N.C. Department of Correction--Correction News--December 1997

NORTH PIEDMONT CORRECTIONAL CENTER FOR WOMEN DEDICATED

New prison adds space for 104

Lexington - Superintendent Annie Harvey warmly greeted guests as they arrived for the dedication of North Piedmont Correctional Center for Women Nov. 19. The new minimum-custody prison holds 104 inmates. That brings the state’s prison capacity up to 26,517 beds, up 7,592 beds since Dec. 1993.

In her dedication remarks Harvey talked about the support the staff had been given from the community. "You would not believe the miracles that have occurred," Harvey said. "In corrections, you have to bring what you have to the job to give it away, serving the people who have been lost by the wayside. There’s not much left when you go home." Harvey thanked the community for its strong support.

Correction Secretary Mack Jarvis talked about the jobs inmates would be doing, working in the community on two work squads, cleaning and making clothes from donated dolls that will be given to the Social Services Department, and some inmates will be on work release, preparing for their return to the community. Jarvis pointed out that North Carolina was the first state in the country to start a work release program. Davidson Community College instructors will lead parenting classes. "I hope all of us will come to see this building as a place where lives can change," Jarvis said.

Assistant Superintendent Mike Davis closed the ceremony saying, "I would like to emphasize that this facility is being dedicated in part to all communities. We, as a community of corrections, coexist with every neighborhood in every county of the state of North Carolina. The inmates represent an element of our community as well. They’re our neighbors, the people in our grocery stores and churches. They’re the mothers of the children who sit with our children in classrooms every day. We sincerely hope to put those inmates back into our communities better off than when they came."

Comments by Secretary Mack Jarvis

NC DOC Correction News- December 1997
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