This Officer's Duties

I'm starting to re-think my philosophy on prison reentry. Some prison inmates are just not ready for Rick Warren quotes on turning their life around.

This Officer's Duties
Standing outside the prison wire.
I am free, but those inside suffer dire situations that cost them
Their lives, families and hopes that oft' tire,

Over time some will adapt.
But some are apt to continue acts of desperation,
That worsen their situation of being trapped.

What's my role of a human with compassion?
To protect, teach and inspire with passion.
Duties of an officer not held in fashion.

But reflect a higher meaning of Care, Custody and Control, which I gave an oath to serve.

Feedback On The 100-Hour Transition Program

This is a very unique program and I have enjoyed every minute of teaching and working with the inmates taking the class.  These are some of my observations and suggestions to the program.  When I refer to “students” I am speaking of the inmates:

It seems there’s a mandate that the students get exactly 100 hours of face-to-face instruction from the curriculum and approved DOC videos.  I think between facilitators, institution supervisors and administrators that could be defined differently.  There needs to be some flexibility there, in that some of the highest quality moments of instruction can come with one-to-one interviews with the instructor outside the formal classroom.  The institution as a whole can release (in my experience) up to a hundred inmates a month from all three units.  In cases such as this, a balance must be struck to get all these students trained and ready to leave.

The motion picture Antwone Fisher, 2002 with Denzel Washington needs to be on the approved video list.  It is riveting for the students, and it is a very good lead-in lesson to Anger Management, Decision Making, Problem Solving, Social Situations and Families.

I’d like to see a greater association with Chaplaincy services.  Perhaps some of the volunteers in that area could be trained to instruct parts of Transition, so as to free up time for the Facilitator to spend more time with individuals in and out of confinement.  I’d also like to see a Transition Volunteer program.  This would not only help his/her program, but could also serve the smaller work camps.

Facilitators need to become collaborators with the different learning areas of the institution.  This has been a true blessing to my program.  This can become necessary when students have special medical (physical and mental) needs or learning disabilities.  I had a hearing impaired (100% deaf) student who sat in my class for days not learning until I found some other inmates and staff who knew ASL (sign).  Is it possible to Close Caption our video series?

I want to encourage Facilitators to consider themselves Customer Service agents.  We serve the inmates.  Sure, the students are convicted felons, but in a very short time they will be “normal” citizens in our communities, shopping at Winn Dixie. Are we preparing them for that?  While in the Transition class, there needs to be a genuine attitude of transition, (i.e. a kind of metamorphosis) in that I don’t think there is harm in beginning to treat them as ladies and gentlemen with respect, honesty and candor that any person on the outside would expect and deserve.  Yes they’re inmates and some will still steal stapler springs, but we need to treat them with respect and let them know it is expected in return.

I have regularly used as a community information resource the University of Florida / IFAS Extension System, especially their Families and Consumer section, and their free publication through EDIS.  EDIS is the Electronic Data Information Source  of UF/IFAS Extension, a collection of information on topics relevant to consumers, especially Florida residents.    UFL/IFAS has an office in virtually every Florida county the students may visit for free or low cost information and services.

Is a graduate student somewhere surveying released felons on what helped or hindered their transition?

Should the Transition Facilitator take on part of the task of finding students leads for employment, identification, felon check-in locations and driver’s license issues?  I think the short answer is “no”, but with Classification and Release Officers being backed up with work, if Transition doesn’t assist, they will not get this information.  Learning the 14 Transition lessons is beneficial, but if an inmate can’t find necessary resources, it’s more probable he or she will return.  One small suggestion would be to verify possession of Social Security cards early in an inmate’s confinement.  Why wait until the end of a 10+ year sentence to apply for a SS card?

I have really appreciated the re-supply of classroom materials such as pencils, folders and paper.  Thank you.  I suggest an auto-resupply mechanism such as 1 new pencil for every pre/post test returned and 1 ream of paper for every 10 class evaluations, or something like that.  That is, if you’re having a hard time getting these critical documents returned.

I’d really like to see some interaction with other Transition Facilitators, even virtual such as a community blog, Skype or regular teleconference.  We need this for encouragement and idea and resource swapping.

Final note: I have thoroughly enjoyed this time as a facilitator of this program and working with you and the Classification staff.  Even though I am leaving for a different position with DOC, I hope our paths cross often.

Springtime is for renewal and rebirth.

With springtime being a season of renewal, I see it is fitting that I make this announcement today on this Easter Sunday.  The news is that my two blog sites will no longer stay completely seperate, but unite in theme to support the other.  Up until now they have been seperate in voice and audience; one not mentioning the other.

Since 2008 I have considered my stories, tales and thoughts worthy of being published through either of my blog sites Mr. Gus Outdoors or Voice of Truth Ministry.  Mr. Gus originated while I was a 4-H Extension Agent for the University of Florida where I felt a blog would be the best way to share how-to's of outdoor education with colleagues and families.  Voice of Truth Ministry came about in my personal life originally as a journal when I decided I had learned enough life lessons - some the hard way, and I want to share the devine strength and hope I received with others. 
The lessons I learned through my activities in the woods and wilderness, and in life general have been a blessing from God, so why not share it?  Perhaps an outcome of the projects will bring someone else enjoyment or spare them some hardship.  In doing so, I've been blessed and hope others have too.  I've been able to hone my writing skills, leave a partial record of my beliefs and priorites for my friends and family, and meet some very nice people.  So far I have a combined readership of over 15, 000 page views, and for that I am grateful.

As always, I don't consider this to be exclusively my site.  I always welcome others who have a story to tell that is in alignment with either of my blog sites.  By in alignment I mean thoughts and ideas that promote healthy living, the love of outdoors, the importance of families, teaching children or mutual respect of others.

May God bless you all this Easter season as we celebrate the passing of winter, the flight and scurry of young critters, and especially the resurrection of our Savior.  Thank you for your support and readership.

- gus

We're now publishing Transition information.

Voice of Truth Ministry blog (this site) has now made a new Transition page, if you notice to the top right.

The intent of this page is to publish resources for individuals who need help in the form of community resources to get back on their feet.  Daily I work with people who are looking for a place to live, help with coping or opportunities for employment after being removed from the workforce for an extended length of time; transitioning or moving back into the mainstream community.

Today this list is short, but watch it grow and feel free to send me comments on additional resources.  God bless you all.

My Spiritual Journey - My Missionary Years, Part 5

At the age of 19, March 1979-1981, I went on a two year mission for the Latter-Day Saint church. My dad encouraged me too, but I think it was more for the adventure and life experience. My siblings were very supportive of course, but my Christian friends back home gave me the cold shoulder, expressing feelings that Mormons were a cult, and I should stay away from them. The only people who did not were the Perkins family. I knew them from Ridglea Presbyterian Church, and the daughter Marianne and I were friends from Young Life. They told me they loved me, no matter what. To this day, I am grateful for that. I never asked my mom why she wanted me to go, but I think it was a source of pride for her, in "that's what nice, young Mormon men do". Did they pressure me to go? Not directly. The overall encouragement of the LDS church for all young men is to serve a mission when they're nineteen; so in that sense I did feel pressured. On the other hand, I wanted to go, or I wouldn't have. When I applied to go, my choices were to go to Germany, Sweden or anywhere in Europe. I was called to Denmark. When I left, I reported to the Missionary Training Center in Provo, Utah, which is like a boot camp for missionaries. There we were taught and coached in the core beliefs of the LDS church, how to interact with the public, and intense training in the language and culture of our final destination. From Day One we spoke Danish for all but a few minutes of each day the entire two months. My primary instructor was Sister Sonja DeSpain, a middle age Danish-American. The language came fairly easy; the memorization of the lessons did not. I was having fun, and learned a lot, but the "fire in the belly" of converting people to the Mormon church never came to me the entire two years. I did at this point however have a strong testimony of Jesus Christ and His Atonement.

When we arrived in Denmark, it was just as they told us, and I had a great first companion (partner) who was a veteran missionary trainer, Elder Raule I think was his name. Missionaries call each other Elder or Sister. He trained me well to work hard, read my scriptures daily, pray all the time and be kind to everyone we met. I enjoyed the work and flourished. I was able to travel and work in about ten different Danish cities including Copenhagen for a year, as well as Vejle, Fredercia and others I cannot remember. After my first companion of six months, I then became a trainer, which was very early for the typical missionary. Most of the time missionaries had a year or so under their belt before they trained others. I include this not to boast, but to point out that from an early age, God blessed me with the gift of being able to teach others, that I would continue to do in my career. I went on to train six missionaries, brand new from the states. Later on I served as a District and Zone Leader. I fit in very well to the mission mostly because I was friendly and loved speaking with people, the language went very well, and the culture fit me to a tee. I guess my Nordic ancestry came out in me. My daily goal was to meet people, become their friend and tell them about the blessings we receive from knowing Jesus Christ. That's what I did. Yes, I always told them about the revelations Joseph Smith received, and always (as instructed) told them not to take my word for it, but pray about it for confirmation. My logic as a nineteen year old figured if God wanted them to be Mormon, He’d tell them so and it wasn’t my job to convince them.

Question: Is it remotely possible, that God wants thousands of different religions? There’s something to think about.

Later I am going to include exactly what I believe in my Declaration of Faith, but let me say this now: I believe that God, through his Holy Spirit can reveal Himself to all people - period. Did he to Joseph Smith? I feel he did, but at some point in what LDS people call the Restoration, something went amiss. I need to say this to my friends and loved ones who think they know Mormons and the LDS faith - I was taught from an early age about the sacrifice Jesus Christ made for all of us on the cross. He was and is the cornerstone of my family faith, so in most aspects I consider the LDS people to be as "Christian" as the main stream population by how I was raised. On the other hand they are very different in their fundamental beliefs, some of which I cannot hold as my own. It is my opinion that when any religion or person goes much deeper than the saving grace of Christ, and the two most important calls of Christianity, i.e. loving God and neighbor, that they tend to easily get wrapped around dogma that will quickly conflict with another and bring discord.