Women leaving prisons in Alabama are given a one-way bus ticket, $10, and a t-shirt to start their new lives. For many, this is a sentence to return to their old lifestyles, with no hope for their future. Yet one woman, has built a bridge to restore hope into the lives of many women who are broken, hopeless, and in need of a hand. Brenda Spahn was much like many of the ladies she hugs each day at The Lovelady Center, a transitional program for women and children located in Birmingham, Alabama. In 2004, Brenda Spahn began housing five women on parole in her home. With eyebrows raised from many around her, she taught them how to cook, value themselves, and most importantly, shared with them the love of Christ. Within a short period of time, prisons were sending more women her way, and five quickly turned into forty. It was at this moment, The Lovelady Center, was birthed. Located in a former hospital building, in the heart of Birmingham, The Lovelady Center currently houses 450 women and children. Yet, this is not just any ordinary place. It is an opportunity for women to start over through physical, emotional, and spiritual renewal. It is a place where each woman is not considered by her past but embraced for her future and encouraged to be an active participant of society. The women entering the program have faced abuse, neglect, or a lifestyle altered by poor choices. Yet, when they enter the doors of this center, they are given all the tools they need break cycles of addiction and poverty and leave new women.

Women with drug and alcohol addictions must immediately undergo detox, facing stringent rules. Women are assigned a social worker and within two weeks they apply for a job either within or without the center. The in-house Job Placement Center connects women with businesses that are currently partnered with The Lovelady Center. They are given a place to stay, and rent is paid based on their income. Finally, they are clothed beyond their one t-shirt, and fed three meals a day, completely as a result of donations. They must also enroll in daily classes designed to pinpoint and change thinking patterns that often lead to poor choices that they have made. Although the spiritual component of the Center is voluntary, most women choose to participate because they understand that they cannot solely bring themselves

out, but with the help of God, they may experience true freedom.

BREAKING the CHAI N

SBY: JOINNE’ RUFF

Brenda Spahn, Founder

Throughout, the two-phase process, women are encouraged and mentored by established women in the Birmingham area. Their physical, emotional, and mental needs are met in this facility of almost 300,000 square feet. In addition, their children's needs are met.

Lovelady has a fully- serviced day care facility, known as Kids' Zone. School-aged children are enrolled in Restoration Academy, a private Christian school located in the inner-city. This partnership is new, yet children's lives are being changed daily. Services are held each Sunday, and local churches even sponsor game nights for Family Fun. Moms are given the opportunity to receive their GED through a partnership with a local community college, and may enroll in other classes based on their individual needs. If they become ill, they can receive care by registered nurses on campus. What about a haircut? Local stylists frequently volunteer their services for an occasional pick-me-up. All of this would not be possible without the countless support of local churches, donors, and the lady whom everyone lovingly refers to as "Ms. Brenda." Once women complete The Lovelady Center program, there is over a 90% chance that they will return to society as productive citizens. The Lovelady Center is the largest organization of its size in the United States that provides the numerous services for women and children. As a result, it serves as a model for other organizations. For many women, The Lovelady Center helped them to get their children back, their homes back, and their lives back. It is through the love of the Father and the love of countless volunteers and supporters that allow women to walk into their full potential as women of God equipped to make a difference in their lives and the lives of so many others.

Kayla, a Lovelady Baby