A local organization has teamed with several local organizations to guide women experiencing a tough time in life, employing a mission to “equip, empower and encourage.”
The Christian Job Corps of Kendall County is a group of more than a dozen women, working together to help women in need – both in and out of jail – by connecting them both with job opportunities and life and behavioral skills to overcome generational coding and light up a brighter future. Although the women aren’t
Although the women aren’t “licensed professionals,” CJC Executive Director Lynn Heckler said the women are much like mentors or life coaches for women, having all survived their own trials and tribulations and successfully turning the page on life. This is something Heckler said establishes a shared experience between those they help and those doing the helping, allowing the team to uniquely guide the women to a better path.
“From my perspective, I think what we’re doing is cutting edge,” Heckler said. “I don’t think nationwide do you find many communities involved with having outside agencies come in to train and equip the women who are in jail. I think for inmates it’s an early intervention that gives them a thread of hope that they’re not losers, that they do have good qualities, good skills and that they’re good people. But because of wrong choices that they’ve made in life, they end up incarcerated.
“And I think what we’re doing is we are offering them hope for a much better future and equipping them with behavior management that they can adapt and modify to improve their future circumstances.”
The local CJC has been helping women since 2004, formally opening its doors in 2005. This year, though, the organization has partnered with the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office and the Kendall County jail administration to offer training and classes for incarcerated women.
The group of women running the CJC voluntarily recently celebrated the completion of the first Prepped for Life course with female inmates at the county jail. Six women with the local organization worked with the inmates to develop life skills and behavioral management over a five-week period. A press release from the organization said six women were able to complete the program over the month-and-a-half-long course, with three women transferred out of the jail and unable to finish.
“I learned so much, I have never received any kind of teaching like this before,” a three-time repeat offender who participated in the program told Sheriff Al Auxier, according to the press release.
“CJC’s plan is to train new female inmates year-round with the ultimate goal to reduce recidivism,” the press release said. “CJC and HC (Hill Country) Family Services are working together with the Kendall County Jail to identify and fill the gaps for the female inmates when they exit the jail.”
Before the organization began working with the jail, Heckler said the CJC worked with about 30 women a year. Now, she said that number will likely more than double this year.
The female-driven organization isn’t only working with local law enforcement as it has partnered with several community organizations to make its vision of a better future a reality. Heckler said the CJC is working with HCFS to ensure women remain distant from the behaviors that brought them to the jail.
Additionally, Heckler said the CJC is working with the Hill Country Pregnancy Care Center and several local churches, including First United Methodist Church, First Baptist Church and St. John Lutheran Church. Also, the YMCA of Greater San Antonio has offered Heckler and her associates a desk and hub after the organization shuttered its physical office a while back.
Heckler said the CJC team is working to break the cycle of behavioral issues, saying it’s a recycling behavior that gets them back into the jail or prison system. But the team is working to break the cycle of negative, generational programming many of the women have grown up with. She said the team is working to see how it can rewire the women’s thinking and thought processes and responses to people in their past who are working to bring them down.
While the CJC is only working with women right now, with seven women volunteering to offer classes at the jail and seven offering training outside, Heckler said the organization is looking for Christian men interested in joining the group to offer programs for men in the community and in the county jail.
Anyone interested in volunteering, donating or learning more about the organization is encouraged to contact the team at CJCBoerne.org, by emailing [email protected] or calling 830-331-9916.
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