New from PEP!

As a member of the PEP Family, once a month you'll receive our new newsletter, "From the Inside." We'll keep you updated on recent events at the Cleveland Unit, as well PEP's participation in outreach events across the country. More importantly, we'll update you on opportunities to get involved and stay invovled. PEP's success is built on a desire for change - and we can't do this without your help. Thanks for all YOU do!

Venture Capital Panel: Success!

PEP invited executives to join Class X in prison for our Venture Capital Panel on September 11, 2008. Class participants pitched their preliminary business concepts and executive guests provided feedback on their ideas prior to participants committing to a business plan. Despite the recent hurricanes, more than 20 executives contributed their time, energy and professional feedback to the Class X participants. Here's what some of our executive volunteers had to say about their experience:

"Venture Capital night was my first experience with PEP. I did not expect to see the high caliber of presentation skills that were exhibited by almost every PEP student. I also did not expect to see passion that every PEP student had for their proposed businesses. I came away with a great appreciation for the talent pool available with this team, and was blown away by the warm welcome that I received."
- Phil Collins, President, ECP Electrical Supply, Inc.



"Like every PEP event that I have attended the Venture Capital Panel reassured me that there is hope. Once again, a group of bright, intelligent men showed that even though their lives have taken some serious wrong turns, they can change. With commitment on their part and the kind of support that we should all offer to our fellow men, guys who otherwise seemed doomed to failure are, like the classes before them, on track to becoming successful contributing members of our society."
- John Hunter, President, National Sealants & Lubricants, Inc.

Interested in getting involved? Get more info here

First-hand from Class X

Every week, our participants journal about their experiences with PEP. We're excited to finally make these journals available to the broader PEP family on our website! Here are some impressions from Class X's first week with PEP:

Week 1: "In all my prison experience, never before have I walked through a 'tunnel of love.' Imagine opening up a door and seeing 60 other people standing face-to-face, side-by-side, arms extending high in the air, hands touching, to form a human tunnel. Then imagine them welcoming you through with hugs at the end. In prison.

This is not ordinary. It is extraordinary."

Read More Journals Here