Who We Are:
Spiritus Christi Prison Outreach, Inc. (SCPO) is an outreach ministry* of Spiritus Christi Church in the city of Rochester, New York. It is a residential re-entry program for individuals that are homeless and justice-involved. Many of the people we serve come directly from jail or prison, but we also work with individuals who have had interactions with the criminal justice system in other ways.
*Although SCPO is affiliated with the Church, our outreach program is non-religious and welcomes anyone regardless of religious affiliation. Members of our community have been visiting local jails and prisons for over 40 years.
SCPO IN THE NEWS
"We sit down with members of Spiritus Christi Prison Outreach. The program helps people leaving Monroe County Jail and state correctional facilities transition back into the community.
We hear from the program's directors about their work, and we talk to some of its participants what successful transitions look like."
-Evan Dawson & Megan Mack, Mar. 15, 2021
"A federal funded study of the program showed that [SCPO clients were/are] about a third or better of the normal recidivism rate."
-Gary Craig, Mar. 6, 2021
"One of the landmarks in Rochester's 19th Ward is becoming transitional housing for homeless former prisoners."
-Spectrum News Staff, Mar. 07, 2021
“It gave me something I never thought I would have, and that’s freedom from substance abuse disorder, and I feel like I owe them and this is my way of giving back to them.”
-Alum Teejay, Oct. 28, 2021
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In honor of our Prison Ministry’s 40th Anniversary, Father Jim wrote
A Place Not of My Choosing: Jim Smith & the Spiritus Christi Prison Outreach
God's Teardrop is one woman's story of heaven's response to a world filled with: racism, sexism, bullies, oppression, shame, guilt, and addiction. This is the life journey of a survivor who cried out from the depth of her soul. Dellenna Harper takes the reader through the darkness of addiction and prostitution, to the challenges of recovery and the incredible resilience of the human spirt. What Dellenna shares is honest and inspirational and provides a pathway that others may follow. People struggling with addiction, people in recovery, families affected by addiction will all find hope by following Dellenna's transformation.
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Get your copy from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or your local public library
