Springfield Restorative Justice serves community

In Springfield, one organization that is trying to help individuals that have served prison sentences re-integrate into the community is the Springfield Restorative Justice Center.
http://www.vermontjournal.com/content/springfield-restorative-justice-serves-community

Springfield Restorative Justice Serves Community Submitted by VT Journal on Tue, 02/03/2015 - 3:46pm By LAUREN DRASLER The Shopper SPRINGFIELD, VT -Throughout the United States, the incarceration rate is at an all time high. According to an article on the Population Reference Bureau’s website, since 2002, the United States has had the highest percentage of people incarcerated in the world. With that many people in prison throughout the country, one question that is often raised is what to do with these people upon release. In Springfield, one organization that is trying to help individuals that have served prison sentences re-integrate into the community is the Springfield Restorative Justice Center. Located at 56 Main Street, Suite 208, the Springfield Restorative Justice Center has been in existence for 15 years. According to their website, Springfield Restorative Justice Center’s mission is to: “empower local organizations, individuals and schools committed to peacefully resolving conflict addressing crime and building a safe and healthy community.” Springfield Restorative Justice Center offers many programs including, Reparative Probation, Community Re-Entry, School-Based Restorative Justice and Juvenile Pre-Charge. The center serves all of southern Windsor County. “We operate under a restorative philosophy,” Executive Director Wendi Germain said. “We help people that offend to look at the harm they cause when they offend and help them to understand how they can repair it.” Although Germain said that Springfield Restorative Justice helps those that offend, the ultimate goal of the program is to help the victims of an offender’s actions. “People think that this is an offender’s program,” she said. “But we really work to serve the victims, and we work with offenders so that they can help the victims.” Germain said that Springfield Restorative Justice works with a wide variety of people from those that have yet to commit a crime, to those that are being released from prison. “The Restorative Justice Center works with a variety of offenders, from kiddos that are truant, to someone that has shoplifted, to someone that’s committed a more violent offense,” she said. “In the case of working with people that have not yet committed a crime, we call that pre-charge, and those are cases where it’s not necessarily a police matter, but someone needs to be involved.” Though much of the time an agency or organization refers people to the Restorative Justice Center, Germain said that sometimes families dealing with those suffering from addiction contact her organization for help. “We do intervention work for those that are dealing with addiction,” she said. “Often a family member will contact me to help them come up with solutions and resolve issues regarding addiction.” In addition to intervention, the Restorative Justice Center also helps with mediation and conflicts between two people that may just need some outside guidance. Germain said that whenever she is contacted with a problem that may not be resolved using the Restorative Justice Center’s resources, she might still often find ways to assist using community resources and other agencies in town. Although Springfield Restorative Justice assists with a variety of different circumstances, and serves many clients, Germain said that the majority of the people that utilize the Restorative Justice Center are those that are re-entering the community after serving a prison sentence. Police, the court, the State’s Attorney and the Department of Corrections are the main sources that refer clients to Springfield Restorative Justice, Germain said. According to Germain, there are 20 Restorative Justice Centers throughout the state of Vermont. Germain has been involved with Springfield Restorative Justice since its inception 15 years ago when the center started out as a strictly pre-charge program on a three-year grant. “Originally it was just kids in the pre-charge program and that’s how the program began on a three year grant,” she said. “After the three years were over, the Department of Corrections came out with grants that extended the program, and a lot of us that were in the three-year program, went on to get the grant. Springfield wasn’t originally a targeted area for a Restorative Justice Center, but a lot of community members felt we needed one here.” Perhaps one of the biggest programs at Springfield Restorative Justice is the Reparative Panels. These panels meet twice a month to discuss the issues surrounding Springfield and talk with offenders about how their actions have impacted the community. Germain said that being involved in the panels is just one way residents of Springfield can volunteer with Springfield Restorative Justice. “There are so many different ways people can volunteer, and it helps to have a conversation about issues in our community, and that’s what the panels are about,” she said. “The Reparative Panels are a direct service, but volunteers can also mentor people that have just been released from prison. Clients are referred to us to go to the panels, and the Reparative Panels hold offenders accountable and help these people to repair harm they might have caused.” Germain said that the Reparative Panels don’t dictate what an offender must do to repair the harm they’ve caused, but instead play to an offender’s strengths. “The Reparative Panels would never require someone who hates writing to write an essay, but instead, if a person is artistic, the panel would want them to do something that has to do with painting, drawing or music,” she said. “The panels try to use something that the offender is passionate about, so it’s a positive experience. Volunteers walk through the whole process with the offender.” Springfield Restorative Justice Center also offers community service for offenders that might need it as a part of their parole. A bakery is in the works for the near future, and those that are in community service currently can work in a bike shop at 56 Main Street that is owned by Springfield Restorative Justice. “People that have a community service requirement can work in the bike shop that’s located downstairs from the Restorative Justice Center,” Germain said. “We set it up downstairs, so that it was accessible, and we sell bikes for $40. The bike shop takes donations of used bikes, and people that work there can recycle parts if they have the skills.” Germain said that the bakery is in the works, and she hopes to have it up and running within the next few months. Although it may seem like the majority of people might support Springfield Restorative Justice’s efforts in regard to working with people being released from prison, Germain said that her organization is not always an easy sell to residents of Springfield. “People often don’t want people that have offended in their community,” she said. “But they have to come back, and if organizations like Springfield Restorative Justice weren’t here, these people might be homeless or unemployed. I hope that people can focus on the good we do.” One person that supports Springfield Restorative Justice, and has been volunteering with the program for many years, is retired teacher Steve Matush. Matush said that he became involved with Springfield Restorative Justice after retiring from teaching. “After retiring from Park Street School, where my last eight years were spent working with kids with behavioral issues, I became a volunteer at the Restorative Justice Center,” he said. “The task was to help offenders understand how their behaviors impact others, how to repair the harm, and ultimately figure ways to avoid repeating those behaviors. It was a perfect continuation of what I had been doing with elementary kids.” Matush said that he appreciates the Restorative Justice Center’s mission because it focuses on helping offenders realize their mistakes, and correcting them rather than punishing them. “This program gives support and opportunities for those who show a cooperative attitude about changing their ways,” he said. “Although every offender who goes through the program might not be met with success, statistics show a much-improved rate of recidivism for those in Restorative Programs than without. Everyone makes mistakes in judgment and everyone deserves a chance to make amends. This program is designed to facilitate that process.” To volunteer with Springfield Restorative Justice, contact Wendi Germain at 802-885-8707. - See more at: http://www.vermontjournal.com/content/springfield-restorative-justice-serves-community#sthash.rvYR6qnt.dpuf