens and families can overcome the grief and stressors associated with having an incarcerated loved one. We have expanded our training catalog to include Emotional Intelligence to help them understand the root causes of their emotions and brain health training to help them overcome anxiety, depression, trauma, and grief. Thank you to all of our supporters, donors, and volunteers for your contributions and support.
Last year we provided reentry support services to 265 Planning District 16 returning citizens as follows:
Fredericksburg City (71)
Stafford County (69)
Spotsylvania County (113)
King George (8)
Caroline County (4)
In addition, we responded to 63 inmate letters and graduated 14 from our Courage to Change program. We also provided support to 44 families / 90 youth and children during our holiday shop and distributed 31 backpacks of school supplies.
We are expecting these numbers to increase significantly. While the COVID-19 early release plan has come to end, the Virginia General Assembly passed legislation that could potentially release 14,000+ inmates early through the earned sentence credit system, effective July 1, 2022 (House Bill 5148). More information about this can be found at § 53.1-202.3. (Effective July 1, 2022) Rate at which sentence credits may be earned; prerequisites (virginia.gov). We are meeting with Virginia Department of Corrections officials to understand the gravity of this legislation and what we need to be doing to prepare our community, as a great deal may be coming to Planning District 16 as one of the largest districts. At least 8-10%.
April is Second Chance Month
We have activities and events planned this year to support not only the returning citizens and their families, but also our community to promote safety. This year we are partnering with Legal Aids Works, Germanna, and the Fredericksburg City Commonwealth Attorney Office to host a Criminal Justice Reform Forum that is open for all to attend. The topics include restorative justice, trauma-informed care (brain health and liberation and somatic approach), employment and education, and a “know your rights” panel. Please see flyer
Our Right Road Training and Hiring Event is happening on April 25-27. Career Assessment, flagger training, emotional intelligence, resiliency and more. Additional information for returning citizens to sign up to attend can be found here
Youth Intervention
Delinquency cases are rising in our juvenile courts and youth offenders are increasing. Third graders are in gangs and fifth graders are threatening harm to other children. Though they are children they are making adult decisions that is requiring the same level of attention as an adult criminal case. Women are the fastest growing population behind bars. For this reason, we have reinstated our WIGS (Women Inspiring GirlS) program for young ladies ages 13-18.The WIGS group meet the 3rd Saturday of the month from 1:00-3:00 pm. at the Fredericksburg Central Library on Caroline Street. The March meeting is cancelled due to our area Spring break. The young ladies will be participating in and providing community service at our Criminal Justice Reform forum on April 16.The next WIGS group meeting will resume on May 21. Additional information about WIGS can be found here.
Mulligans for Kids
We are excited to announce our Inaugural “Mulligans for Kids” golf tournament on Friday, May 13.Critical early intervention can give these kids a chance to thrive and break the cycle of incarceration. Your support gives a second chance to those who need a mulligan – in life. You have an opportunity to help children with incarcerated parents through participation in our golf tournament. More information can be found here.
Education is Key
We are excited to announce that applications are now being accepted for our Scholarship program. More information about our scholarship program can be found here: https://www.failsafe-era.org/scholarships