“If you’re incarcerated, your opportunities for a launching pad to really be able to learn and find a career, find a vocation, and to be involved are pretty limited. There’s just not many options other than to just serve your time and then try to figure it out when it gets close to getting out. HOPE for Prisoners helps to create and guide individuals to these opportunities.”

Guy MartinMartin Harris Construction

“I’m sure that many of us have had family members who made a mistake at some point in their lives and back in the day there weren’t these kind of programs. We all need second chances. We need these individuals that HFP serves in our society. We need them in the jobs that are being created. We need them to be leaders within their own communities, within their own families and to show others the way. What is important is that we help clear the path for others.”

Dr. Fredrico ZaragozaCollege of Southern Nevada

“When we are meeting with companies that are interested in relocating to Southern Nevada and looking at new communities, there are always two things that these companies want to know about. One is “ Is there enough water for me to have a sustainable business here?” The next is to ask me about the workforce. They ask, “Will I have a pipeline of employees that I can draw from”? I love to be able to answer “Yes!”and Hope for Prisoners, in particular this new vocational center is a key part of that emphatic answer.”

Tina QuigleyLas Vegas Global Economic Alliance

“It is about those intangible elements that we were taught by our forefathers that add value to business. The pool, if you will, in Southern Nevada needs to be enhanced. We believe that the re-entry population will serve as a vital source as we continue to grow as a valley. HFP clients are coachable, they are teachable. Southern Nevada believes in second chances, and we need to afford these men and women the opportunity to come home and not only have sustainable income but to attract an excellent quality of life.”

Cecil FielderWorkforce Connections

“The vocational work that Hope for Prisoners is doing is not only out of the box thinking and creative, but it is something that is necessary. These folks that are doing their time will be coming out trained and equipped. We need to turn them into taxpayers and make sure that they never go back in and become and asset to the employee base that is so needed in this community.”

Peter GuzmanLatin Chamber of Commerce Nevada

“In today’s labor market, there are more job openings than workers ready to fill them. Second chances are no longer just a social imperative. They have become a business imperative. The Vocational Village will help fill the talent gap. That’s why the village includes an embedded American Job Center, the EmployNV Career Hub. By bringing together more resources, we can produce a more sustainable talent pipeline. “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime”.”

Jaime CruzExecutive Director, Workforce Connections