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January 6, 2012 January 6, 2012 Friday, September 9, 2011 in conjunction with Marion County Superior Court Probation Department, Marion County Community Corrections, and Marion County Sheriff’s Department -Sex and ViolentMiami Offender Correctional Unit, Facility’s American Legion Post 555 held a dedication ceremony for a flag pole it purchased and installed inside the fence of the facility. The legion members will be raising and lowering the flag each day at 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., which is the same time the nearby Grissom Air Reserve Base plays reveille and taps on their speaker system. (see photo below) Miami Correctional Facility’s PLUS Unit donated $200 to the Special Olympics through Captain Doug Nelson, who will be participating in the local Polar Bear Plunge on February 11th. The plunge is an annual event to raise money for Special Olympics. This year the plunge will be at the Crossroads Community Church in Kokomo, IN. Those participating take a plunge in frigid waters during what is hoped to be the coldest day of the year. A reception was held at the Indianapolis Re-Entry Educational Facility (IREF) for Dennis Ludwick, who retired after 24 years of dedicated service to the Indiana Department of Correction (IDOC). Mr. Ludwick began his career with the IDOC on December 21, 1987 as a correctional officer at the Plainfield Correctional Facility. Throughout his 24-year career, Mr. Ludwick promoted to several positions within IDOC, including Correctional Counselor, Psychiatric Social Services Specialist III, Instructor of the Effective Fathering and Substance Abuse Programs, Social Security Representative, Veteran Administrative Representative, and Community Involvement Coordinator. Mr. Ludwick’s most recent assignment was Community & Volunteer Involvement Coordinator, which he began serving at IREF in December 2009. (see photo below of Dennis Ludwick with Superintendents Beckie Bennett and Fran Osburn, Phil Slavens and Cathie Ardelean) Pendleton Correctional Facility Lieutenant Chad Winfrey was recognized during a ceremony conducted in the Superintendent’s office this week for his promotion to the rank of Correctional Captain. Captain Winfrey began his career as a Correctional Officer at PCF in October 1994. Congratulations Captain Winfrey! The Venture Scouts at Pendleton Juvenile Correctional Facility held an “Animals are Hungry Too” food drive for pets. Students and Pendleton Juvenile staff donated cat or dog food. This resulted in over 125 lbs of food being donated to Anderson Animal Care Shelter. The Correctional Industrial Facility held a Kwanzaa Celebration to include guest speaker Mr. Kamau Jywanza. It was a joyous occasion to educate the offender population on the history of Kwanzaa. The offenders at the Indiana State Prison (ISP) were served their Christmas meal on Christmas Day. Members of ISP Executive Staff were present, which was appreciated by both staff and offenders. Aramark did an excellent job and according to the offenders, it was the best meal they have had in years. Westville Correctional Facility Volunteer Renecia Williams of the Planted Seed Ministries conducted a Christian worship service for the facility’s faith-based PLUS offenders. Ms. Williams offered offenders communion during her New Year Holiday Service, and 67 offenders accepted. The Westville PLUS currently has 240 participating offenders. WFYI Channel 20 Television Producer Jim Simmons taped interviews with the IREF Naptown Knitters for a series of television programs about the Super Bowl Legacy Project and community involvement. The Naptown Knitters are a group of male residents knitting scarves for volunteers in the upcoming Super Bowl in Indianapolis. The Super Bowl “Super Scarves” program will air January 26, 2012 at 7:20 p.m. on WFYI, and will feature interviews with IREF Volunteer Doreen Tatnall and the Naptown Knitters. Miami Correctional recently promoted five Officers to Sergeant. Congratulations go to Steve Salazar, Tamara White, Jake Kieninger, Kenneth Uhle and Trevor Heishman. These individuals have 27.5 years of combined experience in the Department. January 13, 2012 Friday, September 9, 2011 in conjunction with Marion County Superior Court Probation Department, Marion County Community Corrections, Kevin Gilmore, a nearly 28 year veteran of the Indiana Department and Marion County Sheriff’s Department -Sex and Violent Offender Unit, of Correction is the new Assistant Superintendent of Re-Entry at the Wabash Valley Correctional Facility! Starting his career as an Officer at the former Rockville Training Center, Gilmore has worked his way through the ranks, bringing a wealth of offender re-entry experience to his new assignment at Wabash, where he has worked with distinction since 1993. Congratulations Assistant Superintendent Gilmore! (pictured below) The DOC Race Team invites you to participate in the 2012 Indianapolis Super Bowl’s Legacy Loop 5K Run/Walk, which also includes a scavenger hunt en route. For more information, contact Lisa Salinas at [email protected], or register online at https://secure.getmeregistered.com/get_information.php?event_id=5612. In preparation for the Super Bowl, sixteen offenders assigned to the Security Level One housing unit at the Pendleton Correctional Facility are participating in an Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) work crew. The offender cleanup crew is picking up trash along Interstate 70 and at the entrances and exits of Indianapolis International Airport. The project began on January 8th and will run through January 23rd. The Putnamville Correctional Facility donated 70 lbs. of pop can tabs to Reelsville Elementary Student Council members to assist them in reaching their 1,000 lb. goal. Student Council members started the drive in 2010 and have collected over 416 lbs. of tabs. On January 19, the tabs will be delivered to McDonalds with the proceeds going to the Ronald McDonald House for families in need. (see photo left) Well wishing staff at the Westville Correctional Facility honored Captain Earnest Huff on his final day with the DOC. After 28 years of correctional service, Lead Captain Huff has retired from duty. During an afternoon cake and coffee ceremony, Captain Huff was presented with a plaque and gifts from misty-eyed staff who lined the room to say good-bye. While working for the Department, Captain Huff also remained active in the Armed Forces. He returned to serve in the Iraq conflict and retired from military service in 2003. The PLUS program at the Putnamville Correctional Facility held a Church’s Chicken sale. The event, coordinated by Case Manager Karumathil Kumaran, generated over $3700 in proceeds that will be used for charitable donations and program needs. An electronic audit was conducted on South Bend Juvenile Correctional Facility from January 9-10, 2012. The final passing score for the audit was 100% compliance on mandatory standards and 99.68% on non-mandatory standards. South Bend Juvenile Superintendent Donna Carneygee thanks facility staff for being supportive and working closely with the Audit Review Division to achieve a successful audit. First Lady Cheri Daniels’ annual Hoosiers Helping Hoosiers Food Drive will kick off on Wednesday, February 1st and run through the month of February. Last year, IDOC donated 9,018 cans and over $1,100 to various food banks across the state. Commissioner Lemmon challenges IDOC staff to double our contribution from last year. Facility coordinators should contact Stephanie Lightfoot (317-232-5766 or [email protected]) for more details on this year’s food drive. Start collecting those cans!! The Therapeutic Community program at the Correctional Industrial Facility presented a skit using the Wizard of OZ theme. The program was loosely based on Dorothy’s journey through OZ and her attempt to return home. For TC participants, the skit journey reflected their similar struggles in recovery using the 12 steps as their “yellow-brick-road.” Several Central Office staff joined Commissioner Lemmon at the 21st Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Indiana Holiday Celebration at the Statehouse. Governor Daniels spoke on Dr. King’s remarkable character. Several individuals who exemplify the heart of Dr. King received awards, and noted author and Chair of the Black Alliance for Educational Options (BAEO) gave a stirring speech on the importance of education for all American students. January 20, 2012 in conjunction with Marion County Superior Court Probation Department,Friday, Marion September County Community Corrections, 9, 2011 and Marion County Sheriff’s Department -Sex and ViolentThe CorrectionalOffender Unit, Professionals Assistance Fund of Indiana (CPAFI) is pleased to announce that it will again be offering educational scholarships to staff and their families. Information will be coming soon, so watch your email and SCOOP for more details! For the second year, Parole Services Division has conducted Operation GRIN (Giving Resources to Indiana’s Needy). The project is a competition between Parole Districts to accumulate and acquire as many food, clothing and other items or services possible to provide to those less fortunate within the local communities. A traveling trophy was created to acknowledge the staff of the district that was most successful in obtaining items for donation. The Indianapolis District Office won the initial contest in 2010. The winner for 2011 is the Fort Wayne District Office. Congratulations to Supervisors Mia Kelsaw and Bobby Yarborough and the office staff for their generosity, commitment and spirit of giving to those less fortunate community members. Staff from the Indiana State Prison (ISP) rolled up their sleeves for a blood drive hosted at the facility. Fifteen staff donated blood during the drive conducted by the American Red Cross. There were initially 27 ISP staff scheduled to donate, but due to staff illnesses and mandatory training not everyone was able to donate. Two offenders of the Indiana Women’s Prison, Wee One’s Nursery (W.O.N.) Program gave birth to baby girls. The two babies increased the programs baby count to nine. Through the W.O.N. childhood development classes, the mothers learn the importance of bonding with their baby during the early stages of the baby’s life.
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