Community

THE PASTORAL PROGRAM

The Pastoral Center component mirrors the parish model. It is a place where people with shared interests can come together as a community and find solace, strength, and friendship. Most parishes are defined by geography: at Abraham House, incarceration, or the risk of incarceration, defines the parish. Persons of all faiths are welcome at Abraham House and families have the opportunity to draw on their own religious beliefs to deepen their faith. The program offers religious education for youth, spiritual counseling, and Catholic Mass. On Saturdays a communal hot meal prepared by program participants and volunteers is served, and residents, families, staff and friends sit down together to share as a community.

In addition, Abraham House serves the wider Mott Haven community by:

Providing a food pantry: every Saturday morning bags of food and staples are available to anyone who comes to our door.
Offering a clothing bank: neighborhood residents are welcome to clothes, blankets and other new or gently used goods.

THE FACT

Nationally, more than half of released offenders are back in prison within three years. Bureau of Justice Statistics.

While people in every state and of every race, gender and income level make up the nation's dropouts, the crisis affects low-income youth, males, Hispanics and African-Americans disproportionately. Center for Labor Market Studies.

Strengthening the family network improves outcomes for both the prisoner and the individual family members. Urban Institute, Justice Policy Center.