MEET OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
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Bessie ElmoreFor over 25 years, Bessie Elmore, co-founder and Executive Director of Straight Talk Support Group, has worked in the field of self-help as a support group facilitator and counselor in domestic violence. She is also an advocator for incarcerated individuals and their families. Bessie designs programs for ex-offenders, domestic violence victims and grandparents raising their grandchildren as Founder and CEO of Turning Corners Alliance. Since 2013 she has been reaching out to established organizations and esteemed individuals to create a platform for families of incarcerated individuals and returning citizens to help put their broken pieces together. The Osborne Support Group in New York was very instrumental throughout the developmental stages of Straight Talk Support Group in its mission to assist families in North Carolina.
After hosting Straight Talk’s first open house, with a reception of more than one hundred interested supporters, Bessie began to grind her gears. She started reaching out and received consultation from W. David Guice, Commissioner of the Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice for the North Carolina’s Dept. of Public Safety and entered into discussions with Harvard University’s Professor Bruce Western about reentry and the role families have in combating recidivism. Authoritarians in the field of mass incarcerations, such as Megan Comfort, author of Doing Time Together and Gina Davis of the Essie Group, have aided Bessie in her plight to bring Straight Talk’s visions to fruition. To keep abreast of current events and issues coming down the pipeline she attends conferences, as well as those held at the Burlington’s Reentry Symposium and Raleigh’s Reentry Council Meetings. This has opened up a multitude of opportunities including possibly collaborating with icons such as Bryan Stevenson, author of Just Mercy and founder of Equal Justice Initiative; and Nicole Sullivan, Director of Rehabilitative Programs and Services of Adult Corrections. Her expertise is often called upon to deliver presentations on job readiness and building strong family units for incarcerated individuals counting those conducted at the Federal Correctional Complex in Butner, NC. She has participates annually in Our Children’s Place’s Family Day events at Orange Correctional Facility in Hillsboro, NC. “As the mother of a man who has just finished serving 24 years in prison, I know firsthand that there is nothing easy about keeping connections alive. From the outside, prison looks like a dark hole and all of the rules are up for grabs. Someone is sick… Someone is angry…Someone is lonely…Someone tells you leave me alone…Someone calls crying out for help every day…Someone asks for money… and Someone says nah, I’m all right.” “I have been on that roller coaster and it is a hard, lonely ride. That’s why I started Straight Talk Support Group. Nobody can stop the confusion, but do not head out there alone.” Email: [email protected] Phone: (919)448-7394 |
MEET OUR STAFF
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Marvin BullockMr. Marvin Bullock is one of our Weekend Monitors. Mr. Bullock Iives in Raleigh, N.C. now. He is from a small town on the East Coast, where he experienced homelessness and became addicted after serving in the USMC. He got into recovery after moving to Raleigh and joining a program called Healing Transitions. Mr. Bullock completed their program and actually moved on to become employed with Healing Transitions for almost 18 years. He worked in the detox/shelter helping other homeless and addicted men. Through this employment, Mr. Bullock learned the joy of helping others and service work. Mr. Bullock is happy to be part of the STSG team to have another opportunity to give back support that was given to him in his time of need. STSG is grateful to have Mr. Bullock, his skills, and his lived experience on our staff team, his recovery is motivating to the residents of STSG transitional house.
Email: [email protected] |
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Edward ScottMr. Edward Scott is STSG's Weekend Monitor. Mr. Scott has been involved with STSG for multiple years. He is now a Peer Support Specialist and works with other organizations within the community that help justice involved individuals re-acclimate to society. These organizations are Wounded Healers and Success While In Transition (SWIT). Through his work as a peer support specialist and a monitor at STSG, Mr. Scott feels he has improved his listening and communication skills that are necessary when working with justice involved individuals during their transition. Mr. Scott is also the co-founder for a wonderful landscaping business called Comm.Unity.Based Landscaping. STSG is grateful to have such a motivated and reliable staff member on our team.
Email: [email protected] |
MEET OUR BOARD
ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS
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STEPHEN MADDOXStephen Louis Maddox was born in Hempstead, New York. At the age of 19, Stephen moved to Durham, North Carolina with the ambition of earning a piece of the American dream. Stephen earned a position at IBM and worked 3rd shift on the personal computer manufacturing line while attending college during the day. During Stephen’s 12+ year career at IBM, he received dozens of recognition awards for his leadership ability as well as several promotions that ultimately resulted in the start of his professional career. Stephen has worked in his community with families that were impacted by social, economic, drug addiction, and mental health disabilities.
In 2015 Stephen used justified force to save his life from a violent attack that resulted in him being charged with 1st Degree Murder. It was Stephen’s childhood and the exposure to what he had witnessed during the work that he had done in his community of Durham that gave him the strength to fight the State of North Carolina in a two-year battle to ultimately win a not guilty verdict in two-week Murder 1 trial. Less than two months after Stephen’s “not guilty” verdict, he started a non-profit organization called A Community of One that is committed to raising awareness in the criminal justice system by drafting reform language and creating new protocols. |
GOVERNING BOARD MEMBERS
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CELINA LOW JONESA community builder and mindfulness mentor, Celina advocates for liberation of the mind and heart. The transformation of incarcerated youth and adults she witnessed as an in-prison counselor, has inspired her to serve as a compassion-warrior for at-risk children. Celina holds a Master of Arts in infant and early childhood development. She is certified in contemplative psychotherapy and trained in mindfulness-based emotional intelligence, a model developed for the incarcerated population to build communication, conflict resolution, as well as resourcing and resiliency skills. Celina currently works with children of all ages and aspires to do more for children of incarcerated caregivers. Her work centers on relational learning, life-skills building, and contemplative wisdom. She is currently pursuing her doctorate degree in infant and early childhood development with a special interest in mindfulness. Joyfully married to a wonderful being, Celina lives as a global citizen travelling between the U.S. and Asia.
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CHERYL MCDONALDIs an Administrative Professional with over 20 years of experience working in private corporations and local government. She has been a facilitator with Turning Corners Alliance since 2002. Cheryl firmly believes that families should be educated with as much information available to them in order to help themselves and their loved ones who are incarcerated.
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SUSAN SIMONE“Simone” began prison work as a volunteer for the Paul Green Foundation, coordinating the Prison Pen Pal Project, matching professional writers with incarcerated writers – and leading writing workshops with poet Jaki Shelton-Green. In 2008 Simone started a weekly workshop at Orange Correctional Center. In 2012 William Elmore joined the workshop, introduced Simone to his mother, Bessie Elmore, and the Straight Talk Support Group.
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VE’GA J. SWEPSONVe’ga J-Swepson is a human services professional with a concentration in and mental health and academia. Her experience and expertise have enabled her to now serve as Resource Specialist at Durham Technical Community College. Ve’ga has provided facilitation, instruction and management at Wake Technical Community College and North Carolina State University. She also has twenty plus years of experience providing case management and intervention services as a Qualified Developmental Disabilities Professional (QP) in Orange, Durham and Wake counties as well as within private agencies.
She completed both her Bachelor of Science in Therapeutic Recreation and Master of Science in Recreation Management degrees at North Carolina Central University. Ms. Ve’ga enjoys supporting her students, consumers and other youth with community, educational and employment endeavors. Ms. Swepson is a Girl Scout Leader in Durham County and volunteers at Community Success Initiative, Inc. and for various community events. |
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WILLIAM ELMOREWilliam, professional public speaker, whose topics focus on social justice, mass incarceration, school to prison pipelines, teens thinking smart, prison ministry and reentry and life beyond prison. He was the 2016 Abraham Galloway Fellow from Duke Divinity’s School for Conversion to serve at the organization’s Reentry Expert in their Church Beyond the Walls program. He is also a mentor and Volunteer Outreach Coordinator for Reintegration Support Network (RSN), a program that serves teens during drug recovery. William also provides personal service as a certified restorative justice mediator, consultant for prison preparedness and personal fitness instructor.
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ZELDA EVERSON- BOARD CHAIRZelda Everson is a non-profit consultant with twenty-three years of experience in board responsibilities, organizing operations and program development. She is the co-founder and executive director for SYSTAs 4 SYSTAs, Inc., a 501 (c)3 nonprofit, focusing on at-risk youth and female empowerment. Zelda is also a writer, author and content developer specializing in curriculum and proposals with a passion for social and criminal justice advocacy.
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