Ex-inmates share stories of hope after release in Youngstown

YOUNGSTOWN

Not long ago, Charitey Riggs served in the Army Reserve and was in college, but a few poor decisions temporarily derailed her plans – and easily could have ended her life.

“They [nearly] took my life; they almost killed me,” the 22-year-old Salem woman said, referring to her drug addiction that led to her having served 16 months on theft and forgery charges at the Ohio Reformatory for Women in Marysville.

Fifteen months after her release, however, Riggs is contemplating returning to college and is working at two restaurants in Columbiana County. But perhaps most important for her, she is using her hardships and triumphs to help other inmates across the state.

Riggs was among those who shared their stories during Thursday’s HOPE Channel Returns program at Oak Hill Collaborative Inc., 507 Oak Hill Ave., on the South Side.

United Returning Citizens, a nonprofit, grass-roots organization that helps those released from prison get readjusted to being in society, hosted the seven-hour gathering.

The event was to allow former inmates and their families to discuss their experiences on film via the HOPE (Helping Ohio Prisoners Excel) Channel and give encouragement to those who are incarcerated, noted Dionne Dowdy, URC’s executive director.

Read more about the program in Friday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.