God wastes nothing.
My mom was a prison guard for 10 years at Church Farm in Jeff City. I can’t remember what I had for dinner yesterday, but still remember the phone number there. 751-2053. A debilitating car accident in 1994 ended that job for her and changed our lives forever.
Sometime in 200?, I picked my dad up from prison. His DOC # was 232404. A debilitating addiction eventually took his life.
In October 2018 my boss gave me a promotion and invited me to become part of the ReEntry team, going into the prisons and helping inmates transition back into the workforce.
That morphed into more than I ever could have imagined, with the opportunity to write a curriculum teaching men and women personal and professional development. Starting next week I’ll be taking that curriculum into a third facility.
Last year I sent an email to the Director of the Department of Corrections asking her for coffee. I had no agenda. I just wanted to know more about her. I wanted to hear her story and learn from another leader. I love to learn. I received a lot of flack from that. Apparently you’re not supposed to reach out to Directors of large organizations, but I’m naive enough to do so.
She agreed. We had coffee. I learned so much. And I’ve spent the last year learning from her and admiring the way she leads the Missouri Department of Corrections. The way she isn’t afraid to roll up her sleeves and get the job done. The way she isn’t afraid to make changes.
Well today. Today was pretty cool.
Today, I stood across from the Director of Probation and Parole, Julie Kempker, as she rocked a baby to sleep – the baby of one of the women I was blessed to teach my brand new curriculum to – a woman who was there today for a very special reason – to meet the Governor of Missouri, Governor Mike Parson.
As we laughed and talked and made baby faces, I looked to my right and there were the Director of the Missouri Department of Corrections and the Governor of Missouri, walking my way.
I stood and observed, watching Governor Parson make conversation with others, thinking to myself, “So this is happening….”
Then the lady I was naive enough to ask to have coffee with once – a woman I greatly admire for her tenacity, leadership ability, and boldness – Director Anne Precythe – then preceded to introduce me to the Governor of the State I am proud to call home.
And she introduced me with words of honor and respect – an endearing introduction I did not expect as I shook hands with our Governor and talked about ReEntry and Branson and Single Moms.
You never know.. You just never know what God has planned. You never know what He will do with your past. And you never know what being brave enough to take that next step will do.
Pretty cool day for this sophisticated redneck. 