New support group helps inmates re-enter society

Every year about 1,200 offenders leave prison to resettle in Montana communities. Whether or not they succeed depends on their ability to find stable housing, a job, reliable transportation, social support and more.

The availability — or lack of — resources can make the difference between becoming a productive community member or slipping back into a life of crime.

A group of Flathead Valley residents are coming together to create the Flathead Community Re-entery Program. The group wants to help former inmates re-enter society to improve public safety and allow them to become functioning members of society.

“Not all of these people are violent offenders. They made bad choices but they want to be good citizens,” said Melanie Mellgren-Sidmore.

Mellgren-Sidmore is being joined by about a dozen Flathead Valley residents to create the local re-entry program.

“Most men and women who have been incarcerated don’t want to come back to the life they had,” Mellgren-Sidmore said. “They’ve already suffered the consequences. But there’s no resources to help them.”

“That’s what we are trying to offer, a roadmap to make your life better,” she said.

Kalispell resident Timothy Lee knows first-hand the difficulties inmates face when returning to society.

He said recently returned to the Flathead Valley from a Deer Lodge prison boot camp.

“A lot of people look down on felons and judge you,” he said. “It makes it hard to get a job because employers don’t think you are trustworthy. And a lot of people don’t want to rent to felons. That’s a huge challenge.”

If a former inmate is successful obtaining employment, they also need reliable transportation. Lee said he had to pay fines to get his license and figure out a way to commute from Kalispell to Columbia Falls.

Flathead residents returning from incarceration may also face a social dilemma.

“Another struggle is finding people you can trust. You could end up falling into the same crowd because you don’t really know other people,” he said.

Lee heard about the proposed re-entry group from a friend and decided to get involved.

“I want to give back to my community, because I took from it,” he said. “I want to help people not to reoffend or victimize anyone anymore,” Lee said.

Mellgren-Sidmore is a licensed addiction counselor who was inspired to start the local re-entry group after witnessing former clients with felonies struggling to move forward with their lives.

When she worked at a women’s recovery home she had a client who had successfully completed treatment and found employment, but no one would rent to her because of her felony.

“It was very disheartening for her and it was upsetting to me because I knew the work she had put in to change her life,” Mellgren-Sidmore said.

Helping people become productive citizens is a better alternative than pouring money into the jail system, she said.

“In our community, our officials are trying to find a location for a jail. I understand the need for that, but I would also like to believe down the road we would need a smaller jail because our community came together and said let’s help these men and women leaving jail,” Mellgren-Sidmore said.

Re-entry program participants met last week to discuss the top elements for successful re-entry into acommunity — jobs, housing and transportation. They also spent time identifying community resources that already exist in Flathead County to tap into for help.

They are looking for housing partners, employment partners, transitional support groups, behavioral health partners and faith community partners. Group members are hoping connect with these partners to provide a resource packet to former inmates returning to the community. Members of the local re-entry group are also looking to model successful programs from around the state, Mellgren-Sidmore said.

The Montana Statewide Re-entry Task Force reports a successful re-entry initiative is a key element to reduce the rate of offenders returning to prison. Reducing recidivism also reduces the number of victims, the costs to Montana taxpayers and creates a safer Montana, the task force reports.

Mellgren-Sidmore said Flathead Valley residents should care about this issue because it not only affects quality of life, it impacts pocketbooks.

“It costs almost three times more to keep a person in jail than to keep them out of the system,” She said. “It’s also a better community when you have people who are happy, healthy citizens.”

Former inmate Lee said he was impressed with the group of citizens coming together to form the local group.

“I saw people that really cared and wanted people like me to succeed,” he said.

Lee said he plans to stick with the program and help any way he can, including talking to inmates coming out of the system.

“When you get locked up it’s a whole different world,” Lee said. “It was overwhelming for me and hard to reintegrate.”

“I would like to talk to inmates and say, ‘Hey, there are people out here pulling for you and who want you to succeed.’”

Reporter Breeana Laughlin can be reached at 758-4441 or blaughlin@dailyinterlake.com.