While COVID has impacted our newsletter for almost a year now, we are ready to get back on track. The pandemic only increased the needs of those we serve, and a big shout out goes to all the staff and volunteers who stood side-by-side with our program participants throughout. In2Action has been fortunate to only have only three residents (out of over 50) test positive for COVID, while four of our staff contracted the virus. All have recovered.

Just to update everyone, in2Action now has twenty Phase-1 beds, ten Phase-2 beds, and six Phase-3 beds. We have the capacity to house ten in2Action graduates in our apartments which are set up to provide longer term independent and unsubsidized housing. As many of you know, in2Action purchased 3.5 acres in Columbia with four structures adjacent to two existing in2Action houses. All our residents now reside on the same 4 acres – including our program graduates in the apartments. Phase-3 residents are the only exception, and they are two blocks away. This is a dream come true. In2Action is very much relationship driven following a “Social Model” so it’s incredible to see the culture developing on our campus.

So far in 2021, we had over a dozen people attend Cabin Fever, a Narcotics Anonymous convention at Lake of the Ozarks having over a thousand people in attendance. Donated tickets to the Mizzou-Alabama basketball game provided several others to see a historic Mizzou win over an 8th ranked team. Super Bowl Sunday included pizza, wings, and nachos and even the Chiefs fans reported having a great time. Most meaningful however was the arrival of a healthy “Enzo”, the wonderful newborn of one of our graduates and his wife. What God is doing at in2Action is simply spectacular to watch!

In addition to the successful transition services, we provide to people recently released from jail or prison at our in2Action campus, we have also partnered with the Department of Mental Health and the Department of Corrections to serve people in the Improving Community Treatment Success (ICTS) Program. This is an effort to take the highest risk people in our community and providing them the supports and resources needed to be successful. And success is what we are seeing with the ten beds we have in Columbia and the seven beds we have in Jefferson City. We have additionally partnered with the 13th Judicial Circuit here in Boone County to provide residential services to people in court programs. These four beds are provided to people in Veterans Court, Treatment Court, DWI Court, and Mental Health Court. Finally, our Reentry Opportunity Center (The ROC), is staying very busy providing services to everyone else in the community who is not participating in one of our residential programs.

2020 was a tough year but we grew only stronger and better because of the adversity. We look forward to better tomorrow when we can again hug and shake hands and sit in groups together. But until then – we are serving people TODAY that need our help.