operationvarsityblues

April 17 2019

Radio Interview: Jeff Discussed the 150th Meeting of the World’s First Online White Collar Support Group on WGCH 1490 Greenwich

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Jeff was interviewed by Tony Savino, News Director of WGCH on April 17, 2019. Big thanks to Tony, Jim Campbell and all at WGCH for all your support. Details below.

Listen to the radio interview (starts at 0:26):

Event: World’s First Confidential Online White Collar/Nonviolent Support Group will Celebrate Its 150th Meeting, April 22, 2019, 7 pm ET

Greenwich, CT – (April 9, 2019) – Progressive Prison Ministries, Inc. (www.prisonist.org) proudly announces that it will be hosting the 150^th consecutive weekly meeting of the world’s first and only confidential Online White Collar/Nonviolent Support Group on Monday, April 22^nd at 7:00 pm EDT.

Jeff Grant, J.D., M.Div., who developed and hosts the meeting, explained the significance of the milestone meeting. “We are extremely proud that this group gets bigger and better each week. When we started the group three years ago, we had a dream that people with white collar/nonviolent criminal justice issues living in shame, guilt, fear and isolation could form a supportive community to accept full responsibility for our behavior, make amends, and embrace a new life of compassion, empathy and kindness. We support each other and reach out to others suffering in silence.”

Every Monday evening, Progressive Prison Ministries, through its popular criminal justice resource site prisonist.org, hosts the one-hour meeting. Attendance is steadily increasing. “We’ve had over 125 men and women participating from 21 different states – and overseas,” Grant said.

“While everyone who participates in the forum has been prosecuted for a white collar or nonviolent crime, the group is solution oriented and dedicated to understanding and encouragement,” Grant explained.

Several individuals from the group have volunteered their testimonies online.

“This support group has given me an opportunity to share my thoughts, concerns and emotional trauma with a compassionate and understanding group of people who all traveled a similar journey…” said Jeffrey Abramowitz, Pennsylvania

“Finding the group was such a turning point for me as I was lost. The group helped me with my immense feelings of guilt and how to overcome issues that I never knew would exist for me…” Jacqueline Polverari, Connecticut

”I wish that there would have been a White-Collar Support Group when I got out of prison over ten years ago… my pain curve would not have been so steep.” Douglas Mairena, Virginia

Grant explained, “Most white-collar criminals can’t go back to their old lives and careers, so what choice do they really have? Why not embrace a completely new life, with new options, and new opportunities centered on spirituality and doing the right things? The most fortunate are those who figure out that their attempts to solve problems in isolation are not working, and that they no longer have to go it alone.”

For those who would like to participate each week, Progressive Prison Ministries sends out login instructions with a unique link for that week’s meeting. Participants choose to login via video on a computer, tablet or smart phone that is equipped with a camera, or audio only via phone. Support group information and contact information is at https://prisonist.org/white-collar-support-group. Those currently on supervised release, probation or parole, MUST first discuss participation in the group with their parole or probation officer.

About Progressive Prison Ministries: Established in 2012 in Greenwich, Connecticut, Progressive Prison Ministries is the world’s first ministry created to support individuals, families and organizations with white-collar and other nonviolent incarceration issues. More information is available at Progressive Prison Ministries and on its social media channels: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

About Progressive Prison Ministries’ Co-Founders:

Co-founders Jeff Grant and Lynn Springer were recently featured in a twelve-page article in Greenwich Magazine: “The Redemption of Jeff Grant,” March 2018 issue. Jeff is also the former Executive Director of Family ReEntry, a Bridgeport, CT based criminal justice organization. After an addiction to prescription opioids and serving almost fourteen months in a Federal prison for a white-collar crime he committed when he was a lawyer, Jeff began his own reentry – earning a Master of Divinity from Union Theological Seminary in New York City with a focus in Christian Social Ethics.

For additional information: Rev. Jeff Grant, J.D., M.Div., (203) 405-6249; info@prisonist.org, website: prisonist.org.

April 16 2019

Forbes: White-Collar Defendants Have A Place To Go For Support, by Walt Pavlo. Progressive Prison Ministries Celebrates its 150th Online White Collar Support Group Meeting.

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By Walt Pavlo, Reprinted from Forbes.com, April 16, 2019

White collar defendants (felons) face a number of obstacles. Many face their past demons and attempt to make amends with victims, family and friends. It is a difficult road and one where there are few supporters. It is a lonely journey discovering how to make people trust again, how to find purpose and how to find forgiveness.

Jeff Grant is celebrating a milestone for providing a support group for white collar defendants … its 150th support group meeting. His life was changed by prison. After an addiction to prescription opioids and serving almost fourteen months in Federal prison for a white-collar crime years, Grant, by then a disbarred attorney, chose a new path. He earned Master of Divinity from Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York, with a focus in Christian Social Ethics and has since co-founded Progressive Prison Ministries.

Progressive Prison Ministries in Greenwich, Connecticut offer an online white-collar/nonviolent support group. They hold their meetings on Monday evenings, 7:00pm to 8:15 pm Eastern and white collar defendants talk about life, forgiveness, coping with the consequences and moving beyond the experience. The program is unique because it proclaims to be the first confidential white-collar/ nonviolent online support group of its kind. As this support group is run by ordained clergy, Grant said that he expects law enforcement will honor what he believes falls under clergy privilege laws. Such privileges vary by state. Florida’s 2018 statute 90.505 “Privilege with respect to communications to clergy” states that:

A person has a privilege to refuse to disclose, and to prevent another from disclosing, a confidential communication by the person to a member of the clergy in his or her capacity as spiritual adviser

Grant told me, “We are extremely proud and grateful to reach this milestone for the group. When we started the group nearly three years ago, we had a dream that people with white collar issues living in shame, guilt, fear and isolation could form a supportive community that would embrace compassion, empathy and kindness for each other.” Through taking his message online, he has expanded reach to states across the country. “People are living with issues in isolation and that benefits nobody,” Grant said.

Grant also co-hosts of a popular radio show and podcast, where he and Babz Rawls Ivy talk to a number of guests on various criminal and social justice issues.

White collar cases are often complex and the motivations different. One can imagine the cases involving the college entry scandal (known as “Operation Varsity Blues”) is exposing a number of people to an unfamiliar and punitive federal justice system. While those involved (alleged to be involved) in drug cases and other crimes have known the effects of this justice system for years, many white collar defendants are overwhelmed by the consequences.

Grant told me that his 150th meeting is a huge step in forming a community of individuals and families facing incarceration issues; suffering in silence with shame, remorse, and deep regret. Grant said, “Many of us have been stigmatized by our own families, friends and communities, and the business community. Our goal is to learn and evolve into a new spiritual way of life centered on hope, care, compassion, tolerance and empathy, and then to reach out to offer all those suffering from these issues.“

If you would like to be involved in this online White Collar support group, I’m sure that they would welcome your visit to www.prisonist.org.

_______________________

About Walt Pavlo:

Walt is a recognized expert on federal white-collar criminal matters and consults with defendants and attorneys on case strategy, You can reach him at waltpavlo@500PearlStreet.com.

Walter Pavlo

Contributor

I established 500 Pearl Street as a strategic consulting firm for attorneys and their clients as an advisor on federal criminal cases. I write here on criminal justice matters, particularly related to white collar crime, and speak nationally on the topic. In 2007, I released the book “Stolen Without A Gun” with Neil Weinberg, former Executive Editor Forbes Magazine (now a Reporter for Bloomberg).