 When Iredell closes, Superintendent Craig Hilliard will
transfer to Davidson Correctional Center and Assistant Superintendent Jim Bain will retire. |
STATESVILLE — When the inmates themselves
are sad that a prison is closing, that says a lot about the facility and the staff that
run it. Walk through the yard at Iredell Correctional Center and the inmates will tell
you just how upset they are over the closing of the prison. Inmate Ronald Hines will be
the first to admit that this response is highly unusual from inmates, but he said they all
know how good they’ve got it at Iredell.
"Inmates are usually glad when a prison is closing, but not
here," he said. "This has got everyone upset because we can’t understand
why Raleigh is closing this unit when everything is running so smoothly. This isn’t a
summer camp by no means, but it’s a good place to do your time with the furniture
school here and all the other programs. You know if you come here and do your job and
what’s expected of you, you will be treated fairly, and the staff shows an interest.
If you show you want help, they are here to help you. They make you want to do
right."
The inmates aren’t the only ones upset over Iredell’s closure.
The prison got the official word back in June that it would be closing after the General
Assembly passed the budget, shutting down seven small prisons across the state. Although
the prison had been on the list for quite some time, staff believed it would be spared
since the prison is the site of a successful furniture school and has the support of more
than 40 churches in the community. Throughout the year, church members regularly conduct
Bible study sessions at the prison and organize a number of other events during the
holidays such as an annual Thanksgiving dinner for the inmates, their families and the
staff. |
"It was a real shock when we got the word," said Jim Bain, assistant
superintendent. "I thought we’d be removed from the closure list. We have good
programs here, so we really thought they’d reconsider the closure. It was quite a
blow to everyone. We all felt a little let down."
Although the furniture school and Correction Enterprises’ furniture plant will
remain open with inmates being shipped in from Lincoln and Catawba correctional centers,
Superintendent Craig Hilliard said the staff believed the furniture school would be the
prison’s saving grace. He said 81 percent of the inmates who graduate from the
furniture school get jobs in the furniture industry upon their release and rarely return
to prison.
"I have not seen a single inmate that graduated from the furniture school come
back while I’ve been here," Hilliard said. "When I was at Piedmont,
I’d see the same inmates over and over. This program has done more to rehabilitate
inmates than any other program I know of."
Along with good programs, staff at Iredell are also upset that they will be losing good
friends. Over the years, Hilliard said the staff has become a close-knit family that asks
about each other’s children, gets together throughout the year for cookouts and
Christmas dinners, plays in golf and softball tournaments together and supports one
another in times of need.
Officer Myles Ireland said he will miss Iredell's family atmosphere. |
Officer Myles Ireland said the family atmosphere is one of
the things he is going to miss most about his job at Iredell. "It’s been like
family here. I’ve been here since 1981, and it’s been a lot of fun. It’s a
nice place to come to even though it’s a prison," he said. "I just
can’t believe it’s happening. Now our family is breaking up, and they want me to
go to Piedmont. That’s a 100-mile round trip everyday. I just don’t get no sense
out of it. A lot of good people left the department because of this."
One of those employees who decided to find another job instead of driving the extra
miles is Sgt. Doyle Summers. Summers said he had worked at Iredell for 10 years and had
planned to retire from the prison.
"I loved my job, and if they hadn’t decided to close the prison, I was
planning on doing my career here," he said. "But going to another facility was
just not an option for me." |
Although several staff members felt the same as Summers and turned in their
resignations rather than accepting positions elsewhere, Hilliard said personnel did a
tremendous job trying to accommodate everyone’s needs.
"I think personnel did an outstanding job placing staff," he said. "None
of my sergeants lost their stripes and most got their first or second choices. All in all,
the staff seemed more upbeat since they found out where they are going."
Although most of the staff are now looking forward to starting their new positions,
Program Supervisor Joe Huffman says leaving Iredell will not be easy.
"We are like a family and it’s really sad to think that they are going to
close this place up and that we are all going to go in our separate directions," he
said. "You are going to see tears from grown, adult men the day we all walk out of
here." u