Finding transportation can be hard if you’ve been incarcerated. How one North Side church is working to fix that. | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Devin Blake
October 5, 2023
Getting a ride somewhere may seem like a small thing.
But it can make a huge difference for those who are returning to the community after being incarcerated as those rides can be hard to come by.
A North Side church, Invisible Reality Ministries, plans to help, one ride at a time.
The Rev. Willie Davis Jr., senior pastor and founder of Invisible Reality, said he began thinking about how best to support people who have been incarcerated after being regularly approached by returning citizens and their families.
The church, located at 2700 N. 54th St., has roughly 250 members. Davis estimates that about half are people who have been incarcerated or have family members who have been incarcerated.
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Many of the individuals who approached Davis were looking for financial support and job training. But in addition to those needs, Davis noticed that many – mostly men – had some sort of chronic illness for which they were having trouble getting adequate medical care.
Davis worked with other church and community members with the goal of becoming “a hub of the community” by helping organize and enhance services for them.
For example, every Tuesday, students from the nursing program at Alverno College provide free medical help at the church to any returning citizen who wants it as well as to members of the general public.
But arranging transportation, especially for those who are just being released from custody, has proven somewhat more elusive.
The church has engaged with correctional facilities, including both county- and state-run facilities. Their bureaucracies, however, have taken time to navigate, Davis said.
It’s just been very, very difficult contacting someone who can actually answer the questions,” he said.
So far, Davis said, the church has had the most success with the Milwaukee County Community Reintegration Center, or CRC.
The church has proposed a system where CRC staff can call its members on behalf of people who do not have a ride to places like a shelter or a treatment facility, said Kylie Shaw, prison ministry coordinator at Invisible Reality.
“We’re also looking to invite other churches to get involved,” said Davis. “Again, this is a huge issue.”
In an email, David Rugaber, assistant superintendent at CRC, called the proposal from the church “intriguing” and added it “could benefit our residents.”
For returning citizens, said Davis, time is of the essence.
Reliable transportation can help people pursue the  services and programs they need when they get out, Anthony Dodd Sr., assistant superintendent at CRC, said in an email.
Rugaber estimated that 50 to 70 people are released from the CRC every week, with the majority of them having a Milwaukee address.
“By ensuring residents have transportation access, we greatly enhance their capacity to engage in these vital activities promptly,” Dodd said.
To learn more, people can reach Invisible Reality Ministries at invisiblerealitypm@outlook.com or call 414-231-3363.
Devin Blake is the criminal justice reporter for the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service. His position is funded by the Public Welfare Foundation, which plays no role in editorial decisions in the NNS newsroom.