{"id":273,"date":"2022-11-29T19:36:36","date_gmt":"2022-11-29T20:36:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/?p=273"},"modified":"2022-12-26T15:01:05","modified_gmt":"2022-12-26T15:01:05","slug":"life-after-lockdown-how-formerly-incarcerated-people-are-helping-each-other-heal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/2022\/11\/29\/life-after-lockdown-how-formerly-incarcerated-people-are-helping-each-other-heal\/","title":{"rendered":"Life after lockdown: How formerly incarcerated people are helping each other heal"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/2022\/11\/life-after-lockdown-how-formerly-incarcerated-people-are-helping-each-other-heal\/\" title=\"Life after lockdown: How formerly incarcerated people are helping each other heal\" rel=\"nofollow\"><img width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image lazyload\" alt=\"Two men sit together on the front porch steps of a home, hands folded and looking at the camera\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"float: left; margin-right: 5px;\" link_thumbnail=\"1\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" data-src=\"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-730x487.jpg 730w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-550x367.jpg 550w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-848x565.jpg 848w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-1140x760.jpg 1140w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-1170x780.jpg 1170w\"><\/a><\/p>\n<section class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"vc_row wpb_row vc_row-fluid\">\n<div class=\"wpb_column vc_column_container vc_col-sm-12\">\n<div class=\"vc_column-inner\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wpb_single_image wpb_content_element vc_align_left\">\n<figure class=\"wpb_wrapper vc_figure\">\n<div class=\"vc_single_image-wrapper   vc_box_border_grey\"><img width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"vc_single_image-img attachment-full lazyload\" alt=\"Camera looks upward at four Wounded Healers team members posing in front of the Durham County Detention Center, a tall, modern stone building, with a U.S. flag and North Carolina flag behind them.\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" title=\"WoundedHealersfeature\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" data-src=\"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/WoundedHealersfeature.png\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/WoundedHealersfeature.png 1200w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/WoundedHealersfeature-300x200.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/WoundedHealersfeature-768x512.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/WoundedHealersfeature-730x487.png 730w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/WoundedHealersfeature-550x367.png 550w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/WoundedHealersfeature-848x565.png 848w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/WoundedHealersfeature-1140x760.png 1140w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/WoundedHealersfeature-1170x780.png 1170w\"><\/div><figcaption class=\"vc_figure-caption\">L to R: Dorel Clayton, Mentor &amp; Board Member; Nichole Shackelford, Program Director; Tommy Green, Mentor &amp; Board Member; Terence Johnson, Interim Executive Director<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"vc_row wpb_row vc_row-fluid\">\n<div class=\"wpb_column vc_column_container vc_col-sm-12\">\n<div class=\"vc_column-inner\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wpb_text_column wpb_content_element \">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<p>How to vote, use a computer, open a bank account, and use a credit card were just a few of the things that Edward \u201cScottso\u201d Scott, age 55, did not know how to do until recently. When he walked out of Orange Correctional Center in 2019 after being incarcerated for 30 years, a changed world lay before him. Scottso found himself facing the same uphill battle that all formerly incarcerated people (FIP) experience upon reentry\u2014how to start again.<\/p>\n<p>Each year, 650,000 people in the U.S. are released from prison, but with their freedom come incredible physical, mental, and societal hurdles. Many FIPs are diagnosed with anxiety, depression and PTSD. Others struggle with strained and broken relationships. The long-lasting effects of incarceration hover over day-to-day life, resulting in alarming statistics:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>FIPs are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/reports\/housing.html\">10 times<\/a> more likely to experience homelessness<\/li>\n<li>43% are diagnosed with a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/research\/mental_health\/\">mental health disorder<\/a><\/li>\n<li>38% have at least one <a href=\"https:\/\/bjs.ojp.gov\/library\/publications\/disabilities-reported-prisoners-survey-prison-inmates-2016\">disability<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Over 27% of FIPs are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/reports\/outofwork.html\">unemployed<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Equally alarming are the rates of recidivism, especially here <a href=\"https:\/\/www.northcarolinahealthnews.org\/2022\/09\/07\/after-prison-individualized-reentry-plans-are-cutting-recidivism\/\">in North Carolina<\/a>, where 49% of formerly incarcerated people are rearrested within two years and 36% end up back in prison.<\/p>\n<p>Fortunately for Scottso, he had a head start in tackling these challenges.<\/p>\n<p>While incarcerated, Scottso met Tom McQuiston, a long-time volunteer in North Carolina\u2019s prison system, who became his sponsor. They built a friendship that made Scottso feel seen, supported, and motivated to try to live a different kind of life.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy reentry didn\u2019t start when I got out\u2014it started a long time ago when I began working on myself spiritually and mentally,\u201d Scottso says. \u201cI didn\u2019t want to go out the same way that I came in.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Scottso shared that mindset with his friend and fellow incarcerated individual, Will Elmore, who was later released in 2015. Together, the three men discussed the importance of a support system for the FIP population. They began to envision an organization that would focus on connecting those being released from prison with peer mentorship.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo see other [incarcerated people] who didn\u2019t have support is what made me want to become a healer,\u201d Scottso says. \u201cIt\u2019s important that we reach out to those in need.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And so, Scottso, Elmore and McQuiston founded <a href=\"https:\/\/woundedhealersnc.org\/\">Wounded Healers<\/a> to take aim at the drivers of recidivism.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"vc_row wpb_row vc_row-fluid\">\n<div class=\"wpb_column vc_column_container vc_col-sm-12\">\n<div class=\"vc_column-inner\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wpb_single_image wpb_content_element vc_align_center\">\n<figure class=\"wpb_wrapper vc_figure\">\n<div class=\"vc_single_image-wrapper   vc_box_border_grey\"><img width=\"848\" height=\"565\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"vc_single_image-img attachment-large lazyload\" alt=\"Two men sit together on the front porch steps of a home, hands folded and looking at the camera\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" title=\"20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1\" sizes=\"(max-width: 848px) 100vw, 848px\" data-src=\"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-730x487.jpg 730w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-550x367.jpg 550w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-848x565.jpg 848w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-1140x760.jpg 1140w, https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/20221020_APCO_WH_Mentorship_ForSocial-1-1170x780.jpg 1170w\"><\/div><figcaption class=\"vc_figure-caption\">Edward \u201cScottso\u201d Scott, Co-Founder and Tommy Green, Mentor &amp; Board Member<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"vc_row wpb_row vc_row-fluid\">\n<div class=\"wpb_column vc_column_container vc_col-sm-12\">\n<div class=\"vc_column-inner\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wpb_text_column wpb_content_element \">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<p>\u201cOur organization builds a collaboration that rethinks, \u2018What does successful reentry in our community look like?\u2019 \u2018What systems and support are needed to lead towards long-term reductions in recidivism?\u201d says Wounded Healers\u2019 Interim Executive Director, Terence Johnson\u2014a PhD student at UNC\u2019s School of Social Work whose siblings are formerly incarcerated individuals.<\/p>\n<p>The work of Wounded Healers is guided by the findings of <a href=\"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/abs\/10.1177\/0093854814550029\">Shadd Maruna<\/a>, an author, professor and reentry program researcher who found that the formerly incarcerated population thrives by being embraced by the community and through helping others.<\/p>\n<p>Based on those insights, the founders of Wounded Healers built a team of 18 mentors with the lived experience of incarceration. Together, they support others through their reentry and connect them with local programs and services that provide employment and education opportunities, housing assistance, interview and resume building workshops, and healthcare, in all its forms.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to acquiring these services, mentees receive the invaluable gift of access to the mentors themselves. Mentors\u2019 personal histories of incarceration allow them to connect with those facing reentry on a level that only they can.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe&#8217;ve been there, done that, been on the yard,\u201d says Dorel Clayton, a FIP and Wounded Healers board member and mentor. \u201cWho better to mentor someone that&#8217;s coming home than somebody who actually walked that same walk?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Since his own release, Clayton has committed himself to supporting FIPs across a spectrum of stressors. He now serves as a community health worker and peer support professional, connecting those in need to appropriate health services and other community re-entry resources.<\/p>\n<p>Tommy Green followed a similar path. After a 12-year prison sentence at Orange Correctional Center, where he bonded with Scottso on the yard, he was also inspired to change his course in life. Like Clayton, he\u2019s now a Wounded Healers mentor and a community health worker, connecting FIPs living with chronic conditions to affordable health care. Along the way, the two discovered similarities in their stories.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe came from great lives, from a lot of missed opportunities,\u201d Green says. \u201cSo, [after release] we worked hard, got good jobs, or made the best out of the jobs we had until we got good jobs.\u201d Scottso did the same and is now the co-owner of a landscaping company, making a concerted effort to employ FIPs.<\/p>\n<p>Employment is a vital component of reducing recidivism, but it\u2019s a challenge shared by many FIPs. Nichole Shackelford, Wounded Healers program manager, says that though employment is essential, it shouldn\u2019t stop there. \u201cEducation, wanting to better yourself, having determination, being encouraged. I think all those things are very crucial parts of a person successfully staying away from recidivism,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>Shackelford, unlike Clayton and Green, did not have a positive upbringing, and that led to two separate stints in prison. At the beginning of her second sentence, she discovered that she was pregnant, but her incarceration prevented her from raising her son in his first year of life. He became her catalyst for change. When they were reunited a year later, she not only had her child, she had a calling. Shackelford is now a certified peer support specialist, a certified substance abuse counselor and a community activist.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnything that I can do to help someone address, overcome, or avoid that next barrier so they can make progress and be successful\u2026 I mean, that&#8217;s what I&#8217;m here to do,\u201d Shackelford says. \u201cSeeing someone go back [to prison] just because they couldn&#8217;t access the services and the help and the funding that they needed\u2014that would be the worst-case scenario.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>In its nearly three years of existence, Wounded Healers has helped to avert that scenario, supporting more than 20 people as they transitioned back into the community. The organization also continues to assist\u00a0the mentors themselves, who affirm that staying on the right path is essential for their mentees to do the same<\/p>\n<p>The organization\u2019s volunteers, staff and board have not only bolstered and built resilience on the individual level, they\u2019ve also forged strong relationships with community organizations and found success in advancing the lives of the formerly incarcerated population by working together.<\/p>\n<p>At Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (Blue Cross NC), we know that people who have been incarcerated are more likely than the general population to <a href=\"https:\/\/health.gov\/healthypeople\/priority-areas\/social-determinants-health\/literature-summaries\/incarceration\">struggle with certain chronic conditions<\/a> like asthma, high blood pressure and mental health disorders. Unfortunately, not all correctional facilities are equipped to address the health needs of inmates, and many incarcerated people don\u2019t have access to appropriate treatment.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to these physical and emotional health disparities, people coming out of prison systems may struggle to find healthy housing and steady employment. Organizations like Wounded Healers are stepping in to bridge those gaps and lay the groundwork for people to have healthier, brighter futures. That&#8217;s why, in 2022, Wounded Healers was selected as one of 10 organizations in Blue Cross NC\u2019s inaugural <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bluecrossnc.com\/strengthen-nc\">Strengthen NC<\/a> cohort\u2014an intentional investment in building the capacity of organizations led by or serving historically underrepresented communities and people of color.<\/p>\n<p>Understanding. Purpose. Empathy. Friendship. While incarcerated, many prisoners seek these things, but they need them even more once their sentence comes to an end.<\/p>\n<p>On the day that Scottso walked out the prison gates, he did so with a mentality rarely found in those on the brink of reentry. He was hopeful. He wasn\u2019t alone. He had a support system and resources awaiting him. And he had a familiar face. His mentor, Tommy Green, was there on the other side of the gates, waiting to pick him up.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>See how Blue Cross NC is\u00a0<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/treatthecost.com\/\"><strong>partnering with local organizations<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0across North Carolina to help address the unique challenges in their communities.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ctx-module-container ctx_default_placement ctx-clearfix\"><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"ctx-article-root\"><!-- --><\/span><\/section>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\/2022\/11\/life-after-lockdown-how-formerly-incarcerated-people-are-helping-each-other-heal\/\">Life after lockdown: How formerly incarcerated people are helping each other heal<\/a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/blog.bcbsnc.com\">Point of Blue<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>L to R: Dorel Clayton, Mentor &amp; Board Member; Nichole Shackelford, Program Director; Tommy Green, Mentor &amp; Board Member; Terence Johnson, Interim Executive Director How to vote, use a computer, open a bank account, and use a credit card were just a few of the things that Edward \u201cScottso\u201d Scott, age 55, did not know how to do until recently. When he walked out of Orange Correctional Center in 2019 after being incarcerated for 30 years, a changed world lay &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/2022\/11\/29\/life-after-lockdown-how-formerly-incarcerated-people-are-helping-each-other-heal\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Life after lockdown: How formerly incarcerated people are helping each other heal&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":275,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/273"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=273"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/273\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":278,"href":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/273\/revisions\/278"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/275"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=273"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=273"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=273"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}