When one neighbor hits another in the nose, Mather helps them to reach an agreement to help the guilty neighbor avoid going to court. Staff member Pete Reedy tries to find jobs for inmates leaving prison. Actually, his file isn't that thick. The stigma remains that ex-cons don't make the best workers. But as all of the staff members have told me, Friends Outside isn't for everybody.
Failures come with the territory.
But for one day at least, a Christmas party, thoughts of prison will be left behind for the children. Rich Pfeiffer recalls that when he was in prison, his son attended one of the Friends outside Christmas parties. The boy's face lit up when told that the present for him was from his father. Certainly, it's the crime victims who suffer most, and deserve our thoughts during the holidays. But guilty defendants cause pain all around.