The mission of Virginia CARES (Virginia Community Action Re-Entry System) is to assist newly released ex-offenders and their families in making a successful transition from prison to their community.  It is a charitable mission to help with emergency needs first and to then assist with the client becoming self-sufficient by obtaining employment.  The social services Virginia CARES provides are food, clothing, transportation, and shelter, guidance for job interviews and leads, and referrals to other agencies that would further benefit the client’s stability in the community.

Virginia CARES is a new program associated with New River Community Action, but has been in existence in the state of Virginia for the past 27 years.  At present Virginia CARES provides post-release services in 37 cities and counties throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia . Virginia CARES assists the Department of Corrections in 20 correctional facilities with their Life Skills classes, which includes sessions on employment motivation, anger management, money management, family matters, parenting and other topics.  The goal, through guidance and counseling is to reduce crime and recidivism by providing an opportunity for ex-prisoners to become self-sufficient, law-abiding, taxpaying, family-orientated citizens of society.

New River Community Action saw the need for this program in the New River Valley to deal with the multiple problems of ex-offenders returning to Montgomery, Pulaski, Floyd, Giles and Radford.  According to the Department of Justice, one in every 155 U.S. residents is in the prison system. In 1980, only 3,582 individuals were released from Virginia prisons. In 2002, 9,960 individuals were released.   The vast majority of those released returned to their communities within the state.  And the challenges of re-entry are many. More prisoners are returning home having spent longer terms behind bars, exacerbating the already significant challenges of finding employment and reconnecting with family.  The CARES program is a proven cost-effective alternative to continuing crime and prison overcrowding.   Seventy-six percent of all Virginia CARES participants do not return to prison, saving Virginia taxpayers almost $38 million annually.

Because Virginia CARES is housed in the New River Community Action site in Christiansburg and Pulaski we are able to partner with other NRCA agencies to enhance services for the ex-offender population.  Montgomery County Emergency Assistance Program and the New River Family Shelter are two of the NRCA partner agencies that collaborate with Virginia CARES.   The Virginia CARES staff has already made contacts within the community for employment opportunities, employment tools, housing and general donations. For instance, Magic Mart and Mar-Bel in Pulaski, International Furniture, Super Shoes and Dollar Tree in Christiansburg have agreed to work with Virginia CARES referrals for employment.  With all agencies working together, the program can focus on the community perspective, to prevent further criminal activity and restore the fabric of the family and community in crisis as a result of imprisonment.

The program faces the challenge of limited resources. Despite some funding from the Virginia CARES state office ($27 per client), effective assistance needs to include transportation, identification document costs, housing, and GED and education, and food assistance.  Providing gas cards and vouchers for public transportation, paying for identification costs, providing housing referrals, GED class expenses, books and financial assistance for college classes and food are ways to solve the immediate needs of our clients.  The requested $2,000 would be spent on providing transportation vouchers and identification document costs so that the area clients would be able to seek and maintain employment and for education, employment tools and shoes and training expenses as needed.

After 27 years of effort, the Virginia CARES program has been shown to reduce recidivism and save taxpayer dollars. We would appreciate your support in making this program a success in the New River Valley.