Deb's Story
Why I Started The Reentry Initiative
The Reentry Initiative was founded in love which grew from 20 years of working with men and women in prisons in Ohio and Colorado as both a volunteer and a counselor, sitting around tables listening to the inmates’ stories. The trauma most of these people have endured in their early lives has influenced their incarceration. From the beginning of my work inside, I felt a strong calling on my heart to address their needs and provide hope and resources for their journeys to start new lives on the outside.
I was trained to manage a caseload of women who each had treatment plans at the West Central Correctional facility in Ohio. Programming and counseling I provided on the inside helped many of the women I served to realize their own value, develop transition plans and become empowered and equipped to heal and reach for more. I wanted to do similar work when we moved to Colorado.
Surprisingly, from a very early time working with women in the facility in Ohio, I saw how much in common I had with them. I was in an outpatient program for treating my alcoholism and had experienced the humiliation that comes with admitting one is an addict. We were all addicts, daughters, sisters, mothers, even grandmothers. We all felt the deep sting of shame from our issues. We shared a common bond that overrode the differences we might have.
I heard their stories and the lack of resources these women had for dealing with their mental health issues. I on the other hand had a therapist who gracefully helped me admit my addiction and recommended a proper program for me. These women had been locked up for many years for mostly non-violent crimes. It wasn’t until they entered West Central Correctional facility that they were given mental health treatment. This was a progressive approach available in a series of community-based facilities in Ohio.
To prepare myself for dealing with the mental health issues involved with addiction and incarceration, I completed a Master’s degree in addiction counseling upon my move to Colorado. This helped me to better understand the complications of multiple mental health disorders in treating addiction. The degree gave me the knowledge and credibility I felt I needed to start TRI.
After living in Ohio for 18 years, my husband took a new job, and we moved to Longmont. I wanted to continue my work with women in prison but was discouraged by the hour commute from Longmont to Aurora to the Women’s Correctional Facility. I was determined to find a way to continue my work. The Boulder County jail seemed like a possibility for a place where I could provide programming. I was allowed to work with women in the jail, but it proved difficult given the short stays of many of the people we worked with. I gave that up and looked for ways to continue the work of helping people with reentry.
I met a woman who had been working inside the women’s prison Denver for many years. Together we researched successful reentry programs across the country to do benchmarking. A small group of us met monthly for a year to develop a business plan for starting TRI in Longmont. We started with housing three women out on parole in a small apartment while also providing necessary basic needs for someone newly out, such as education, employment, housing, transportation, mental health. Many of the assumptions we started with turned out to need adjustment, but we braved through the new venture and learned a lot along the way.
I believe that there is something spiritually grounded in reaching people inside prisons. The deep joy I feel in seeing men and women start new lives is self-sustaining. So often they are forgotten, shamed and punished. They appreciate the people who volunteer to come alongside and help with programming and reentry. The Reentry Initiative has grown enormously since we started, thanks to the professional management and mental health counseling provided by TRI’s staff. I am so grateful to them for taking our original vision and making it a reality. Founded in love, TRI continues to be led with love for the team and the members with whom we work. That feeling is palpable and key to the success we have experienced.
By Deborah Simmons
December, 2024
Even as she battled cancer, Deb spent the last nine years of her life building and sustaining TRI. Sadly, Deb passed away in February 2025. Today, her legacy of compassion lives on through every person TRI supports.