NEW  HAPPENINGS AT HOPE

HAPPENINGS IN 2007

• The Best Christmas Pageant Ever Christmas play will be presented by HOPE inmates for other inmates and unit staff at the Dawson State Jail on December 18 and 19 at 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.  The same play will be presented at the Hutchins State Jail during the HOPE 4 the Children Christmas Party December 19 and for the inmates and unit staff on December 17 at 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.  Auditions and casting is under the direction of Lucy Smith, Founder.  Inmates assist with rehearsals, props, and set design.

• The HOPE 4 the Children Christmas Party for the children of inmates at the Dawson State Jail to be held December 14, 2007, 4 p.m. - 8p.m.

• The HOPE 4 the Children Christmas Party for the children of inmates at the Hutchins State Jail to be held December 15, 2007, 9:30 a.m.

• A 3rd HOPE Literacy Community Dorm  (Agape City) for women opened at the Dawson State Jail, May, 2007, population 52.

•  Lucy Smith began a Bible Leadership Training class with 12 "Shesciples" who wanted to study the Bible in depth and train to teach and facilitate classes. This semester, they have been studying the Gospel of John.  Several of the "Shesciples" have accepted Christ and have been baptized.

• Plans are in the making to open the first Community Dorm for men at the Dawson State Jail in 2008. This will include CARE Substance Abuse groups for the men and other collaborative classes.

• Currently 10 HOPE Literacy graduates are attending colleges.  4 others have received financial aid and approval to attend upon release.

• 18 inmates participating in the HOPE Literacy programs were baptized during the first half of April 2007. 

• HOPE Leadership Training classes, conducted by Jan Evans with Renewed Spirit, is teaching the women to be proficient in their HOPE jobs and community responsibilities.  They are learning how to communicate and problem solve in their communities and workplaces.

• New to HOPE is the "Quilting for the Future" project.  Those who are releasing plan and design a lap quilt with their future plans.

DECEMBER 2006 NEWS:

•  3 HOPE former inmates are in college; 3 are in the process of getting their papers together to go to college; many that are still locked up have decided to go to college upon release.

•  All of HOPE students are passing their GED to which they attribute the rise in the EA scores and the GED to the HOPE tutors and the program which provides structure, positive feedback, encourage, and strong accountability.

•  Our artistic women made wreaths out of hula hoops, tissue paper, and bows that were absolutely wonderful. The men stamped the T-shirts that went on the dogs. The inmates on separate units were involved in a joint project for the children on both.

•  The 2006 evening programs through HOPE collaborators were Parenting, Substance Abuse, Emotional Literacy, Financial Literacy, HIV/AIDS, Effective Communications for Healthy Relationships, Stages of Development in Children, Making Peace with Your Past, Children, our Greatest Blessing and Biggest Challenge, Getting Along with People and Feeling Good About It, Resolving Conflict, God and Money, Easy Strategies for Eating Healthy and Staying Fit on a Low Budget, What to Expect and How to Navigate Upon Release, Anger Management, Survivors' Class and The Workplace Environment and Citizenship.

23rd Annual Governor's Volunteer Awards Winners

June 9, 2006, Texas HOPE Literacy was recognized with the Community Capacity Builder – Private Sector/Business Award.  See News Release 

NEW BELIEVERS

Texas HOPE Literacy sponsored Baptismal Service for 16 women at Dawson State Jail.

NEW " Mizpah CITY" ESTABLISHED AT DAWSON STATE JAIL

March 2006, the second in a series of 10 city dorms for females and 5 city dorms for males was established at the Dawson State Jail, Dallas, Texas.  52 female inmates live in a structured environment called a city.  The first Unity City has 54 residents.  This makes a total of 106 ladies involved in the HOPE Unity City Program.  The ladies in these dorms elect their own mayor, city manager, city council resolution and review boards. They self-govern under the auspices of prison governance.

C. A. S. A. (CHRISTIAN AGAINST SUBSTANCE ABUSE)

HOPE has formed a collaboration with C.A.S.A. (Christians Against Substance Abuse) to provide classes for inmates at the Dawson State Jail and Hutchins State Jail. Start date TBA.
 

HOPE AT INNERCHANGE FREEDOM INITIATIVE

In January 2006, Lucy Smith conducted a literacy training for peer educators at the faith-based InnerChange Freedom Initiative dorm at the Carol Vance Unit, Richmond, Texas. Participating in the training were volunteer Judy Indermuehle and selected inmates for the Texas HOPE Literacy program.  Among these inmates is Justin Prestwood, former HOPE peer educator at the Hutchins State Jail in Dallas, Texas. He is assisting Judy Indermuehle with program setup and training.