January 11, 2013
Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com
Page 3
Sunrise Rotary’s new thrift store to help ex-inmates NICCI SHIPSTEAD Clayton Pioneer
Just weeks after his release from San Quentin Prison, Vincent Russo was sitting around the fireplace with Collette Carroll and Gaylynn LaVenture, planning the next steps in a historymaking endeavor with Clayton Valley/ Concord Sunrise Rotary Club to open a Thrift Boutique. The club will partner with the successful California Re-entry Institute (CRI), headed by Carroll, which helps former inmates find jobs and success outside of prison walls. The shop will provide funds to assist men in successful transition from incarceration to society through jobs, a reentry facility, employment for at-risk youth, and to assist Rotary with their other projects. LaVenture will be the store manager for the as-yet undecided location. “We’re looking in Concord near public transportation, especially BART,” Carroll said. The shop will open as soon as they find workable space. The Sunrise Rotary’s thrift store is just a part of CRI’s vision to build an integrated and supportive service network comprised of communitybased organizations, government and public agencies and the broader community for the success of formerly incarcerated individuals back into the community. Specially chosen participants complete a twoyear process prior to release in conjunction with multiple other therapeutic programs available during incarceration. Russo is perhaps the poster child for CRI, and was even the institute’s “Executive Instructor”
Nicci Shipstead
VINCENT RUSSO (RIGHT) ENJOYS COMPANY AROUND THE FIREPLACE discussing bright dreams for the future during his first holiday after release from San Quentin State Prison. Gaylynn LaVenture, left, and Collette Carroll, center and Russo of California Reentry Institute begin a history-making endeavor with Clayton Valley/Concord Sunrise Rotary Club to open a Thrift Boutique in Concord serving individuals reentering and reintegrating into the community after incarceration with employment opportunities, fundraising, at-risk youth programs, social networking and housing.
when he was still behind bars. He knows how difficult it is for many former inmates to reintegrate into society, and has seen many of his former fellow inmates fall back into the revolving door of the prison system. Russo said he is eager to employ the same type of service and support to recent parolees that he was so successful with among inmates at San Quentin. “He’s just amazing,” says CRI President and Executive Director Collette Carroll, offering up a laundry list of Russo’s accomplishments and service work. “All these (CRI) guys have done hard work on themselves.” CRI participants have 0 percent recidivism, which means nobody who has gone through
the program has gone back to jail. The Thrift Boutique will provide employment to participants, many of them highly skilled craftsmen who will also be able to sell their work. ROTARY WAS INSPIRED Mureleen Benton, president of Clayton Valley/Concord Sunrise Rotary, was inspired to join forces with CRI after meeting several “ex-cons” who softened her heart by breaking stereotypes with their inspired stories. Benton invited CRI to speak at a Rotary meeting, which led to this partnership, she said. The boutique will assist atrisk youth with work to keep them off the streets, build self-
worth and a sense of accomplishment and learn life skills through CRI’s Sharing the Truth with Youth program. “The youth aspect is really important to me,” said Benton. “I don’t have what these guys have to make a connection that will make a difference. A former offender can take away the glamour of what kids in our community think prison is. If we can save just one, if every Club could save just one, think of the difference that would make.” Sunrise Rotary has earmarked funds and started a collection drive for high-end, gently used or brand-new women’s, men’s and children’s clothing and accessories for the Thrift Boutique as well as provide business advice if needed; the Rotary District is on
track to contribute financially later this year. Carroll and her late husband Roland Peck were founders and ran of one of the largest selfhelp programs in San Quentin for ten years. CRI was founded in 2008 when Carroll and business partner Sam Vaughn realized the need to take the lifechanging movement further towards helping the men reenter society. Carroll and Peck often funded the fledgling efforts out of their own pockets. “This is all from God,” said Carroll. “Ideas pop into my head; I used to yell to Roland from the shower, ‘Write this down!’”
placements to meet the needs of the reentry population. Many will seek housing with family or friends and others will be left to find housing on their own. Various laws restrict parolees housing options; certain convictions can prevent people from living in certain neighborhoods or in certain types of housing (e.g., public housing). Consequently, the county must provide the necessary resources to make sure all those reentering will not become homeless. CRI’s vision and five-step process toward reintegration is a highly successful, groundbreaking endeavor.
UNEMPLOYMENT HIGH FOR
Donate items to Sunrise Rotary Club or contact CRI at 925-5491416 or by email at info@californiareentryinstitute.org.
FORMER INMATES
The cards are stacked against an ex-offender upon release. Formerly incarcerated people experience extraordinarily high rates of unemployment, with research indicating unemployment among California parolees after one year can be as high as 90 percent. Formerly incarcerated people frequently face tremendous barriers in obtaining employment, including employer discrimination, lack of job history, skills, and education. However, employment is critical to successfully reintegrating into the community after incarceration. Down the line, through proceeds from the Thrift Boutique, CRI will open a house available to their men during reentry through reintegration. Russo is slated to use his abundant experience, education and training as House Manager. “Once a CRI, always a CRI,” Carroll and Russo said. It is estimated that the county will need 1,241-2,069 housing
Ouimet, from page 1 an estimated $50,000 damage and the entrance is boarded up, Nicosia said other churches and funeral homes have stepped up to offer their facilities while repairs are underway. A visitation and viewing for Clayton Pioneer photographer Michael Dunn, scheduled for 5 p.m. that day, was quickly relocated to the Salvation Army chapel across the street. “The community has been right there for us,” he said. Nicosia says the repairs will take about three weeks.
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