“Nole is a great example of how a person who makes a horrible mistake as a teenager can transform himself into a man who can make valuable contributions … In the 47 years he has been in prison (he was released in his 50th year), he has established a prison program designed to help prisoners and their families build stronger relationships,” Stephanie Jirard of PBS station WHYY wrote in a 2016 article, Time for a new approach to juvenile sentencing in Philadelphia. In that time, he served as a worship leader (Nole became a Christian in the early 1970s) and has received many community service awards, including the Spirit of Philadelphia award. Upon leaving the Pennsylvania corrections system, he continued his work with Christian ministries in outreach programs aimed at other inmates. According to the Yokefellowship Prison Ministry website, Nole is the co-director of the ministry’s Meeting at the Door program, a support system for recently released individuals. Yokefellowship, founded in the 1950s by D. Elton Trueblood, a Quaker college chaplain and top advisor to Dwight Eisenhower, helps support and counsel current and formerly incarcerated people across Pennsylvania. After a couple weeks of trying to get in touch with Mr. Nole through various organizations, an email address finally surfaced. He responded to my email immediately and was thrilled to speak about the project. “For me, I was excited to get the opportunity to talk about the changes people make while incarcerated. People want to demonize prisons and say that they don’t work,” said Nole. “Nothing is 100%, but a certain percentage of people that want to change, will, and need to be supported. You can’t paint all these people with such a broad brush.” He elaborated on the changes that have occurred within him over the 50 years he spent in the Pennsylvania prison system. “For me, it was realizing what I did when I was younger, because I didn’t see where I fit into the world. Now, I know whatever I did to go in, isn’t going to happen anymore,” he said. “I am gratified by all the people that helped me along.” Nole continues to work toward his goal of helping as many men as possible when they get out. His work with Meeting at the Door allows him to have a direct impact on the lives of these people coming back into society. “We brought a guy out earlier this month and got him right into a program. Took him up to Clearfield County (Pennsylvania), provided him with transportation, clothes and the resources he needed to try to get his life going. We service anyone that comes out, and partner with different organizations that help provide some of the goods and services.” Meeting at the Door also has a YouTube channel, featuring nine videos that highlight one or two newly free individuals each episode. Even with all the work Nole has done with prison outreach over the last forty years, finding a “normal” job after release has proven difficult.
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