JOB FAIR GIVES WOMEN HOPE FOR NORMAL LIFE

Mitchellville, Ia. -- A couple of years ago, Laurie Reyes was in trouble.

Her drug addiction had taken hold of her life. She started forging
checks. The Marshalltown woman was caught, ending up at the Iowa
Correctional Institution for Women in Mitchellville.

Now, with two weeks left in her yearlong prison stint, the
33-year-old is starting to look for companies willing to hire felons.
She yearns for a job with good benefits for her and her four daughters.

At a prison job fair on Friday, Reyes' fears about re-entering
society were eased a bit after talking with Firestone about a job
that would pay $13.64 an hour.

"I'm not really scared," she said. "I'm more anxious to see what's
available for me. Wherever I'm going to apply for work, I'll be
confident and look them in the eye. I got off track in my life. But I
know someone who hires me will be happy they did."

About 100 prisoners, most due to be let out within three months,
strolled from table to table in the gym at the Mitchellville prison,
looking for employment. A dozen local companies and employment
agencies came, including Firestone, Spherion, Sibert Trucking,
Vermeer, Katecho and United Way.

At Iowa's only all-female prison, with nearly 600 inmates, officials
know the chance of these inmates becoming repeat offenders often
depends on post-prison employment.

"If they leave here and go out and have a job within a few days, that
helps avoid problems," said Linda Haack, the prison's volunteer coordinator.

The prison has several rehabilitation programs: anger management
classes, support groups for mothers, a chemical dependency support
group, a victim impact program.

But just as important is employment training. GED classes are
available. The prison provides job training in clerical work,
printing, inventory, shipping and receiving, construction,
landscaping and more. Many inmates take certification classes to
learn businesses that can be done at home: cake decorating, creative
writing to learn how to write advertising copy, clothing alterations.

Prison officials emphasize that these women have plenty of checks and
balances once they leave. They must answer to counselors or probation
officers, and drug offenders must take random drug tests.

"The point of this is to let the inmates know there are opportunities
for them," said Brenda Tart, a work force associate with Iowa
Workforce Development. "When they're let out, they have so many doors
slammed in their faces.

"If you aren't going to give these people opportunities, they're
going to go back to what they know," she said. "It's survival. If you
know you can go out to sell drugs to feed yourself, and you can't get
another job, what are you going to do?"

But Tart said businesses often are willing to hire ex-inmates. "If
people are honest and up-front with their crime, they start with a
clean slate," she said.

Elena Ordonez ended up in prison after her fifth OWI since 1990. When
she leaves June 6 after 15 months behind bars, Ordonez hopes Friday's
fair helps her get a job on the production line with Vermeer, a Pella
manufacturer. With luck, she'll have job interviews lined up before
she gets out.

"I'm worried about re-establishing myself for employment," she said.
"I plan to just be honest with people. I made a mistake, but that
doesn't make me a bad person."

Ordonez doesn't want to be behind bars again and plans on constantly
reminding herself of her time inside. She plans to make a shrine out
of her blue and gray prison clothes to remind her, every time she
looks at it, how important it is to keep on the right track.