SPRINGFIELD, IL - Stanwood Griffith of Ashton was named as the 2006 Volunteer of the Year for the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) at a recognition ceremony held at the agency's general headquarters in Springfield April 26. Griffith was among volunteers of 43 correctional facilities being honored for their outstanding leadership and support at IDOC. Griffith was recognized for his dedication and longstanding commitment of enriching the lives of inmates through prison ministry.

Griffith began his volunteer service at Dixon Correction Center in 1991 and serves as a regular volunteer with the Northern Illinois Prison Fellowship Ministry. As part of his volunteer efforts, he has facilitated bringing other Prison Fellowship volunteers into the Dixon Correction Center and has since worked closely with Prison Fellowship to provide structured Bible study for inmates.

Griffith is an active member of the Ashton Bible Church since 1960. In addition to other various church involvements, he is responsible for coordinating the annual Angel Tree Program. Griffith is also an active volunteer and lifetime member of the Gideon International Society. After joining Gideon in 1964, he has traveled extensively distributing Bibles in hotels, hospitals, prisons and convalescent homes. He additionally, conducts Bible study classes at the Lee and Ogle County jails as well as goes cell-by-cell at the Pontiac Correctional Center on a quarterly basis. Griffith is also an active member of the Toastmaster Club.

In 1944 as an enlisted man in the U.S. Air Force, Griffith was given a Bible. “As I looked back at the time I received my first Bible in the military, I could see how God was using circumstances to prepare my heart,” he said. Griffith also once noted that “we don't have to go overseas to reach a mission field because we have them just within our reach and minutes from our homes.”

“Mr. Griffith has established and maintained an atmosphere in his Bible study classes that has changed the attitude of the inmates, thus allowing them to experience spiritual growth, personal renewal and an improved lifestyle with family members,” said Senior Correctional Chaplain Larry Jones. “Mr. Griffith is regarded highly by staff and has a good work attitude.”

During the agency's ceremony, IDOC Director Roger E. Walker Jr. praised all the department's volunteers for their efforts in providing positive change in the lives of inmates and helping them prepare for a better tomorrow. Walker also emphasized that volunteers serve as the “glue that bonds our society and helps keep it strong.”

“This year's theme, ‘Volunteers…Everyday Heroes,' is quite fitting for the world we live in today,” Walker said. “Those who strive for the betterment of mankind must seek it first by touching the spirit. You don't have to be rich and famous to make a difference in the lives of others. All you have to do is show that you care.”

“More than 5,000 volunteers provide programs and services that otherwise would not be available to the incarcerated men, women and youth located within the Illinois Department of Corrections,” said Chief of Community Outreach / Special Assistant to the Director Dennis R. Cooper. “During the past year, IDOC volunteers have donated more than $2 million in time and goods to the inmates.”

At IDOC, volunteers assist in various ways ranging from mentoring and meeting the religious needs of inmates to offering alcohol and drug rehabilitation such as Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous. Volunteers also hold church services, Bible studies as well as parenting, art, music, poetry and literacy classes.

IDOC operates 27 adult and eight juvenile correctional centers, eight adult transition centers as well as various work camps and boot camps. The department is responsible for managing more than 80,000 inmates and parolees.