Yancey County has received the Second Chance Grant in the amount of $180,720 for three years to help fund a new program to break the cycle of incarceration. The County will partner with the Yancey County Sheriff’s Department and Freedom Life, a nonprofit organization that helps incarcerated individuals and their families by providing spiritual support and need-based services by partnering with local communities. Freedom Life has significantly reduced recidivism with their clients. In 2021, they reported a recidivism rate of only 7% among their community clients. Yancey County will now have access to Freedom Life services. Pre-release services include an assessment of substance abuse, mental health, and spirituality. Support groups, mentoring, post-release planning with a current incarceration case manager, hope/encouragement activities, and Christ-based spiritual support will also be offered. The post-release services include case management, immediate basic needs such as food and shelter, employment preparation and job facilitation, work supplies, medical needs, mental health support, substance misuse programs, housing support and vocational training. A Yancey County Re-entry Coordinator will be hired for the program.
The Freedom Life program started in 2010 at Marion Correctional and has since partnered with North Carolina Department of Public Safety, McDowell Sheriff’s Office, State Re-entry Council Collaboration and the Federal Department of Justice.
