We’re the leading provider of reentry services for women across Long Island.

Hear the full conversation with Rob DeLeon and Dr. Serena Martin.

What does it take to build a more just and supportive system for people returning home?

In the latest episode of New Hour’s Empower Hour, Executive Director Dr. Serena Martin sits down with President and CEO Rob DeLeon, for a powerful conversation about reentry, advocacy, leadership, and the future of criminal justice reform in New York. Mr. DeLeon brings more than two decades of experience working with people involved in the criminal legal system. He also brings lived experience of incarceration, before building a career in advocacy and reentry services.

One of the central themes of the conversation is the importance of seeing people beyond their involvement with the criminal legal system. As Rob puts it, “We believe in people first.” He emphasizes that Fortune Society’s doors are open to anyone who has experienced the system and that people should not be defined by their past. The conversation also highlights the incredible talent and potential of people with lived experience. Rob describes people who have experienced the system as an “untapped pool of genius and of talent.”

When Rebecca Figueroa gave birth to her fourth child, her right leg was chained to the hospital bed so tightly that the shackle left cut marks on her skin, she said.

Figueroa, then in her twenties and addicted to drugs, was awaiting trial in Suffolk County on low-level charges that were ultimately dismissed, she said. Nineteen years later, she still tears up as she thinks about how lonely and helpless she felt in that moment.

Michel Blot was reassigned from Bedford Hills Correctional Facility to Sing Sing after prisoners and advocates raised concerns.