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Former offender advocacy program nets Midland 100 Club support

Kelly Dame, kdame@mdn.net

Updated 10:03 am, Wednesday, November 2, 2016

Rob Worsley, program director for the Midland Community Former Offenders Advocacy and Rehabilitation program, and Tina S. Van Dam of the Midland 100 Club.

The Midland Community Former Offenders Advocacy and Rehabilitation program is growing, in terms of donations and community recognition.

The latest good news for the organization, which operates out of a small office in the Midland Towne Center, came with the last meeting of the Midland 100 Club for the year. At the Sept. 28 meeting, the MCFOAR program was selected for presentation to the group and received enough votes of support that it was awarded $50 from each of the 325 members.

While the monetary gift is big for the program, the community support is priceless, program director Rob Worsely said.

“While the gift is great for our program, having the support of 325 women who are leaders in the community is important,” he said, pointing out the members of the Midland 100 Club are looked up to by many in the community.

“The $50 gift from each of the them helps our program immensely, and their support is even bigger,” he said. “We’re just tickled about it.”

MCFOAR, which partners with the Caregiving Network, assists former inmates obtain housing, employment and other basic needs. The more those needs are met, the less likely former inmates are to revert back to their old ways, Worsely said.

In July, the MCFOAR office had 458 client files, with 243 of those files belonging to people who have served prison time. Of those former prisoners, the recidivism rate is 4.5 percent. For all other offenders participating in the program, including those who have served jail time or have not been institutionalized, the recidivism rate is 2.5 percent, Worsley said.

Nearly three quarters of those seeking employment had been placed, and 98 percent of clients seeking housing assistance, including move ins and emergency rent, had been helped.

 

Rob Worsley, Executive Director

Midland Community Former Offenders Advocacy & Rehabilitation

Office:989-423-1124 Cell: 989-423-3295

Fax: 989-423-1252 Email: mcfoar@yahoo.com

 

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