BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Peaceprints of Western New York supports people who have just been released from jail or prison and helps them get back on their feet.
"Our hope is continue to be engaged, whether it is walking on streets and knocking on doors," Peaceprints of WNY CEO, Cindy McEachon said.
Many have seen paper doves, hugging the perimeter of the Tops on Jefferson Avenue, following the 5-14 shooting.
Designed by Peaceprints of Western New York, the organization's main mission is more than just showing support with doves.
"Make it a safe place for the community. Not just individuals affiliated with Peaceprints but the community to come and find peace and healing," McEachon said. "We seek to redefine what our justice system looks like and create opportunities for individuals that are justice-involved."
"Justice-involved" can mean a number of things; it can pertain to the someone in a youth detention center, someone who has done local jail time or someone who has been in and out of facilities for most of their adult life.
Working with individuals returning from jail or prisons, the nonprofit takes a boots-on-the-ground approach to helping them transition back into society as a contributing citizen.
"We provide 2,000 holiday packages to individuals who are incarcerated in those two facilities. It is a completely volunteer-run initiative and has been around and survived for decades," McEachon added. "We are now aggressively collecting items that will be assembled into gifts to be distributed into those facilities."
This year, Peaceprints is bringing back the annual Prison Package Project, in partnership with the Albion Correctional Facility and Wende Correctional Facility, organizers hope to reignite the community to get involved this upcoming holiday season after a two year COVID hiatus.
Those interested can mark their calendars for Friday, Dec. 9, at Blessed Trinity Church, on Leroy Avenue, in Buffalo.
Our local businesses, business owners or just community members, churches or community groups that want to collect items. They'll still step up in the way that they used to, collect items for us," she said.
In the meantime, folks can donate packets of hot cocoa, bagged Ramen noodles (not the microwavable cups), granola bars without raisins, and any leftover Halloween candy.
The items are then distributed the following week.
"The best thing that everybody looked forward to was on each bag, kids would draw little Christmas decorations or Christmas tree or say something nice and you can hear everybody just lighten up," Thomas Gant said.
Buffalo native, Thomas Gant, now resides in Rochester after he was released from prison just one month ago.
He served a 25-year sentence for shooting a man in the January 1998, at the age of 21, the Buffalo News reports.
He says he has since turned his life around while in prison, with the help of Peaceprints preparing him to transition into society.
"She would kind of like give us the heads up of what to expect. So, before you even get to the transitional home, she would talk to you about how that whole process is, where it's at and she would talk about the interpersonal relationships," Gant said.
Here's how to get involved:
- You can come in and make dinner or send dinner in, at the Bissonette House, on 335 Grider Street.
- Help Peaceprints grow its mentor program (If you have the ability to connect with somebody, the goal of the mentoring pillar is to match personalities and interests so that there is opportunity to grow and develop a health relationship).
- Or package items on December 9 for the Prison Package Project.
A link to sign up can be found here.
Right now in the Buffalo Strong section of wkbw.com, you will find a list with contact information for more than a dozen organizations in the city looking for volunteers to "get involved".
