HandsOn Texarkana's skilled-parenting program is helping prisoners at the Federal Correctional Institution reconnect with their families.
The program has been in the prison for about nine months.
"We've gotten very, very good feedback," said Kathey Graves, HandsOn Texarkana executive director.
Johnie Smith, a retired Bowie County adult probation officer and a HandsOn Texarkana board member, facilitates the program, which comes from Moral Reconation Therapy, a cognitive behavioral program for prison populations.
"They have many different types of therapies. They use it for drug addiction and different types of behaviors, not just parenting," Smith said. "I was trained as a trainer for this type of programming for our department in Bowie County, and it works well with correctional facilities."
One of the key factors in the skilled-parenting program is group participation.
"They share their experiences and others comment on it so it's a learning experience," Smith said. "They love the group and they love the book. I think they like the book most of all. They can refer back to the book if they're having a problem and look at what's recommended in the book. It's written at a fourth-grade level, so anyone can read it and understand it. The men who've been through the program said they most liked hearing what other men are going through and how they handled it, the things that work for them and things that didn't work for them. There's not a right or wrong way, but there are some best practices, and everybody's circumstances are different. It's just a good way to learn and give people a chance to talk about their problems."
The program is voluntary for the men who participate. It's especially helpful for men who are about to be released.
"Our program is designed to help inmates re-connect with their sons and daughters once they are released. The transition from prison back into society can be difficult, and our goal is to better prepare inmates for re-establishing their role as a parent," said David Carter, HandsOn board president.
Smith said an area of focus for men in the group is effective communication with family members.
"They have ongoing contact with their family. They still have visitation and contact through mail or phone calls, so they need to know what to say. That's the biggest problem sometimes is they don't know how to communicate with their kids," Smith said. "We work on communication and learning to communicate a little better. In the end of life, there's family. You always have your family, and if you can restore those relationships, it's good. Family is just very important, and they want to be able to talk to their kids and tell them how much they love them. A lot of times the kids may not want to talk to them, and I just tell them to hang in there, to keep writing letters so at least they'll know their dad loves them and is trying to connect with them."
"To me, this program is good for anybody, even if you don't have kids, because it helps you get along with other people," Smith said.
The skilled-parenting program is eight weeks long.
For more information about this program or volunteer opportunities through HandsOn Texarkana, call 903-798-3211.