Mentor, Live-in Center Crucial for Reentry Young People [JJIE.org]

     I had some extremely positive reentry experiences as a "youthful offender", in spite of some unusual challenges. In order to be eligible to be released [on parole], prospective parolees need to have a bonafide job offer. I assembled a list of organizations in N.Y. state, by county, that help prisoners get jobs, and later published "The Prisoner's Employment Assistance Brochure for NY State".

     My first job on parole was working as an investigator for an OEO [Poverty] Legal Services project. While working there, I received a request from an inmate at Attica, who worked in the prison print shop, requesting permission to reprint the Prisoner's Employment ...brochure.  The attorney who supervised me, authorized me to send it as "legal [not to be read or censored] papers"-direct to the requesting inmate. After it was reprinted and circulated at Attica, the warden from Attica reportedly shared it with other NYS prison wardens. One of them wrote me, at the law office, requesting my permission to reprint it-for use in his prison, which I did, and thanked him for doing so, as well as for his facilitating its distribution in the prison where he worked.                                                                                                                                                                                            Before I was paroled, I received a possible job offer to work as a VISTA [domestic 'peace corps'] Volunteer, which required me to pass an FBI/NCIC background check. Since I was 'adjudicated' a youthful offender, under NY law, the federal record system listed me as "sentenced under the [federal] Youth Corrections Act- [not to be publicly disclosed]", and reportedly nothing else adverse was found to disqualify me. ... I passed the background check while still incarcerated. 

I am grateful to all the people who were part of my 'support system', and that helped make these 'challenges' surmountable. I'd like to give others a chance to comment before I describe further challenges I faced at that time and sources of 'Resilience' I availed myself of.