Jun 14, 2016 3 min read

WAYNESBURG – Greene County is holding its first “re-entry” conference and job fair for people with criminal records who need help finding employment.

The conference will be held from 9 a.m. to noon June 24, followed by the job fair from 1 to 3 p.m. at Greene County Fairgrounds.

“I didn’t think that there was a large need for this, but after talking with (Greene County) President Judge Farley Toothman, there is,” said Barbara Cole, administrator for CareerLink. “My understanding is that there are hundreds of people in the county that owe the court system fines or have back child support. The hope is that this will point them in the right direction.”

Christine Gardner, court assistant for community prevention who helped organize the job fair, said about 96 percent of the cases that come through county court are related to addiction.

“For many of these people, they hit one roadblock and don’t know how to get around it,” she said. “So, we’re trying to help them overcome it. It’s about saving people’s lives.”

The conference will feature several speakers from the court office to talk to people about how to get back on their feet after getting out of jail or out of the court system.

Craig Wise of Greene County Probation will talk about the expungement process and how to get one’s driver’s license back. There also will be people to talk about support services, social security benefits and how to reinstate health insurance.

The keynote speaker will be Bobby Steele of with T3 Oilfield Services.

After the conference, about 40 employers will be set up to meet with potential employees to discuss career options, Cole said. The majority of them are from Greene County and the positions range from nurses and caregivers to truck drivers, civil engineers, bank tellers, construction workers and coal miners, she said.

She said that while the conference is intended for people with criminal backgrounds, the job fair is open to anyone. She said that some companies attending have a reputation of being open to hiring people despite their criminal background, but others may not.

“People screw up,” Cole said. “We all screw up in life and some more than others. Those that we can help we would like to help.”

Gardner said the idea to hold the re-entry conference came from a meeting with several county court officials, county leaders, probation officers and “people who have had a role in helping people recently released from jail reenter the community.”

“We started to say, ‘What do these folks really need?’ and ‘Do they know where to go?'” Gardner said. “How do we help people reintegrate and get rid of the stigma for the people that are trying.”

Cole said her office on High Street in Waynesburg will have two workshops, at 9:30 and 11 a.m. on June 21, on resume writing and landing a job to prepare people for the job fair.

“Greene County has always taken care of its own,” Cole said. “They believe in second chances.”