By: Grant Smithson
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark, (UATV) – Over just 10,000 people are released from Arkansas State Prisons annually. Broken down by gender in the state of Arkansas just over 6,000 males and 4,000 females are released back out into the world after what could be years of being away from friends, family, and the reality of life. Although to many this seems like the end of what was a hard journey for many ex-convicts it’s just the beginning of their troubles.
Troubles like integrating back into society are what all ex-inmates face. This can take many different forms whether that be having an adequate amount of clothes, food, or getting a job so that you can make money to live. What most won’t realize however is that this struggle doesn’t directly affect just the inmates themselves but the families of these inmates as well.
This is exactly the case for University of Arkansas student Regan Stanley. “I have a family member who was in incarceration for a long time it took them about ten years to get a stable job to get stable income and stable modes of transportation as well the idea of that taking over a decade post incarceration and punishment to me, I fell that is not the type of punishment that should continue after you get out.”
Regan’s partner Hailey Caldwell hasn’t been directly affected by this as Regan has, however she has been inspired to help. Hailey’s inspiration branches directly from the University where she had Dr. Leigh Sparks in a specialized course: Communicating Effectively on the Needs of Women Who Are Leaving Prison and Reentering Society.
Regan and Hailey came together with the help of Dr. Sparks and the Northwest Arkansas Community Correction Center (NWACCC) to start a clothing/ book drive for the incarcerated women of the center. The two items chosen were for specific reasons, both items are hard to come by for ex-inmates, but it’s more to it than just that.
Clothes are essential in life yes, but also nicer clothes are needed for the ex-inmates to hopefully get themselves and their families back on the right track. Kenitra Edwards who is warden of the Northwest Arkansas Community Correction Center shared how much drives like this go to help the inmates. “All items like clothes and fictional books we rely on volunteers or donations for those the clothes are used for when they leave the system for job interviewing.”
The books were chosen for many of the same reasons so that inmates can keep their brains sharp by reading during their sentences. This item also doubles as a hobby for many inmates that usually don’t pick up the activity until they’re incarcerated.
Regan and Hailey plan to continue this effort post-grad as they both care about this need even more than ever. Also, the Northwest Arkansas Community Correction Center is always looking for volunteers and donations to help.