From the Executive Director
Dear Supporters,
At 54 years of service and counting, Friends Outside in Los Angeles County is the longest-running program of its kind in the County. We assist the incarcerated, formerly incarcerated, their children and their families with the goal to mitigate the “unintended consequences of incarceration.” Those consequences include broken family bonds, children who are at higher risk than their peers for physical and mental health problems, inter-generational poverty, and community destabilization. Although it costs California taxpayers approximately $132,860 per year to house a single inmate in a California state prison (based on 2023-2024 budget data), the average cost for our services is $6,000 per person with intended outcomes including employment in quality jobs, intact families, and increased presence of fathers in their children’s lives.
Inside Friends Outside, our quarterly newsletter, is intended to educate communities about the impact of the criminal justice system on our communities and the individuals living within them while sharing the success stories we witness almost every day. And while all services are provided at no cost to the participants, staff lets them know our motto—that our relationship with them is 50-50, that we will be with them every step of the way but they have to do their part as well.
Our work would not be possible without those who support us and we would like to hear from you. An occasional segment in future newsletters will be “Why I Support Friends Outside LA.” Please send your responses to info@friendsoutsidela.org so they can be considered for publication!
Mary Weaver, Executive Director
A Story of Personal Transformation
By DaJohnai Vincson, Program Manager, Dads Back! Academy
Program Spotlight: Project imPACT South LA
By Arthur Smiley, Program Manager, Project imPACT South LA
Rest In Power: A Tribute to Joyce Ride
By Mary Weaver, Executive Director