Voices of Hope – Ricky B.
“I was in prison for 12-13 years, wrongly accused of something I didn’t do, and I had no intention of doing the right thing when I got out. I figured I would just go right back, because there wasn’t anything for me on the outside anyway. But then I met the guys from Operation New […]
Voices of Hope – Matt C.
Matt is building a new life for himself and his family. “Before coming to Operation New Hope, I was homeless, unemployed, and addicted to drugs. I knew I needed help, but I wasn’t sure where to turn. My daughter’s mom Kate enrolled in the Ready4Work program and told me it was helping her change her […]
Voices of Hope – Shawn A.
“Before Operation New Hope, I was hopeless. I started drinking and drugging when I was 12, and by 17, I had done everything I swore I would never do. I entered a vicious cycle of incarceration. By the time I was 19, I got put in the Matrix and thought as long as I didn’t […]
Cynthia Dean and Kendal McCoy on Importance of Second Chances
Cynthia Dean and Kendal McCoy are Case Managers at Operation New Hope and provide support and counseling to people affected by the criminal justice system with the goal of reconnecting them to the workforce, their families, and their communities. They share a special connection in that they are not only co-workers, but Cynthia was once […]
Operation New Hope Team Shares Hope by Volunteering for Partner Nonprofit – Rethreaded
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter Share on linkedin LinkedIn As part of a week-long training and staff enrichment, Operation New Hope’s team took a day off from providing reentry services to lend a helping hand to a partner nonprofit that is in the process of moving to their new program location. Our […]
Great Neighbors at Strings Sports Brewery – New Client Lunches
Our neighbors at Strings Sports Brewery continue to demonstrate their support for our program through our new meal partnership that started on Thursday. Due to a new grant, Operation New Hope is now able to offer our clients a more substantial hot lunch provided by Strings. To better understand how this new hot meal impacts […]
Hope.Starts.Here. An Employee Spotlight Series
At Operation New Hope, our team is extremely passionate about the work we do every day to help our clients and to strengthen our community. Hope truly powers us to show up and do the work and fuels us to serve the people hoping to transform their lives through employment. To better understand this, we […]
Voices of Hope – Jacques D.
“After several years in prison, I got tired of being stagnant. I decided I needed to put things from my past to the side. I came to the realization that prison is a university, and I was going to make the most of that education. I started studying, reading, and learning in order to broaden […]
Second Chance Supporter – Beaches Recovery
At Operation New Hope, we believe that we are all better than our worst mistake, worst day, or worst decision. We believe in people’s ability to learn from their errors and transform their lives through commitment and hard work. For over 20 years, we have worked to build a stronger community by creating opportunities for […]
Voices of Hope – Reba O.
Before coming to Operation New Hope, I was in a really low place mentally and emotionally. I wasn’t dealing with things that were going on in my life in a productive manner, so instead I really had just given up. I stopped caring and that led me to decisions that landed me in jail. Even […]
Voices of Hope – Johnathan N.
After incarceration it’s very difficult to try and reenter society. When you get out of jail, try to reintegrate, and do things on your own, you get so disheartened. You get this sense of not being able to do it because it feels like the world is against you. It was even more difficult for […]
Voices of Hope – Jeremy S.
After years of struggling with drug addiction and unemployment, I was finally ready to make a change in my life. While serving time at Baker Correctional Institution, I heard about Operation New Hope’s Ready4Work program, so I decided to enroll at their St. Augustine location when I got out. The Ready4Work program helped me so […]
Second Chance Supporter – Bozard Ford Lincoln Dealership
April is Second Chance Month, a time when we celebrate those in our communities who are committed to helping people make the most of their second chances following incarceration. As President Biden recently stated in his Proclamation on Second Chance Month, 2021: “America’s criminal justice system must offer meaningful opportunities for redemption and rehabilitation. After […]
Second Chance Supporter – Ashley HomeStore
For more than 20 years, Operation New Hope has been helping people with a criminal history get the support and training they need to connect with living-wage work and break the cycle of incarceration and poverty. But we are not doing this work alone. Creating opportunities to realize second chances requires support from employers who […]
Voices of Hope – Katie M.
I served 3 1/2 years at Gadsden Correctional for grand theft. The day I got sentenced I cried so hard because my daughter was almost 4 at the time. I was so sad to leave her because her father didn’t even know her allergies and had never even given her a bathbefore. As I was […]
Voices of Hope – Kedra C.
In 2019, I was working as a caregiver for an older woman. When she passed away, I was falsely accused of stealing from her and was eventually charged with a crime I didn’t commit. I lost all faith in the justice system and felt like I’d never be ok again. I gave up hope. When […]