Keep Crossroads Open - ACTION ALERT #4 - Please Act Now

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Public Policy and External Relations April 11, 2012 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Urgent SAFER FOUNDATION: ACTION ALERT #4   __________________ KEEP CROSSROADS ADULT TRANSITION CENTER OPEN    April 11, 2012   CALL YOUR LEGISLATORS TO SAVE CROSSROADS!    Governor Quinn's proposal cuts FY 2013 funding for the vitally important inmate reentry program at Crossroads Adult Transition Center.  These cuts will force Crossroads to close.   With the help of Crossroads ATC, men with criminal records become law-abiding, employed, tax-paying members of society.  There are more than 500 success stories each year.   William Hall is one of them.   William Hall entered Crossroads in 2009, and within a few months, went to work at Five Guys Burger and Fries restaurant as a busboy, the first step in a successful path to reentering the workforce.  In less than two years, and just before he was released from Crossroads, William was promoted to store manager.  William left Crossroads with $5,000 saved from his work - and the opportunity to get his life back on track.   With his savings, William was able to quickly move into his own place in Chicago and take custody of his three children. A few months later, he received another promotion, becoming an assistant manager/trainer, traveling from store to store to reinforce the company's brand standards.  Within another few months, William was promoted to general manager.  He is currently training to be a district manager.   Today, William spends a lot of time sharing his story with others, hoping that it will inspire other men facing similar challenges.  In addition to his primary job at Five Guys, William is a motivational speaker, talking to students in job readiness classes and individuals who are currently serving time or have served time in IDOC.   Crossroads can help hundreds of other men follow in William's footsteps - but it cannot do that if the General Assembly forces the facility to close its doors.    We need your help to save Crossroads!     Tell your state legislators that you oppose Governor Quinn's proposal to cut funding to Crossroads.   Here's how:   Call your legislators. CLICK HERE, to use the attached phone script. Find your legislator here: http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1109435319415&s=0&e=001k1DwNk1g59X6IecujTCNr1YHJUEuSXBe2R0mvRRapiKkbqv2Fn90_CaUt1B-0JHCNS9tNG59sMTHUuePuxvqQMefMH_omIUH    Write your legislators. CLICK HERE, to use the attached sample letter. Find your legislator here: http://www.ilga.gov/    Sign an online petition. The petition encourages Illinois legislators to restore funding to Crossroads. Find the petition here: http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1109435319415&s=0&e=001k1DwNk1g59X6IecujTCNr1YHJUEuSXBe2R0mvRRapiKkbqv2Fn90_CaUt1B-0JHCrfEdHcmQ64ANWiRFaJwkJKSgU3_SwKfp    Encourage your family and friends to take action. Engage people through conversation, Facebook and Twitter.              YOUR LEGISLATORS NEED TO KNOW:   Keeping the Crossroads Adult Transition Center open will protect our communities and save taxpayers' money.   The decision to close Crossroads will jeopardize public safety in our community by putting men released from prison back on the streets without the support services they need to stay on the right side of the law and establish new lives free of crime.   Closing Crossroads will be counterproductve from the standpoint of tax dollars. We'll wind up spending MORE money on correcyions because men denied support services will wind up back in prison at a cost of nearly $40,000 a year.   Safer Foundation operates Crossroads and has a proven record of success with cost-effective alternatives to incarceration.  People who take part in Safer's programs are much less likely to return to prison than those who don't.     If you have any questions, please call Jon Kaplan or Veronica Cunningham at Safer Foundation, (312) 922-2200.   Follow Us on Twitter! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Follow @SaferFoundation on Twitter for more updates on criminal justice news and more information about the organization. We appreciate your support!  Public Policy and External Relations Contacts ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ B. Diane Williams, President / CEO Veronica Cunningham, Vice President, Public Policy and External Relations Jon Kaplan, Director, Marketing and Communication Anthony Lowery, Director, Policy and Advocacy phone: 312-922-2200 www.saferfoundation.org ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * Many articles refer to people with criminal records as "ex-offenders" or "offenders". While we appreciate all the positive press these issues receive, we are working to use other terms to describe our clients that do not carry such negative connotations. These terms include "people with criminal records" or "people reentering society".