Ex-Offenders Benefit From Job Training Program

“My name is Maurice, and I’m a graduate of Project CRAFT. Project craft is a carpentry, construction trade school that helps youth out in the community.”

Project CRAFT (Community Restitution Apprenticeship Focused Training) is a national program that was created in 1994 to provide training for high-risk youth and juvenile offenders.

The Baltimore arm of Project CRAFT, which is located in the rear of an old hardware store on Greenmount Avenue, has been operating for just over a year. Maurice entered the program in January.

“I used to get locked up for distribution, CDS. I was a troubled kid, and I wanted to try something different.”

Maurice, who’s 17, came to Project CRAFT after being locked-up for six months at a juvenile facility.

“The last time got locked up and I realize how stupid it was. When I was young, I use to think it was cool, I’m not going to lie to you.  I was only 13, you thought  getting locked up would make me hard, especially the way TV made it look. You think you gonna be a hard boy to get locked up.
When you go there, it’s not even about being hard anymore. It’s like ‘this is all I’m going to do. I’m in the juvenile system with other little kids. Kids from nine to my age, and then there were kids older than me acting like they nine. I said this not going to work for me. Maybe I grew up in jail. My mind just expanded. I prayed, I guess that worked.  It was just painful. It wasn’t no scary stuff. It was like I was bored out my mind. I didn’t want to do that with my life – I wanted to do something different.”

Project CRAFT instructors Mike Hearty and Matthew Craig have guided Maurice through his training.

“If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t’ have made it through the program, for real. They come at you from supervisor to worker when it’s time, when it’s that place. But when we off, about to leave or when we on break they come at you friend to friend, brother to brother type thing. They talk to you. Project CRAFT has become just like an extension of my family. We do a lot more here than just construction training. And when you see kids taking advantage of all the opportunities we trying to provide like Maurice, it’s just great validation.”

MIKE HEARTY: “Our next graduate currently holding the record for the fastest progression through our program. Maurice, come up here.”

MAURICE “I just want to say thank you to everybody, especially my mother right there in the back. I feel good about my future. I can see it happen, it’s happening before my eyes in a way. I feel good about everything going on a good path.”

CRYSTAL, MAURICE’S MOTHER: “It’s nice to see how far he’s come, I’m glad he’s taking it seriously. I didn’t think he would in the beginning. I actually got a chance to witness what he does here. And I’m happy, and I’m pretty sure that he’s happy. He doesn’t complain about it, so that tells me that he likes it.”

Maurice knows the temptations of his old life will be constant.

“Bad gonna always knock on your door. You just gotta know how to handle it when it come.  It’s basically keeping myself occupied. I can say no, but when I get bored, it’s like what else is there to do when you get bored. I think everybody … they don’t have enough time to do things, they don’t have enough things to do with their time. I still feel good about my future – better than I did last year. So, I mean, that’s progress.”