Volunteers:
- Board and Council members with appropriate experience
- Mentors between the ages of 25 and 75 or so years old
- Mentor Advisors, licensed psychotherapists and MSWs
- Dentists (and othe rmedical providers) willing to do pro bono work on one patient. 80% of our mentees badly need dental work. They walk around in pain and their appearance is a significant obstacle to finding employment. Discounted dentistry in Boulder County is well beyond their means.
Materials:
- Bus passes and tokens
- King Soopers gift cards
Financial:
Financial support is perhaps the most critical material need of the program. Although we are funded by important stakeholders (Department of Justice, Boulder County Commissioners, City of Boulder, Anschutz Family Fund, Brett Family Foundation, The Denver Foundation, Community Foundation Serving Boulder County, Longmont Community Foundation, Khyentse Foundation, Wells-Fargo) these funds are insufficient to meet the demand from the jail for our services.
As foundation and government monies dry up, or become increasingly hard to obtain, individual donors, businesses, and corporate sponsors become an even more vital aspect of fund-raising. Unfortunately, the offender clients being served by this program are not a sympathetic enough clientele to draw most donors who carefully budget their philanthropy dollars. Individual donors who respond to this work are often those who have personally experienced a family member’s struggle with low-level mental illness and substance abuse. Because they understand the difficulties and frustrations involved, as well as the importance of community support on all levels, they respond with donations to support and further the work.
Our clients are not hardened criminals, but damaged individuals who have coped with life’s difficulties through use of alcohol and other substances, but they are capable of attaining self-sufficiency with a little help from the community. Their eventual self-sufficiency not only benefits the offender and their network of family and friends, and saves tax-payers hundreds of thousands of dollars (between $300,000-$500,000 each year) but enhances the safety of the entire community.
Please consider making a significant donation today, or, if you are a business owner, consider sponsoring the program longer term. You can make a real difference, not only in the life of a single offender, but also in the lives of their children, other family members and, most importantly, the entire community.
