Shreveport Times

Church leads way in bringing women's prison chapel closer to reality
By Vickie Welborn

March 21, 2005

BATON ROUGE -- A Mansfield church that embraced the vision of providing a true worship setting for the state's maximum-security female prisoners provided the inspiration for other churches and individuals to "come on board," according to Louisiana State Penitentiary Warden Burl Cain.

And together, the donations that have poured in within the past two months will be enough to begin construction of a chapel on the grounds of the Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women in St. Gabriel. There's enough money -- almost $400,000 -- to build it bigger than first planned.

"It's going to be a 700-seat chapel ... and we'll be breaking ground within 30 days," Cain said Thursday night following the Louisiana Prison Chapel Foundation's annual Gala for Hope attended by more than 200 people at the Governor's Mansion.

Two months ago, the goal was to raise about $250,000 to build a 300-seat chapel.

"We didn't have near enough money until the folks in Mansfield came on board with this. And for that, I want to say thank you to Southside Baptist Church and all of the people of northwest Louisiana. Thank you very much," Cain said.

Southside Baptist Church's pastor, the Rev. Troy Terrell, and Mansfield police Lt. Gary Hobbs, a church member, presented Cain, LCIW Warden Johnnie Jones and Richard A. Johnson III, Louisiana Prison Chapel Foundation board president, with a $150,000 check representing the majority of money raised since January for the LCIW chapel. Additional funds donated beyond the $150,000 will be given toward the next project -- building a chapel at Forcht Wade Correctional Center in Keithville.

Other notable donations given at the gala for the LCIW chapel include $50,000 from the Huey and Angelina Wilson Foundation and $20,000 each from the Rev. Dino Rizzo and Healing Place Church and the Rev. Chris Andrews and First United Methodist Church, both in Baton Rouge.

"We just want to be a part of blessing people who matter to God ... and if they matter to God, they should matter to us," Rizzo said.

Terrell and Hobbs told the gala guests how the church of over 200 people got involved. It stemmed from Hobbs' salvation experience last year and a desire to forgive an Angola prisoner who wounded him and killed a state probation and parole officer in 1990. A visit to Angola to see the inmate led to a chance meeting with Cain, who shared his desire to see a chapel built at LCIW.

Terrell and the church took on the challenge, and within weeks had most of the money in hand as word spread throughout the northwest Louisiana area. Church member Randy Ryder of Mansfield supported the idea because of his belief in the "transforming power of Jesus Christ. ... That's what happened in my life and putting a chapel on the grounds of a prison where there is no hope, I want to be a part of that. That's my calling ... and if we don't do it, then we've missed the calling of God."

"We just thank God that we have a hand in reaching people for Jesus Christ," Terrell said.

Chapels erected at the Angola prison and a few other men's prisons in the state have followed on the heels of the successful introduction of faith- and character-based programs in the state prison system. The voluntary programs are not designed to steer inmates toward particular religions, but offer the opportunity to develop a personal faith or belief system in addition to learning life skills that could change their lives, whether inside or outside prison walls.

"This is all about changing lives. If we can help one person from becoming the victim of a crime, it's all been worth it," Cain said.

Gov. Kathleen Blanco, who greeted guests inside the mansion and later spoke at the gala, said studies show that inmates involved in spiritual programs have a "much better chance to succeed when released." That success depends upon a partnership between the publicly funded prison system and the private sector such as churches, she noted.

The Louisiana Prison Chapel Foundation has so far built five chapels across the state. "And for that, I say thank you, thank you, thank you," Blanco said.

The chapels mean that inmates can worship in a church setting rather than dining halls or gymnasiums, said state Corrections Secretary Richard Stalder.

The state, he said, in its "zeal to incarcerate people" built a lot of cell blocks but no churches. Instilling values is part of an inmate's rehabilitation process, and it's a "simple ingredient" in helping them to prosper and live family oriented lives upon their return to society.

"We can teach them to read and write, but without morality, we haven't done anything. ... It just works," Cain said of the impact the chapels have made in improving the prison culture and in reducing violence among inmates.

And the time is ripe to continue with what is started since there is a "Christian governor and Christian (corrections) secretary who support it," Cain said.

More than just the inmates at LCIW will benefit from the new chapel. "You can look beyond the women of LCIW and look toward their children. If you want to reach the next generation, you have to do it through their mothers," Johnson said.

Jones said the LCIW inmates are "very excited" about the chapel. It will replace a small Catholic chapel at the St. Gabriel prison. With male inmates from Louisiana State Penitentiary, Elayn Hunt Correction Center in St. Gabriel and Dixon Correctional Institute in Jackson providing the labor, the hope is to have the chapel completed before Christmas.

Terrell plans to arrange for Southside Baptist church members to volunteer their time at some point during the construction phase so they can have a real hands-on experience at seeing the chapel become reality.