For many individuals with justice involvement, a plan is the first resource needed for the journey to successful community reentry. The vision and structure it provides, coupled with support from a compassionate community, is transformative from the inside out.
Joshua discovered this truth over a year ago when he first came to The Fortune Society. A combination of bad decisions may have led him here, but new intentions rooted in productivity is what is guiding his steps today.
“Fortune helps me create an infrastructure to where I can benefit and make a living off of things that don’t...have to be illegal.”
Through our Alternatives to Incarceration (ATI) program, Joshua found a therapeutic space to share his frustrations with those who understand. “You sit there and you talk, and everybody gets a chance to vent,” he shares. Similarly, he found healing in our Better Living Center (BLC), our licensed behavioral health treatment center designed specifically for individuals with justice involvement. He left one-on-one counseling sessions equipped with new responses to stress.
“From the Better Living Center, I’ve learned to not overreact and just to do things that will keep your mind more preoccupied, rather than sit and wallow in your own thoughts,” he shares, “…that way, you don’t get stuck in that negative fog.”
In a clearer headspace, Joshua can focus on his passion for music with renewed vigor. A songwriter and rapper, he describes his sound as a mixture of old and new school. Our Creative Arts programs supports him in exploring this blend. From open mics to recording projects—plus an internship with the program—Joshua’s contributions are inspiring other Fortune participants to express themselves in new, exciting ways. “It felt really good to help people that were coming from jail as reentry be creative and have fun and listen to music,” he notes.
With new melodies and motivation, Joshua has his eyes set on the future. In addition to music, he hopes to own a social media marketing business one day. Our Education program is aiding him in reaching a key milestone to that goal: earning his High School Equivalency diploma. In a structured environment with many staff members who can personally relate to his experience with justice involvement, Joshua can achieve his goals and more. Fortune’s holistic responses to his needs makes it possible.
“All the connections that [Fortune has] job-wise, housing-wise, and just necessity-wise is tremendous,” he says, “to have an abundance of different programs and places that you could go to achieve a better living status.”
Indeed, with an abundance of hope, Joshua is a powerful inspiration to others: “My key note would be to not create obstacles by making negative excuses,” he says, “ but to creative positive reasons to [achieve] your goals.”
Article by Root Stitches LLC
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