Prime for Life program helps those struggling with addiction

By: 
Stephanie Taylor Ferriell, Print Editor
Prison, says Christina Clark, saved her life. She’s hoping a new program at the Washington County Detention Center can help her get the life she admits she’s messed up – and badly – back on track.
Clark is one of 12 female inmates who just completed a program called Prime for Life that addresses underlying issues of addiction (something the vast majority of inmates struggle with), and teaches personal and life skills in an attempt to help participants not just cope, but succeed, once they are back in society. Separate classes are held for males and females. The second round of classes were completed this week.
The program is funded by the Indiana Department of Correction with the funds managed by Hoosier Hills PACT. Director Jon Kuss said this is the first time the county has had someone dedicated to jail services. Founded in 1981, PACT provides services in three areas: youth services, victim services and community corrections. The Prime for Life class is also offered in Crawford County, which is one of the counties included in Hoosier Hills PACT. This portion of the grant is $55,000. 
“We could have Garo [Kashian] here full-time,” said Kuss, referring to the program instructor. “There’s that much need.”
Deirdre Miller, alcohol and drug offender program supervisor for PACT, said the degree of need regarding addiction issues in the community is shocking. “All families are affected by it to some degree,” she said. “There are so many things interconnected with drug abuse; the environment they return to, employment, domestic violence – the majority of those cases also involve substance abuse – there are so many, many problems that are interconnected.”
Clark said she’s been struggling with addiction since she  was 23. She’s now 32. “I’ve got to do something to better myself. Something different. I need to change everything – I mean everything,” she admits. “I’m trying to figure this out. I can’t get it right. I’m hoping this will help.”
Another woman participating in Prime for Life is Breana McCarty. She agrees with Clark that jail time can be effective for those with addiction, but said a community rehab program is desperately needed. “Incarceration is a good deterrent,” she said. “Paired with rehab, it’s a double whammy. I think the community needs it [rehab] badly.”
McCarty, who’s 38, says she’s “ready to do something different with my life. Something positive. …I want to participate in my life and be there for my kids.”
The Prime for Life classes, she said, “are a lifeline for us.”
Sheriff Roger Newlon sat in on part of a recent class and said it was the first time he’s heard directly from inmates taking part in the program. Addressing the women he said, “We’re feeding you, giving you a place to sleep and that’s all we’re doing; not anything positive for down the road.”
Funding was the big stumbling block as he looked into programs over the past several years. He was particularly impressed with one at the Lebanon, Kentucky, jail. After learning more about it, he decided to reach out to Kuss, who was immediately on board.
All inmates are offered the opportunity to apply for Prime for Life. After the six-page application is completed, the class of 12 to 15 is selected by PACT. Classes meet Tuesdays and Fridays.
“This is something positive for them,” said Newlon. “Maybe this will turn them around, get them to look in another direction when they get out.”
The need for that is in Newlon’s face every day. A 27-year veteran of the department, he said he’s seen so many of the same faces, starting when they were juveniles and continuing through adulthood. “Something’s not working,” he said. “When they get out, they don’t know any different. To me, this is a way to turn a little and head down a different road. It’s a start. It may not be a finish, but it’s a start.”
Miller agreed with that assessment. “This is just a piece of the continuum,” she said. “…It’s a stairstep in the right direction, but just a piece of that full continuum.”
Ashleigh Schneck is looking for her second new beginning. After struggling with addiction, she graduated from Teen Challenge – “the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life. And the most rewarding.” 
She’d been clean and sober four years and was employed by Teen Challenge. Then she came home to throw her dad a 50th birthday party and things fell apart. She was arrested for OWI and admitted her old image as a drug addict further complicated her situation. She lost her job, moved back home and got a job as a bartender. 
In retrospect, that was not a good idea, she says. “It was the wrong thing for me to do.” So was coming home. “I had a support system up there [Teen Challenge]. I was the happiest I’d ever been in my life. And it was all sober. It was the most natural high.”
Eight years later, Schneck still struggles. She says she comes from a good family, but a family that’s had enough. “My family is so mad at me,” she said tearfully. “They won’t talk to me or answer phone calls.” 
Prime for Life is allowing Schneck to find hope again. Sitting locked up in jail with nothing to do feeds a negative mindset, she said. “It gives me hope, it encourages me,” she said, referring to the classes. “You have no idea. I get something out of it every time I come.”
Schneck said the classes are helping her understand why she’s been a substance abuser and “how you can make decisions not to stumble back into that old lifestyle.” Prime for Life gives her “positive encouragement to keep going rather than go back.”
Look for another story on this new jail education program in today's issue of The Salem Leader.

Category:

Please Login for Premium Content

Site Login Help

For current subscribers to The Salem Leader and The Salem Democrat, you can login to the site using the following information:

Username: Please use your full email address associated with your account
Password: Please use your last name. Passwords are case sensitive, so please capitalize your last name (eg: Smith)