Truly Reaching You, also known as TRY, will mark 20 years since Founder and President Perry Clark, having served time in prison, decided it was time to do something to break the prison cycle.
TRY will host its 20th Anniversary Celebration Thursday, Oct. 24, at 5:30 p.m., at the Trailhead at Cascade Lofts, 21 W. North St., in Akron.
In its 20 years, TRY has helped break the prison cycle of release and return, cutting down on recidivism. In Ohio, one in three men released from prison goes back, according to the nonprofit, which adds that spending time in at least three months of programs has cut recidivism in half. About 500 residents have gone through some portion of programming, and of the 104 men who completed TRY’s 12-month program, only one has gone back to prison, the organization added.
“I’m humbled that our approach has become a statewide example and so grateful that we are celebrating 20 years of helping others reenter society,” said Clark. “Along with everyone else at TRY, I’m also determined to keep growing. Every man who comes to TRY is another man with a better chance to stay out of prison and be a father, husband, son, valued employee – a better man than he was before.”
Clark said TRY helps the men learn about faith and self-reliance. TRY’s program offers counseling, spiritual support, housing, food, clothes, transportation, hands-on job training and jobs. TRY participants work at lawncare and landscaping, commercial cleaning, housing rehab and construction and hauling and manual labor.
“We teach self-reliance that sticks,” Clark added. Earned income from the work performed for private clients now accounts for more than half of the organization’s operating expenses.
The 20th anniversary event is part celebration, part public awareness and part fundraiser, Clark said.
“We’re not shy about asking for everyone’s support,” he added. “If you don’t know about TRY, come learn about us. If you know about us and know this works, come and help us help more men. I promise we’ll put your investment to work.”
For info, visit http://trulyreachingyou.com/.
Click here to make a gift to the organization’s fund at Akron Community Foundation.
