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| Last updated on May 23, 2008 |
The mission for the Daughters of Zion is to provide a comprehensive holistic program for females with a non-violent substance abuse sentence in the state of New Jersey. The all-inclusive holistic approach is aimed to instill dignity, establish a wholesome value system and build self-esteem as an apparatus to strengthen the reunification of family and community while the female begins a safe productive life.
The goal of Daughters of Zion is to empower females in transition to overcome biosocial barriers, manage in economic disparities, while raising a level of dignity to reunite the family and be able to function independently in society.
Description:
The population is females’ offenders of diverse cultures, who are financially disadvantaged, and range in ages 25 to 55 years old. These females must be parents who had primary responsibilities as the caregiver of their children prior to their arrest. However, it does not exclude females that are pregnant or had given birth to their first born during the course of incarceration.
History:
The mission for the Daughters of Zion is to provide a Gender specific comprehensive holistic program for females 25 to 55 with a non-violent substance abuse sentence served in the Edna Mahan Facility in New Jersey. The all-inclusive holistic approach promotes dignity, establishes a wholesome value system and builds self-esteem. The female begins a safe productive life by strengthening the reunification of family and community. The overall goal of the DOZ is to reduce recidivism by instilling a sense of self worth, encouraging self-determination, and influencing stability of citizenry of re-intergrading female.
The passion of Shirley M. Thomas Executive Director and Founder is to bring direct human services to woman released from the Edna Mahan Facility in New Jersey Correctional System. It is the only program of its kind providing direct services to this targeted population using a gender responsive methodology in the Central Jersey region. Throughout Ms. Thomas six years of volunteer services with female inmates she began mentoring ex-female offenders released from the Edna Mahan Facility in 2004. The program is designed to empower the post-incarceration females and their families, by maximizing movement toward their independence and foster their interaction within the community. DOZ goals are:
• To provide comprehensive community-based services and support to post-released women and their families, so that they can attain the greatest possible degree of independence while living free from substance abuse thereby reduce recidivism.
• To promote full inclusion of our clients into community life and to remove barriers to full community membership
• To provide public education and advocacy in the aftermath of incarceration; and its impact on the individual, family and community.
The mentorship program has had success in re-integrating females in Mercer County with job assistance, life skills, letters of support, parole board meeting, and hearings.
Contact person: Shirley Thomas, Chief Executive Officer, (phone), (email)
Address:
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206W. State Street
Trenton, NJ 08608
(See a map) |
Web Site: None specified
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