// A LETTER FROM OUR CEO

Chris Valka, Chief Executive Officer

For the past few months, I have been striving for simplicity. For 22 years, PEP has evolved in response to the complexity of its work – helping incarcerated men transform their lives, restore their families and make a positive contribution to their community. What began as an in-prison business program spanning a few weeks has evolved into an ecosystem of care spanning years with programs inside and outside of prison.

In the name of simplicity, my question is this: what is necessary for the mission to occur? What can and should PEP be great at, and what should be done through strategic partnerships? Where do we invest PEP resources, and how do we measure our success? After a year and a half of dialogue with stakeholders, I can tell you the answers to these questions vary widely. Even with a strategic operating plan in place, the reality of implementation causes us to ask such questions – always.

First, I am happy to announce that Baylor University is also updating their study of 10 years ago, to once again measure the impact of PEP on human flourishing. I am grateful to donors who made this possible. Those results should be complete by late spring.

Second, thanks to the generosity of volunteers, the organization is now answering the questions above through the framework of EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System). The process is challenging our assumptions, helping to identify the gifts and desires of the staff, and building a structure that can support the growth we imagine. We are putting our people first so that personal and professional goals align with organizational need.

Simply put, my answer to the questions above is that, in the end, PEP makes prison redemptive.

PEP creates an opportunity inside prison for residents and executives to encounter what might be possible. The man in prison encounters people who believe and teach him to think and act outside the parameters of what he has known. The executives begin to understand how easily “they” could be “me,” but for the grace of God. PEP creates an environment where the light we carry outshines the darkness – not just inside prison, but in every aspect of our lives. Thus, PEP is not just about what we do in prison, but rather it’s about how we live on the outside and what we learn about ourselves while inside.

Let me tell you how I know this to be true. About two months ago, one of our newly-released participants became quite ill, so much so that he required a lot of tests and hospitalization. At first, his PEP brothers cared for him, but eventually, their own realities did not allow them the time their brother required. So a volunteer stepped in, requiring hours and days of her time. Upon hearing this, her own daughter commented how extraordinary this is. The volunteer’s response was, “Yes, I guess so. But the thing is, I know at least a dozen other volunteers who would also do this.”

This is true. Whenever I am asked to speak about PEP, I get to tell stories like this – stories about transformation – not just in the men, but in everyone that encounters them. This is what redemption looks like. It’s not just the shiny result at the end, but the actual process of becoming redeemed. It isn’t simply the results that make PEP so special, but how we get there, and it’s based on where we start: inside this very dark place, in some of the worst moments of people’s lives. You go there, with the little light you carry inside you, and (if you are like me) you surprise yourself when you see just how bright your light is in the darkness – and it becomes even brighter.

Thank you for being part of this incredible organization and community. And thank you for bringing your light to the places that need it most.

Chris Valka
Chief Executive Officer

// NEW IN NORTH TEXAS

This month, PEP celebrated the grand opening of Innovation Apartments, our newly renovated property at 5644 Gaston Avenue in Dallas. Dallas City Council Member Gay Donnell Willis (District 13) joined PEP North Texas advisory members, board members and staff for the celebration.

apartments: six 1-bedroom and two 2-bedroom units

residents at full occupancy, including an on-site house manager

below market rent for the 1-bedroom units

Innovation Apartments is the next step after PEP’s Phase I transitional housing. Phase II participants will live with greater independence while establishing a legitimate rental history before moving into fully independent housing.

Thank you to the team at Blackland Partners, who carried out the renovation. Watch for more in the coming months, including a look at the property’s journey from before to grand opening.

◷  EVERY HOUR COUNTS

THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME

That’s what you’ve given PEP this year. Every single one mattered.

volunteers

hours from each of you

a graduate’s first hourly wage

JUST A LITTLE MORE

Match your hours: give $17 for every hour you served.

Together, that’s about $171,500, enough to serve 18 more men.

Give by December 31

Outside Event · Houston, TX

Provide quality feedback on participants’ business models that will encourage participants to improve and continually develop ideas; to serve as a business coach to further develop business ideas; Networking with participants and other attendees.

Register →

Inside Event · Lychner Winter 2027

Join us at the Lychner Unit in Humble, TX, from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM.

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Outside Event · Houston, TX

In conjunction with eSchool, executive volunteers are invited to a monthly networking event with our participants in Houston and North Texas. The event aims to connect you with eSchool participants and support them in developing their vision, creating resumes, leveraging LinkedIn, etc.

Register →

Outside Event · Richardson, TX

In conjunction with eSchool, executive volunteers are invited to a monthly networking event with our participants in Houston and North Texas. The event aims to connect you with eSchool participants and support them in developing their vision, creating resumes, leveraging LinkedIn, etc.

Register →

Inside Event · Estes Fall 2026

The final teams will pitch their business plans for you to judge, scoring them based on specific criteria to decide which business stands out as the most viable. The day runs 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM and closes with the graduation ceremony.

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Outside Event · Richardson, TX

Provide quality feedback on participants’ business models that will encourage participants to improve and continually develop ideas; to serve as a business coach to further develop business ideas; Networking with participants and other attendees.

Register →

Virtual Event (Zoom)

Work 1×1 with a team by doing market research, answering questions, and editing business plans.

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Virtual Event (Zoom)

Take a deeper dive with the business teams on Vision & Objective, Product/Service, and Marketing.

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Virtual Event (Zoom)

Take a deeper dive with the business teams on financial budgeting and making the Ask.

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// PARTICIPANT’S VOICE

By Joshua L., Fall ’26

TITUS 3:5

“He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done,
but because of His mercy.”

Something that weighs on my mind is the thought of release from prison. I’m sure most of my PEP brothers can agree. It can be a bittersweet idea at times. Will I find success? Will the demons come creeping back in? We all know it will be hard at times, especially when it comes to mending those bridges we strained with our absence.

For me, it’s the relationship with my daughters. Although I see them most nights in my dreams, the reality is it’s been years. Birthdays, band concerts, first and last days of school… I’ve mostly just watched the moments ebb and flow like the coming tide in my mind. But that’s not all we can do. We can lay a firm foundation of dedication and optimism with our time behind these walls so that when we are free, we can start new. I truly feel that things can get better as long as you put the work in and visualize a reality that’s positive.

The tools I’ve developed over the years, not to mention during my time in PEP, have molded me different than I was while I was out previously. I realize that in this life that most valuable things aren’t tangible. Time is the ultimate commodity and when I’m free I will not be frivolous with it ever again.

It does hurt when I think about how unsuccessful my various attempts have been to get through to those I need to fix relationships with, but deep down I know the truth. The truth is that this task isn’t meant for them, but it is mine and mine alone. The brick wall they’ve put up was cemented by my countless mistakes but it’s also my responsibility as a man to handle this business and not make excuses.

The night is always darkest just before dawn. In my past life, I went around thinking I had a chip on my shoulder, acting as if the world owed me something. I felt I had so much time to get things right and therefore had time to burn. It’s almost comical how wrong I was, how flawed my thinking really was. I’ll never be that guy again. This part of my life is like the seconds before dawn breaks.

All I know is when I’m released, I am going to do right by my girls. I’ve taken this time out to better myself and now more than ever, I’m in the right frame of mind to be what they need in me as a dad. I’ll never be able to change the past, but what I can do is make a bright future for me and my daughters. I dedicate this article to them and to all the fathers incarcerated that want to change and be present in their children’s lives.

Joshua L.
Fall ’26