Coiled barbed wire surrounds the 2,538 acres of the Lansing Correctional Facility. Inmates fill the courtyard, working out on the exercise equipment and socializing with others. Among the 2,489 inmates, 287 men made the decision to be a part of The InnerChange Freedom Initiative program (IFI), a faith-based program that provides services to voluntary prisoners to help prepare them for re-entry into society.
Lansing Correctional Facility IFI director Don Raymond works with the men in this program to provide classes and services to the inmates 18 to 24 months before their release.
“When most inmates get out of prison, they get $100 and one outfit. After that, they’re on their own,” Raymond said. “[The inmates] don’t have a job, no mode of transportation, we work with IFI members to make the transition easier.”
IFI helps inmates get a house, a job, clothes and any other necessity to help them get acclimated into society.
“It’s all about the relationships that you make,” IFI member and inmate Kyle Hodges said. “They don’t just teach you job skills. IFI teaches restoration, and how to build relationships with one another.”
Hodges is a minimum security inmate and has been incarcerated since 2004, his expected release is 2015. Selected IFI members are able to visit schools and churches to talk about their experiences in prison.
“We talk to students about decisions made in high school that will affect their lives,” Hodges said. “It’s so easy to make a wrong decision that affects the rest of your life.”
Last year, Hodges visited Christ Lutheran Church and spoke to a few students.
“It’s good for our kids to see and hear what those early choices can lead to,” IFI mentor Tom Pomarico said. “And it starts with a single bad choice that can lead to more bad choices that you can’t recover from.”
When talking to people about their experiences, IFI targets youth audiences.
“Kids are the next generation. You would be amazed how many kids are here because of their families,” Raymond said. “If we can get them to start thinking about their choices in advance, I know there would be less people [in prison].”
“Kids need to be careful with the choices that they make,” Pomarico said. “Many kids don’t realize that it only takes one mistake to change their lives.”
Members of the IFI program take quarterly classes every Monday and Thursday. Classes include computer labs, Bible studies, general education classes and numerous rehabilitation services.
“The guys in the program spend a lot of their time together,” Raymond said. “They live and eat together, and some of them become very close.”
IFI has two phases. Phase one consists of the inmate’s personal spiritual development. Phase two tests the prisoner’s value system in real life situations which involves off-site prison work programs.
“We try to break it down for the guys [in IFI], we ask ‘why do you do what you do?’ We try to figure out their process of behavior throughout this program.” Raymond said.
A member of IFI since 2006, Hodges has been able to rebuild his life despite the choices he made.
“Being a member of IFI doesn’t stop at those doors,” Hodges said. “It’s a lifestyle.”
