OOR
Mercer Graduate -- Five Years Later
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"It was a pleasure to
have Wayne on the crew in the spring of 2001. We were
doing a large remodel project and he was trained in
every aspect of carpentry. I was proud to hear from him
a few years later and learn that he was doing well
running his own business."
Jack Hinkson
Carpentry Instructor |
Getting
a job soon after release from prison is good; continued
employment for five years is better and running your own
successful business is best.
Wayne
Smith has achieved all of these since being paroled from
SRCF Mercer in November of 2001. He is off parole as of
December 2005.
Smith
began his post-release employment as a subcontractor for a
local builder who was constructing an apartment complex.
After working through the summer, the contractor helped him
with a connection to install kitchens and he "never looked
back."
He now employs one full time and one part time
person and runs two trucks and a van. Wayne Smith
Building just finished a siding job, installed two
kitchens and is building four display kitchens for a
building supplier. He
also contracts for ploughing snow during the winter months.
Smith
was on Jack Hinkson's Carpentry crew at OOR Mercer. |
Smith worked on this interior-
exterior renovation while on OOR.
"The OOR
program was fantastic," he said, "I loved every minute of
it." He described Hinkson as a "great guy with great
insights into people," who handled everybody well and
according to their ability.
For
Smith, the hardest thing to deal with in prison was having
no control over his activities. He did his best to keep
busy, he said. He had outside clearance and did mowing, snow
ploughing and working in the gardens. He also received
special clearance to work in the infirmary. It helped him to
get into a routine and to focus on the work.
continued on page 2 |
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OOR Women's
Program Saved
The OOR women's CReW at
SCI Cambridge Springs received a last minute reprieve when the
Pennsylvania Legislature, through the office of Speaker of the House
John Perzel, approved a line item in the state budget providing the
funds needed to run the program for the 2006-2007 fiscal year.
Throughout the summer, OOR President, Ray Thompson
and Vice President Gail Mull visited legislators whose districts are
served by the OOR program, looking for support to continue the
community service delivered by OOR's seven divisions.
OOR Site Managers contacted
organizations and low-income
homeowners who have had projects completed during the past five
years.
They responded by sending letters of support to the
Department of Corrections, their state legislators and Governor Ed
Rendell.
OOR Board members contacted legislators and other
community members to solicit support.
The combined effort resulted in
another year of service to the com- munity by OOR Cambridge Springs,
with the intent of continuing the program for years to come.
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