P.E.I. women leaving jail get backpack gift from Open Door Outreach

Open Door Outreach gives backpacks full of personal hygiene products and basic clothing to Island women as they leave jail, as a way to let the women know that they are there to help, no strings attached.

'This is a small way that we can contribute to their feeling of worth and value'

Nancy Russell CBC News Posted: Mar 17, 2016 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: March 17, 2016

Cheryl Millman says Open Door Outreach hands out between 50 and 75 backpacks a year. (Nancy Russell/CBC)

"It's an essential need that most women have coming out of incarceration," explained Executive Director Cheryl Millman. "They usually don't have anything to call their own, for the most part, and this is a small way that we can contribute to their feeling of worth and value."

It's a way to say we're a safe place, there's no strings attachedCheryl Millman, Open Door Outreach

In addition to feminine hygiene products and a few clothing items, the backpacks contain shampoo, soap, toothbrush and toothpaste, deodorant, a face cloth and a towel.

Each backpack contains an individual note of encouragement written by an Island woman who took part in an Open Door Outreach fundraiser called The Pink Tea. (Nancy Russell/CBC)

One unique element: each backpack alsocontains an individual note of encouragement written by an Island woman who took part in an Open Door Outreach fundraiser called The Pink Tea.

'We're here for you'

"I saw one of our ladies open the backpack in front of me and she took out each thing, one by one and saying 'Oh I need this, I love this. This is exactly what I needed but had no money to get it'," said Millman. "So the reaction is always so thankful."

"It's a way to say we're a safe place, there's no strings attached," she added. "We are a safe place in the community and after you get out of jail, if you would like to come and see us and get some help, we're here for you."

Cheryl Millman says it costs about $45 to fill each backpack before it is handed out to a P.E.I. woman leaving jail. (Nancy Russell/CBC)

The Open Door group offers programs to female prisoners at correctional centres and after they're released. The programs include personal mentoring, group programs and help with the transition back into the community after release.

"They may have been homeless going into jail, so getting out that is a huge need for most women is finding a place to stay," said Millman.

She said after getting out of jail, the women then have to get on social assistance, put together a resume and look for work, in addition to dealing with the underlying issues that may have landed them in jail. Her organization aims to let them know they have support.

"The first thing we always say when we sit down on day one of a program is 'this is not who you are'," she explained. "It's how you determine to walk forward from here and we want to give you some tools to help you do that."

"I like to say we've made great progress," she said. "There's lots of ladies who we saw on a regular basis for several years coming in and out of jail."

"And we haven't seen them for a long time and they're really doing well so we have to take some credit for that."

Easter Backpack Campaign

Every Easter, Open Door Outreach runs a fundraising campaign specifically in support of the backpack program.

"It costs approximately $45 to get a backpack and fill it with personal hygiene products," explained Millman. "And [the public] can support us by buying a backpack."