After a 1,500 mile drive to Louisiana's Washington Correctional Institute (WCI), corrections staff from Norfolk County Sheriff's Office in Massachusetts were stunned to see that the devastation from Hurricane Katrina was still glaringly obvious.

“It looked like the storm had happened last week, not three months ago,” says Jason Dickie, Assistant Deputy Superintendent of Operations for Norfolk County Sheriff's Office. “We saw the total destruction of houses when we got down into Washington Parish.”

Although the WCI facility, which is roughly 80 miles north of New Orleans, managed to survive the hurricane with less damage than buildings on the coast, the staff at Norfolk Co. realized that their fellow corrections officers were still in need.

“There was information that just came back about WCI – it was devastated and initial reports were coming back that they weren't getting the same media exposure as New Orleans Parish so there was a need identified there,” Dickie says. “Their employees were right in the line of devastation, so we wanted to help.”
 
So Norfolk Co. staff and Sheriff Michael Bellotti organized various fundraisers, from golf tournaments to T-shirt sales, raising $20,000 in funds and collecting bins full of clothing, canned goods and toiletries to donate. After piling the donations into a truck, five officers recently made a three-day trek to Louisiana to deliver the supplies directly to WCI – and also adopted it as a “sister” facility, offering as much help and support as possible to fellow officers that needed it. WCI and its staff are grateful for the gesture.

“I think our staff realizes more than ever that we truly have brothers and sisters in corrections,” says WCI's Warden Robert Tanner. “It's a shame that something like [Hurricane Katrina] happened, but it was a blessing to see all of the help. It really did put a lump in your throat when you saw the outreach from the corrections family. I was so proud of corrections staff – our staff, and the staff that came to help us. I mean, you could tell our staff was just exhausted - but they were still here and they were still doing their jobs.”

Going Above and Beyond

The staff from Norfolk Co. also felt pride in corrections when they met their brothers and sisters in Washington Parish – especially upon their arrival at the facility.

“They genuinely appreciated what we did,” says Sergeant Bob Durgin. “That's what made it worth it in the end. I didn't think what we were showing up with would be that big of a deal – but people were sincerely thanking us, telling us that it really mattered, that it was going to help some people that lost everything.”

Sara Deshler, a caseworker at Norfolk Co. and trip participant, echoed the sentiment and said she has found a new family in corrections – and had respect for the officers in Louisiana.

“I think the whole impact the trip had was [felt] when we actually arrived at the prison,” says Deshler. “We were not as prepared as we thought for the mental and emotional impact it would have on us. You heard of officers who turned in their badges – but these people worked every day, didn't miss a shift – these people make me proud to be part of the corrections brother and sisterhood.”

Although it was reported that some law enforcement officers abandoned their posts following Katrina, Tanner says that many officers at WCI barely missed a shift – despite facing serious personal tragedies.

“We had corrections officers that came into work the very next day that had five trees thrown onto their houses, destroying their homes,” says Tanner. “Some of us had no electricity for weeks and continued to come to work. When you're going through an experience like this, it's miserable and depressing – but we know we have a job to do. Our people are showing up for work.”

WCI's retired Warden James D. Miller says that the reactions by corrections staff to the disaster – from Louisiana, Massachusetts and across the nation – disproved the negative stereotypes of corrections officers.

“I think the public perception of corrections staff is that they are cold, uncaring individuals that work in this type of environment, says Miller. “But the assistance we've gotten from across the nation just shows that the public perception of corrections is wrong.”

Fundraising for Corrections Family

After the 28-hour drive down to Louisiana, Norfolk Co. staff – including Dickie, Burgin, Deshler and Officer Edward Burke and Unit Manager Rocco Bruno – were welcomed to the facility with open arms with many of the corrections officers from WCI waiting outside the building to greet them. Norfolk Co. staff also toured WCI and met their newly adopted corrections family in the south. The sister facility received a number of donations from its counterpart up north. And the donations were obviously needed for officers at the WCI facility.
 
“We used a number of different methods for fundraising,” says Dickie. “We had a clothing drive; we sold t-shirts and fleece jackets, and Katrina Relief bracelets to raise proceeds. It was a combined effort between the Sheriff and the two unions we have here – the whole organization, all of these bodies included, put it together that they were going to get the t-shirts made, distribute the bracelets. It really was a team effort.”

The funds donated by Norfolk Co. went directly to their brothers and sisters employed at WCI.

“They made their [donation] check out to our WCI employee relief fund,” says Tanner, who also established an Employee Relief Committee composed of staff and civilian staff from the various teams. “The committee has been working, from the very beginning, to coordinate needs of the employees with the supplies that were coming in,” he said.

Helping the Community; Looking Ahead

Although various committees were set up to help distribute relief to employees, staff at WCI didn't stop there. According to Tanner, things got more involved when they began to help the community. Shortly after the hurricane, officers and inmates at WCI began a Red Cross distribution center in the parking lot of the facility, handing out water, ice and MREs to citizens who desperately needed them. According to Miller, going above and beyond was just part of his job.

“To me, this boiled down to what I see is my job as warden at this facility,” Miller says. “We are working in corrections – so we are considered public servants, in a way. So since we had the manpower, it was just a natural thing to do to help these people and set up a Red Cross station in the parking lot.”

Miller adds that the supply distribution centers were helpful for citizens – and inmates too.

“It also instilled a sense of pride in our inmates,” Miller says. “Eighty percent of our inmates were from places that were hit much harder. But for us to give assistance, they got a sense that they were helping in some way. It assisted not only our public interest, but also instilled a sense of self-worth in our inmates.”

And receiving assistance from afar showed WCI they were not alone. Norfolk Co. was joined by corrections agencies from across the nation to offer supplies and support.

“Other agencies have come through,” says Tanner. “I hesitate to name names, for fear I'll miss some of the others – all of the agencies that sent in help were amazing. It helped us tremendously to have all of these people reaching out to us - it just made us feel better to know that somebody thousands of miles away was concerned about our welfare.”

According to Dickie, the relationship between Norfolk Co. and WCI will remain strong for a long time to come.

“If they ever have a need again,” Dickie says, “I know that we will be more than willing to stay the course with them to make sure that their families get the recovery and anything we can do from this point, we would all be more than willing to help make sure they got back up on their feet.”

And it seems the feeling is mutual – Norfolk Co. might have a visitor return the favor sometime soon.

“I anticipate that we will continue a relationship with Norfolk County,” says Miller in his drawl. “I'd like to make a trip up there when I retire to visit with them, certainly.”