A halfway house of hope
BRIXTON - Resident Ria Steenkamp seeks to establish a halfway house to keep repeat offenders out of prison.
After reading the article on Dane Diedricks, week ending 14 February, Ria Steenkamp reached out to Northcliff Melville Times offering a sanctuary for people like Diedricks.
Steenkamp is a Brixton resident who has a passion to help teenagers who have become drug addicts and subsequently ended up in prison.
As a result, Steenkamp took the initiative to establish Client Prison Care Ministries, a halfway house aimed at providing young offenders with the adequate support that would help them refrain from reoffending.
“The Department of Correctional Services is faced with problems like overcrowding. Overcrowding often occurs because offenders whom the parole board would’ve put on parole have no address and support system,” Steenkamp lamented.
“Some are afraid to go home because their families are dysfunctional or abuse alcohol or drugs, which can pose a problem if the offender is trying to stay clean,” she added.
Steenkamp believes halfway houses can be an agent of change and personal improvement with no room for relapses.
Steenkamp’s passion to help offenders on parole stems from her personal experience, when she was arrested for theft in the course of a gambling addiction
“When you’ve been an addict and you know what it’s like to get out with nothing, you have the compassion to say ok I’ll give you six more chances.”
As a former halfway house resident herself, Steenkamp has also noticed that a change of scenery reduces the chances of relapsing dramatically, and therefore wishes to provide refuge to offenders from various corners of the country.
Client Prison Care Ministries is in the process of registering as a NGO and securing a facility from which the halfway house would operate.
The three board members, including Steenkamp, are former prisoners and wish to give back to the community.
Once the house is up and running, there will be programmes like family outreaches, educational or skills referrals, social work and psychological assistance, spiritual or religious practice, vocational training as well as health and fitness.
Steenkamp appeals for donations of any kind that people may offer, including housing facilities.
Details: Ria Steenkamp 076 165 0244, clientprisoncare@gmail.com, Facebook.com/Client-Prison-Care-Ministries
