CCA Communities Blog

Wheeler Correctional Facility took the opportunity to save money on the disposal of out-of-date fire extinguishers by sharing with the surrounding communities and allowing them to use the extinguishers for their fire department training.

Wheeler Correctional Facility mental health nurse Wilma Jenkins was inducted into the Mercer University’s Hall of Honor for 2009 for “Excellence in Community Health Service.” Jenkins also serves as Wheeler’s Suicide Prevention Coordinator, CQI Coordinator and SART leader.

Webb County Detention Center participated in the annual Washington Birthday Celebration parade on February 20.  The theme of the parade was Rhythm of the River and WCDC’s entry received, “BEST THEME FLOAT”.  Staff members were responsible for the creation of the float’s theme and decorating it.

When EDC staff heard of the devastation in Haiti they responded with kind hearts and the urgency to help.  Employees decided to donate hygiene products, medical supplies, clothing, shoes, blankets and more to World Care Centers of Tucson.  On Saturday, February 13,  they delivered a truck bed full of items and were met with open arms and welcoming handshakes.  On February 15, a truck of supplies left the Center for shipment to Haiti. 

North Fork Correctional Facility helped sponsor “Tough Enough to Wear PINK,” a Sayre School pink-out basketball game held on February 12. All donations will be given to the American Cancer Society, which will stay in Beckham, Colo. to help local cancer patents.

Wings Ministry hosted its 8^th Wings Grants Prison Party on February 6, 2010, in celebration of Valentine’s Day. There were 170 inmates and family members approved to visit and 40 volunteers came from 14 different churches throughout the Greater Albuquerque Area. Before the party started the children who arrived early were invited to pick out their very own hand-knit sweater from Guideposts Magazine readers, and handmade pillowcases made by Albuquerque resident Kate Kuligowki. Attendees played balloon and mixer games and sang with the Central United Methodist praise band, No Boundaries. The event also included arts and crafts, family photos, a spoon hanging contest, a meal and prayer.

Facility Support Center staff banded together to celebrate National Wear Red Day-Feb 5, 2010.  They joined with thousands of women, companies and organizations, and cities across America to help the American Heart Association support ongoing research and education about women and heart disease.  Go Red For Women is a movement passionately dedicated to helping women fight back against heart disease, the No. 1 killer of women in America. By putting our passion together with positive action, we can continue to educate other women about their risks and help them find their own personal path to better health for life.

Louise Grant, CCA vice president, Communications, has been named by the Nashville Business Journal as a “Woman of Influence.” Grant placed in the “Inspiration or Mentor” category in these annual awards that also recognize the city’s best and brightest in entrepreneurship, small business, community support, corporate leadership, public policy and nonprofit development. On February 4, 2010, she was publicly honored with 29 other women leaders in Middle Tennessee. [Louise is pictured with her husband Frank]

Ismael Cuellar, assistant warden at Webb, and Miguel Romo, recreation director at Laredo, assisted a police officer being assaulted in Laredo. The police officer had attempted to investigate a vagrant who was urinating in the street, but the man was aggressive and allegedly struck the officer on the back of his head with a rock. Romo and Cuellar noticed the struggle and helped the officer take control of the subject before other officers arrived to arrest him. An article about the incident ran in the Laredo Morning Times.

An employee at Idaho Correctional Center recently suffered a house fire in which the majority of her belongings and the house itself were demolished. When co-workers found out, they jumped into action to help by donating various items to the employee and her two children.