Kent First Presbyterian actively supports the Kent Ministerial Association Jail Ministry with a staff of trained and caring members.
Background on the Jail Ministry
When the City of Kent was planning to build a jail, Lieutenant George Burke insisted that merely warehousing people in a jail did nothing to change their behavior and attitudes. Instead, he held out for making it a Corrections Facility. It would be operated using a system of Behavior Modification.
First he contacted the Kent Ministerial Association to set up non-denominational worship services and Bible study classes. Then co-directors and a volunteer facilitator were recruited. Volunteers were recruited for tutoring to work with Renton Technical College so that those who did not have a High School diploma could get their G.E.D. Various workshops were offered in Anger Management, Self Esteem, problem solving, Spanish to English, Roman Catholic Communion, Spiritual Counseling, one-on-one counseling, AA, NA, stress management, parenting, confronting life issues using Bradshaw Tapes, and publishing an in-house newspaper. At times Gospel sing-alongs and exercise classes were also offered.
An orientation to these services was given within the first week of their incarceration. Told that time spent in the facility could be, for them, either a jail or a corrections facility, it was up to them.
Ten years later, when the Lieutenant retired, a booklet was compiled by volunteers, officers, and former inmates. Obviously the plan was working. Years later, many volunteers had occasion to meet former inmates whose lives were now positive and productive. Ideas which came out in the problem solving workshops became the basis of booklets which were both motivational and inspirational. In great demand, frequently, a particularly meaningful one was given to an inmate upon release.
"I was in jail, and you visited me." More than just a visit, with the volunteers and the Lord's help, it paid off.