Creativity can sprout anywhere. Impressionist drawings of lush landscapes, water-colored paintings infused with Kool-Aid and coffee, and intricate and detailed portraits of celebrities are just a few of the dozens of art pieces that will be displayed at Public Space One’s “Art from the Inside Out” exhibition. The yearly offering Read more
Community members packed the Feb. 7 opening reception of the “Art from the Inside Out” exhibition at Public Space One’s Close House, giving me the feel-goods. I saw a woman I used to work with and met her mother; I saw friends and met their grandchild. Artists and their families Read more
Community members, educators, employers and others are encouraged to learn how individuals, after serving prison time, face a multiple challenges reentering the community and finding employment during a reentry simulation event held later this month. Inside Out Reentry Community, an Iowa City nonprofit, is holding the event from 1 to Read more
Five drawings by Shawn Lurkens are displayed as part of the “Art from the Inside Out” art show in Iowa City, but — like Lurkens’ dealings with the criminal justice system — none of them are finished. All of the artists whose art is displayed in the show — which Read more
Inside Out, a Johnson County nonprofit organization that supports people returning to society after being incarcerated, will be opening a reentry house in Iowa City for low-income, formerly incarcerated men. The house, at 719 Page St., was recently purchased and will be home to up to six men at a Read more
Inside Out Reentry Community is hoping this is just the first of several housing options they will be able to offer in the future. To view this video, click here: KCRG News
Affordable, furnished housing is now available to six formerly incarcerated Iowa City individuals thanks to Inside Out Reentry Community’s new purchase. The nonprofit based in Iowa City dedicated to helping formerly incarcerated persons re-enter society has purchased its first “re-entry house” in Johnson County. This home is expected to be Read more
It’s a traumatic event when a parent goes to prison. Trauma for the parent, spouse, and children. Especially the children. Inside Out Reentry Community of Iowa City has launched a new project to help those kids. It’s a special “youth support kit” for children impacted by incarceration, funded through a grant from the Iowa City Human Rights Commission.
The kits are designed for Johnson County children 9 and younger. Each kit will include one of four picture books about having an incarcerated caregiver, based on the age of the child. (more…)
Rich Mathias knows firsthand the despair of being in prison — and the despair of being released.
“Being in prison, especially during a holiday, is one of the worst things you can go through,” he told me this week, with Thanksgiving just around the corner. (more…)
Lisa Smith felt like “nothing was done” to prepare her for re-entry following the six years she served at the Iowa Correctional Institution for Women. She also wasn’t prepared for the loneliness she would feel.
“I was surrounded by women all the time, and when I got out, not only did I not have this huge community of women around me that I had lived in a small space with for six years, I was not allowed to speak to any of them — not even on the phone — or it would have sent me back to prison,” Smith said. (more…)