The PennZone

LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa. - PennZone -- Karen Higgins
Bloom for Women
(484) 686-0262
khiggins610@outlook.com

Bloom for Women Launches "Bloom on the Inside" to Support Incarcerated Women and Provide Safe Housing for Women Leaving Prison

[January 29, 2024, LEHIGH VALLEY, PA] - Bloom for Women, an organization dedicated to providing sanctuary and a continuum of care to heal, empower and employ women survivors of sex trafficking and sexual exploitation, announces the launch of "Bloom on the Inside", an in-jail program offering assessments as well as individual and group psychoeducational programming in Lehigh Valley Jail and to provide safe housing for women leaving prison.

"Many of the women incarcerated in Lehigh County Jail are trafficking victims. They have the lived experience of trading sex for survival and are often misidentified as criminals by law enforcement agencies," said Carol Andersen, CEO of Bloom for Women. "Women struggling to survive on the streets of Lehigh County find themselves trapped in a cycle of poverty and imprisonment, unable to gain and maintain employment due to criminal histories and addictions. Multiple arrests and incarcerations of these victims place a huge financial burden on the criminal justice and social service systems."

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Women returning to society from incarceration face many daunting and complex challenges, including: unemployment, housing, addiction, mental illness, transportation, family reunification, childcare, parenting, and poor physical health. "Bloom on the Inside" will inform and educate these women on topics including identification and prevention of exploitation, codependency and healthy relationships, conflict resolution, and introduction to life skills.

Andersen continues, "'Bloom on the Inside' will help identify those victims and provide them with a safe place and the time to heal when they are released from prison. Our two-year residential program helps women break the cycle by providing safe housing, access to healthcare, and vocational training free of charge; giving these women the opportunity to once again become contributing members of society and live a life of freedom and meaning."

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Bloom was recently awarded a grant from the Safe House Project, an organization whose mission it is to increase survivor identification beyond one percent through education, provide emergency services and placement to all survivors, and ensure every survivor can access quality, safe housing and holistic care. Bloom is partnering with Pinebrook Family Answers and Lehigh County Jail to work within the prison directly supporting incarcerated/justice-impacted individuals.