MONTHLY BUDGET AND PURCHASE HOUSE

The national recidivism rate (rate in which released inmates return to prison within 3-5 years) hovers around 77%. The state of Texas ranges from 40-50%. At Forgiven Felons, since our inception in 2007, and our opening of our transitional houses in 2012, we have served over 300 men and have an 8% recidivism rate. We feel that by using a practical and spiritual approach to reintegration, instead of just one or the other, we are making stronger and more productive citizens.

We need to secure our house in the city of Dallas by owning it. We need $100K down or $400K to buy it outright. We are losing money by renting.

We have 8 acres in the country that we are planning to build on. See design pic. We will need $400K for the main building and $70K for each 2 bedroom home the men live in. This place in the country will give us more room over all and allow us to serve the more intense crimes out here. We will have metal fabrication and our t-shirt business out here so the men will have jobs.

Our social services will continue to be known as Forgiven Felons, the 501c3, which will include everything we've been doing, bus passes, clothes, hygiene, financial literacy classes, recovery classes, leadership classes, and then we will add the following workshops for free to people coming directly out of prison.

Our for profit arm will be Background Industries LLC. We will have a business for each workshop where men and women can go from classroom, to employment, to business owner if they want to.

In each location we will offer our normal social services as well as the following:

4 Vocational Workshops

-Welding

-Lighting and Electrical

-Audio/Video Production

-Graphic Art Design Printing

Social Services

Financial Literacy Classes

Business Start Up Classes

Leadership Classes

Recovery Classes

We will also have OSHA certification on warehouse equipment.

Background Industries would be the business arm that these men and women could be employed by if they choose.

4 Correlating Businesses to go with each workshop. All businesses are existing but would scale once the workshops get going. Part of the proceeds would go back into Forgiven Felons to cover social service. There'd also be an opportunity for them, after working with one of the businesses for a year, to start their own business.

We have all teachers and curriculum (for classes and workshops) in place already. We have some funds to purchase equipment for workshops. We have volunteers ready to help with data entry and social services.