The Hustler Files with Lisa Reilly - Stories That Challenge What You Thought You Knew

The Franklin County, Massachusetts, Opioid Task Force has come a long way since its inception in 2011. Across a 30-town region in rural Western Mass, the Opioid Task Force is a 400-member entity working to address the impact of the Opioid epidemic.   While this Task Force is involved with social policy work around the Opioid crisis, it is their focus to support prevention, intervention, treatment,...

The opinion of this week's guests, based on their daily hands-on experience, is that addiction in the United States is sadly becoming the norm.   The good news is that if you live in an area that is pro-recovery then you're more likely to locate state or federally-funded programs like the Medication for Opioid Use Disorder Services that are inside the Hampshire County Jail in Northampton, Massachu...

Bruce Willis, the Actor, has a quote, 'You Can't Undo The Past, But You Can Certainly Not Repeat It'.   Many people residing behind the wall have experienced disciplinary issues in the past.   A mindfulness program developed at the Hampden County Sheriff's Office, by program manager Dan Cavanaugh, in 2019, is experiencing dramatic results for those participants who are currently incarcerated.   Th...

Finding the possibilities in life, after incarceration, and with a forever criminal record, is a daunting task, but since 2004 when Jacqueline Velez was released from the women's section of Rikers Island, her mission has been driven by the love for her daughter, a passion for sharing her experiences through her poetry, and the courage to become a voice for so many others who have faced similar obs...

In the United States, one in five children has had a parent incarcerated at some point, and more than 75% of children who have had a parent incarcerated, have themselves become incarcerated.   John F. Kennedy said, "We are not here to cure the darkness, but to light the candle that can guide us through that darkness to a safe and sane future".   This episode is emotionally riveting, not just becau...

The title of this week's episode is part of a quote by the late Steve Jobs.   The full quote says; "Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work, and the only way to do great work is to love what you do."   While it may take a village, behind the wall and beyond, to assist justice-involved individuals with reco...

The criminal justice system is in a recruitment crisis. Correction Officers (yes, those uniformed individuals who work inside the local, State, and Federal Prisons and have military titles such as Captain, Corporal, etc.) are retiring faster than new COs can be recruited to replace them. Considering that the intake of justice-involved individuals has barely slowed down, this puts the recruiting ef...

Author May Sarton wrote, 'the only way through pain is to go through it, to absorb, probe, understand exactly what it is and what it means….whichever form our writing takes, it has the power to heal us and to help us grow'.   In Western Mass, the non-profit, Voices From Inside, has been helping women who are currently or formerly incarcerated find their voices through creative writing workshops. O...

E-12 - EVEN IN HER DARKEST HOUR   Twenty million Americans struggle with alcohol.   For Melissa, it was a triple threat - alcohol, drugs, and anger. From the very young age of 11 till her 37th birthday, Melissa led the worst side of hustling to keep her addictions and adrenaline fed.   In her own words, she describes the constant 'skid bid' as she calls it, how the tribe she surrounded herself wit...

Author Jeff Korzenik's day job as a Chief Investment Strategist at one of the largest commercial banks in the U.S. led him to take a deep dive into the realm of the social issues that have been plaguing workforce growth for the better part of two decades. The solution, as he sees it, is to educate CEOs on the value of hiring and training the 19 million who have served time behind the wall or the m...

"To be a unifying person, you must have acceptance. It is a social responsibility for those who are better educated to give back some to the society in whatever service they can help." - Tan Cheng Bock.   There are just some people who have an inherent calling to volunteer. Marty Lynch, Education Director at the non-profit Cambridge Credit Counseling is one such person.   Marty has spent the bette...

"There will always be rocks in the road ahead of us. They will be stumbling blocks or stepping stones; it all depends on how you use them." - Friedrich Nietzsche.   ROCA means ROCK and for 35 years they have been a relentless force for 17-24 year olds who have grown up with the stumbling blocks of urban violence and offered stepping stones to disrupt incarceration, poverty, and racism.   Through t...

"When we take the responsibility for cultivating our true self, we break the ties that bind us to the illusions of who and what we falsely think we are."   In part 1 of the interviews with incarcerated individuals finishing up their sentences in the Bridge to the Future House in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, you met Dakota, Matt, Sonny, and Eric.   In part 2, Eric speaks of how his alcoholism i...

"Your mind and habits will create either barriers or bridges to a better future" - Dr. Al Siebert.   While re-entry programs, 2nd chance hiring, education, and halfway houses are known to lower recidivism rates, it is still, sadly, not the norm.   If there is an upside to being jailed in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, it is their 16-bed halfway house with community-based programming and educatio...

The word Partake means 'to consume' and for those who become incarcerated, having lost everything will when given the opportunity for educational pursuits, be like sponges, ready and willing to participate as education returns them back some of their dignity.   At Partakers dot Org, a College Behind Bars degree program through Boston College, Emerson, and Tufts University, and most recently the Pa...

Not all heroes wear capes, and masks and carry a shield, but at Meredith Springfield, a Ludlow Massachusetts manufacturing facility for Fortune 100 companies, Owner Mel O'Leary has spent twenty years as a 2nd chance employer!   In his relationship with the Hampden County Sheriff's Department, Mel has not only employed a few hundred formerly incarcerated but approximately one-third of those 2nd cha...

When Judy Issacson Elias launched the Heroes To Heroes organization in 2010 to help War Zone Veterans who had suffered moral injury she couldn't have imagined that almost 13 years later she, her staff, and her volunteers would have positively impacted 350 veterans and have 750 on a waiting list to join her 18-month program that includes a 10-day biblical journey of faith, to Israel. Seventeen vete...

In days of old the local Sheriff would protect the town and lock up the 'bad guys' until the Circuit Judge showed up for a trial and a sentencing. There were no 'reentry' programs, support services or opportunities to redeem oneself.   Modern times, in most cases has changed the thought process around reform and reentry and thankfully people like Sheriff Patrick J. Cahillane of the Hampshire Count...

Most of humanity has experienced a 'worst moment' in life. If you're Behind The Wall, other than a rare few, in that your worst moment, you broke the law. Business Strategist, Author and Advocate for Second Chance Hiring Jeffrey Korzenik says, "Whether through resources available in your facility or available after your release, demonstrate that you are not defined by your worst moment".   This is...

Whether you're getting ready to re-enter the world post-incarceration or you're on probation or parole or you are just struggling with drugs, employment, housing, and more, the All-Inclusive Support Services Program is ready and available to help!   AISS is a division of the Hampden County Sheriff's Office, and they provide access to individualized services no matter what level of help you need, A...