Longmont resident gains second chance through nonprofit services

Rachel Smith loves cosmetology, cutting hair, training service dogs and spending time with her grandchildren. And after eight years under Colorado Department of Corrections supervision, she’s ready to move forward with her life.

Smith was already serving her sentence when she connected with The Reentry Initiative, or TRI — a Longmont-based nonprofit that helps incarcerated adults thrive as they return to the community.

“When I got with The Reentry Initiative, there was a flier up looking for people. They interviewed something like a hundred girls,” Smith said. “Out of that hundred, they picked twelve of us. I almost didn’t get picked, I had to fight for my spot in the program.”

TRI is one of nineteen reentry programs in Colorado funded by Work and Gain Education and Employment Skills, or WAGEES. WAGEES is a community-based program that works to help people under Colorado Department of Corrections supervision as they reenter their communities directly or by funding organizations like TRI.

As one of two programs in Colorado working with female inmates, TRI also is  unique as the only program in Boulder County that offers a comprehensive wraparound service. While incarcerated, TRI works with women like Smith to address mental health and substance abuse issues, connect them with mentors and hold classes on self-sufficiency and life skills. 

“We met Rachel inside with our Triumph Pre-Release program, and while she was in there we kept in touch, “ said Emily Kleeman, executive director of TRI. “We assisted her with mentoring from women in the community, I would call her to help her figure out her transition plan coming out on her day of release and helped her get resettled.”

The pre-release program has been on hold due to COVID restrictions that prevent visitation to correctional facilities, though Kleeman said they want to resume the classes as soon as they are allowed to.

Smith points to addiction as the root of her past behavior, leading to the series of events that led to her incarceration. Drugs are no longer a part of her life though, Smith has been sober for eight  years.

“No fiber in my being wants to go near that life again,” Smith said. “No parole or probation can make you ready to quit an addiction, you just have to be ready. I hit a point where enough was enough.”

Therapy and classes helped her keep focused, though Smith admitted that there were things she could have taken more seriously at the start.

Six months after being released into a halfway house, Smith had an old associate reach out. After several attempts at rebuffing the associate, she made a mistake that earned her a new arrest and a return to incarceration.

“When you go into the program, they have this cognitive behavioral therapy. It helps retrain your brain to make good decisions,” Smith said. “You go over all these different scenarios, and I feel like they touched everything but I didn’t take the association part seriously enough the first time through. It was a mistake, but it’s done and I’m here now.”

Smith is out on parole now, excited to work at her old job while she works to restore her cosmetology license. Smith also is hoping to find work training dogs, a certification she obtained while incarcerated. The biggest hurdles Smith faces now are background checks rejecting her employment due to prior felonies.

“There’s this worry that there's a judgement passed or that employers will go with another applicant that may not have the same background,” Kleeman said. “It’s discouraging and frustrating. We can only do so much at TRI to change the stigma, and we do it every day by sharing stories like Rachel’s.”

“We want the community to realize that incarceration doesn’t mean you’re a bad person. It probably means you were in a very traumatic situation, and one thing led to another,” Kleeman said. “Most of the people we serve don’t have a violent crime. It was fueling a drug habit, homelessness or petty theft. These aren’t hardened criminals and they deserve that second chance.”

Smith credits working with Kleeman and the TRI staff for giving her support and helping her navigate the rules as she transitioned out of a correctional facility.

“They cover all this stuff,” Smith said. “Emily picked me up when I was released. They took me out for lunch, found me a mentor and helped me find furniture for my apartment. They’re willing to help with whatever you need. It doesn’t feel like being a part of a program, they’re my genuine friends. They wrote to me the whole time I was in prison, when they couldn’t visit during COVID.”

“Everything we do is to make dignity and value stay at the forefront,” Kleeman said. “Everything we do is individualized, we call them by their first names, we call them members when they partake in our services. We’re trying to build a community, and we know these women are already facing barriers in access to employment, housing and mental health care.”

Smith is now a part of TRI’s Welcome Back Center, which is a one-shop stop for physical and mental health needs. The center helps program members with financial support services, from rent assistance to tuition for continuing education. Members also have access to life-skills classes, from managing a budget to finding resources and housing, that members can drop in on as needed.

“It brings a certain comfort and safety for our members who don’t need to bounce around to different organizations to access care, they don’t have to retell their story every time,” Kleeman said. “They do develop their narrative with us and learn ways to take what they’ve learned and transfer those skills back to the community to feel productive and have a sense of purpose.”

Smith felt that being a part of TRI’s programs made transitioning to a healthier path easier to manage. Kleeman helped her with parole meetings, getting to appointments and navigating other issues that cropped up as she returned to the community.

“The first week getting out, I was so overwhelmed, but they've known me for years, they’re able to speak on my behalf. They believe in me, they vouch for me,” Smith said. “I wish there were more programs like this, I’d been getting in trouble for a long time and never had anything like this.”

“Rachel and I have built this four-year relationship, I know a lot about her and what services she needs,” Kleeman said. “Everything we do is very tailored to what’s happening in the moment, but I think it’s that we’ve had this consistent relationship that’s going to help her be successful. She always knows where to go when she needs help.”

“Rachel is very inspiring. This is what makes the day worth it for me,” Kleeman said. “Seeing this type of growth and perseverance, she’s just never given up. I hope her story helps others who want to engage with us, and work to reclaim their lives.”