Soteria Graduate
Fred Turner shares his story.
Program Overview | Prison Re-entry
Too often, after incarceration, people are left to pick up the pieces and attempt to put together a life with little to no support. It can be overwhelming, debilitating, and—all too often—push individuals back into their former habits of crime and drugs. By offering both short-term and long-term support, Soteria helps returning citizens to get back on their feet and build a sustainable, healthy life.
Soteria CDC provides individuals with housing, education, employment, affirmation & advocacy services to help them smoothly transition back into society. Our Transitional Homes include a 16-bed Soteria House for men in Travelers Rest and a 16-bed Soteria House for women in Greenville.
Participants can stay up to one year in the Soteria Transitional Program. Upon graduation from the program, they receive assistance in finding permanent housing. Soteria owns and operates 18 affordable rentals for families impacted by the criminal justice system. We also provide channels for those who would like to continue their education or pursue technical training.
Core Services:
HOUSING:
Soteria owns and operates (2) 16-bed transitional facilities for previously incarcerated men and women & 18 low-income rentals
EDUCATION:
Soteria aligns education with long term goals through GEDs, continuing education and certifications. We provide financial literacy and offer a 2:1 matching savings program which may only be used to gain an asset.
EMPLOYMENT:
Soteria offers a network of employers who hire individuals with criminal backgrounds, and we also operate a social enterprise to offer job training.
AFFIRMATION:
Soteria nurtures physical & spiritual health through a combination of health requirements (like no drug or alcohol use) with journaling, mentorships, and group outings.
ADVOCACY:
Our founder, Jerry Blassingame, has worked with Local, State, and National representatives to expunge criminal records and eliminate collateral consequences that punish individuals with criminal records.
Housing Programs
SOTERIA HOUSE
Soteria owns and operates (2) 16-bed transitional homes where our program participants live while enrolled in our 6-12 month Reentry Program. Interns at Soteria House follow a daily schedule that begins with journaling and ends with a family-style meal in the evenings. Our participants are assigned responsibilities such as driver, cook, and house manager to support one another as they come and go from their job placements within the community. We have curfews and community service requirements to help men and women establish the structures that support healthy, successful lifestyles as they transition back into society.
HOW TO APPLY
Entry into Soteria House requires referral from one of the following persons:
A chaplain or pastor
A caseworker, social worker, or warden
A prison minister or prison ministry program
A parole or probation officer
Applications must be submitted at least 6 months prior to release.
or Download an Application to mail to Soteria
AFFORDABLE RENTALS
To further our commitment to community development, Soteria provides 18 affordable housing units for Soteria graduates and low to moderate income families.
Men and women often excel in our program only to face the reality when they graduate that the only housing options available to individuals with criminal backgrounds exist in toxic environments.
Soteria mitigates that reality by owning affordable rentals for our graduates and families impacted by the criminal justice system. Each of our homes has been renovated by the men in our Soteria at Work job training program.
To apply for one of our homes, please download the application below and mail or email it to:
Soteria CDC
c/o Denise Patterson-Jones
210 Shaw Street
Greenville, SC 29609
Employment Programs
SOTERIA AT WORK
A Social Enterprise
Soteria at Work teaches men in our program how to selectively dismantle homes and then salvage the wood that would have gone to the landfill. They learn how to de-nail, sand, and turn that wood into beautiful pieces of furniture - like farm tables and sliding barn doors. In the process, they learn how to take something that would have been discarded and create something new with beauty and purpose. Our tagline, “Reclaiming Wood. Reclaiming Lives.” is exactly what we do.
SOTERIA AT WORK provides a sincere opportunity for individuals to learn and apply new skills, earn money, improve their long-term job prospects, and make a real difference in the community.
Visit our website to learn more: SOTERIAATWORK.COM
SECOND CHANCE EMPLOYERS
Secure housing and employment are critical to an individual’s ability to successfully reenter society after incarceration. Soteria works with a network of local employers to provide jobs with dignity to the men and women enrolled in our 6-12 month reentry program.
Every program participant at Soteria opens both a checking and a savings account within their first 30 days in the program. By the time they obtain employment, they are prepared to save so that they can pay off any fines, fees, child support and then work on building assets - like owning their transportation and housing.
To reach these goals, we must have employers willing to give people with criminal backgrounds a second chance.
Advocacy Services
South Carolina Second Chance Justice Collaborative is a partnership between Soteria, nationwide reentry advocate Root & Rebound, and the Solicitor’s Diversion Program of Greenville County . The Collaborative advocates for the rights of people who have been harmed and marginalized by mass incarceration, seeking to increase access to justice and opportunity for people with records, and to fight poverty and create second chances for people in Greenville and more broadly across South Carolina.
Soteria CDC set up an expungement fund to help offset fees associated with the expungement process. To give to this fund, select “Donate” below and choose “Expungements” from the drop down menu. To start the process of expunging your record, call 864.272.0681 to make an appointment.
Intern Spotlight: Woody
driven to succed for his children & his wife.
Woody has followed our program, shown up for work every day, saved his money, and as the Director of the Men’s Program, Cian Rusnak, says has become “the most improved out of everyone in the Men’s House. He has taken this program by the horns.”
When Woody arrived, he was hesitant to trust that Soteria would provide all that our program claimed. He showed up anyway. He followed the program anyway. Four months later, his doubt is a distant memory. He joined the Soteria at Work team where he has proven to be a skilled, smart leader who works hard and listens.
He has also excelled within Soteria CDC’s Reentry program where his priority on financial literacy has empowered him to save the money he has needed to catch up on child support and to provide for additional needs for his children like school supplies.
Woody says that he wants to make up for lost time, he took on the responsibility to make that happen, and he is now coming into his own.
Intern Spotlight: Lori
LORI came to Soteria in NOVEMBER of 2023.
Lori is an exceptional woman. She came into the program in November of 2023. Since then she has shown resilience in reclaiming her life in Christ. She has remained dedicated to Soteria by allowing the program to work for her. When things try to knock her down, she rises up in triumph. Altogether, she has proven that perseverance pays off!