Noob School - Rebuilding Lives: Cary Sanders and the Mission of JUMPSTART SC

Episode Date: June 14, 2024

Today on Noob School, we’re joined by Cary Sanders - CEO of JUMPSTART SC. In this episode, Cary explores the transformative work of JUMPSTART SC, a program dedicated to discipling current and former prisoners and assisting with their re-entry into society. Cary discusses the challenges faced by individuals re-entering the community, the comprehensive support provided by JUMPSTART SC, and the power of mentorship and faith in changing lives. Join us for an insightful conversation on the intersection of social impact, entrepreneurship, and the journey of second chances. Get your sales in rhythm with The Sterling Method: https://SterlingSales.co I'm going to be sharing my secrets on all my social channels, but if you want them all at your fingertips, start with my book, Sales for Noobs: https://amzn.to/3tiaxsL Subscribe to our newsletter today: https://bit.ly/3Ned5kL #SalesTraining #B2BSales #SalesExcellence #SalesStrategy #BusinessGrowth #SalesLeadership #SalesSuccess #SalesCoaching #SalesSkills #SalesInnovation #SalesTips #SalesPerformance #SalesTransformation #SalesTeamDevelopment #SalesMotivation #SalesEnablement #SalesGoals #SalesExpertise #SalesInsights #SalesTrends

All right, welcome back to Noob School. John Sterling here. Today I've got a friend. I think we've been friends for at least 12 years, 14 years. That sounds about right. Carrie Sanders. Welcome, Carrie. Yeah, excited to be here, John.

Good, good. Kerry's, he's got a remarkable story. I think we can learn a lot about sales in this story, about selling something that may not be easy to sell. We can learn a lot about how to overcome. an obstacle or a problem or a mistake. And so it's gonna get a little deep today. But anyway, I met Carrie, I don't know,

I'm trying to remember how many years ago, it might have been 14 years ago, but I met you in prison. I went to see a good friend and met you there and you'd become friends with my friend and kind of a caretaker in there. And so that would have made you how old then. minus 14. About 25. 25. So you were 25. Let's just let's start with the end and go back to the

beginning. So right now tell everyone what you're doing now with your profession. Yeah, I am the CEO of Jumpstart South Carolina. Okay. And our mission is to provide transformational opportunities that are though to those who are entangled in the criminal justice system. Okay. So we do that through a year-long inside program for those who are incarcerated. Okay. And that's coupled with a holistic residential program for those who are released. Okay. And Jump Start South Carolina.

Is it just South Carolina? Well, it started here, and now it's in four other states. Okay, okay. And when did it start? In 2008. 2008. So you were still in, right? Yes, sir.

Okay. And who did I meet that was like doing? Jump Start then? Probably Don Williams. Don, yeah. Don, yeah. So Jump Start, you're the CEO, you help people that are entangled in the system, the prison system, in these four states. Yes, sir. Well, I work exclusively here in South Carolina. Each state is its own franchise, if you will. It's operated autonomously from a board of directors in their state. Okay, and where is that, where's like the headquarters? There's really not one. to each state chapter.

Okay. All right. And y'all just share best practices and stuff. And brand. Okay. So just so I have it clear, we'll get more into this later. If somebody who's incarcerated in prison wants to enter jumpstart, they're saying, I want to do some things before I get out that will help prepare me to have a better life on the outside.

Yes, sir. Okay. So they sign up for this. How are they able to sign up and make that happen? Yeah, so South Carolina has 21 prisons. Okay. And Jump Start is in 19 of those 21 prisons. So we have a statewide footprint here in South Carolina.

Yeah. And each year about 1,000 men and women will take the Jump Start program. Wow. And we have over 1,000 who start the program each year. And we really begin with those who say, hey, I want to have a future greater than my past. Okay. So we have a sign up process, an interview process, and do our due diligence to make sure the opportunities are going to those who have demonstrated that they want a new way of life.

So they sign up. Is there some kind of essay or something? Some kind of? Just an in-person interview. Okay. And then- We want to believe the best in them until they prove otherwise. So we want to give opportunity to anyone who's willing.

And so around a thousand a year go through your program in South Carolina. Are you forced to turn some people down? Yes, sir. Okay. And they're not selling you appropriately during the interview? Well, no about, we try to start with as many as the facilities room will accommodate. But then throughout the year, only about 40% complete the year-long program. Okay.

And we think that's good. We think there's good quality control there. And we use a really a peer evaluation system that it's not volunteers coming in from the outside, listening to someone talk for an hour a week and trying to ascertain. or they, you know, shooting a line or telling the truth, their peers do a 25-question objective assessment on them to determine whether they graduate or not. Okay.

So a lot of quality control mechanisms in place. So with these 19 prisons you have access to, there's a certain number of facilities that handle a certain number of people, and that's where you're limited in terms of accepting people in the program. And of a thousand, of a thousand people are 400 making it through or is it yeah okay so you get about 400 out then out of those 400 the program on the outside is you have a um a residence right a residence

compound right how many people can you take there yeah well i don't like the word compound and okay what do we call it yeah we call it a neighborhood yeah a neighborhood yeah so in wellford South Carolina, which right in between Greenville and Spartanburg, we partnered with about 40 employers. And right in the middle of that employer network, we're building a 22-home neighborhood. Okay. That when completed, it'll serve 96 men and women at a time. Great. And how long would they ideally be in there?

What's the length of time? Yeah. The hope is that in two years, they go from prisoner to homeowner. Okay. Now, homeowners key, John, because if they complete our program and try to go somewhere in rent, and they have a felony on their record, who's the landlord going to give an opportunity to? Someone who doesn't have a record or someone who does. Right.

And so we have all the puzzle pieces in place for them to be able to accomplish that feat. And so not just merely survive with their new life, but have an opportunity to thrive and that has a ripple effect in their family and then the broader community. Right. Wonderful. And when they're in the program, in the Jump Start program, what kind of things, what skills are they able to learn that they could then get paid for on the outside. Yeah. In our inside program, it's largely centered around Christian discipleship. We're trying to teach them a new way of life and of thinking and of caring for others rather than solely themselves and that they've been created with a purpose,

on purpose. I can tell you one of my favorite lines is those who are in prison for drug dealing can get out and do great in sales. They just need a better product. They need a better product. They already know logistics, customer service. Yeah. Hustle. They're hustling. They're hustling. And so they just need a different product and to be taught differently. And we're working on a lot of that. But when they get out, I think, is where we really set the standard nationally for the holistic care we provide. We partner with Truist Bank to do financial literacy. We partner with transfer to do virtual reality vocational training.

We partner with envision counseling so they have access to clinical care. And the list goes on and on of the robust services that are afforded to the, those who choose to transition back into the community through Jump Start. Nice. 400 people a year, at least. In our inside program. The inside program. And then.

In the outside, about 80 per year. 80. Currently. That's a big dent in the universe. In our universe, anyway, South Carolina. It is. Yeah. That's awesome.

That's every year. Yes, sir. Four thousand and ten years. Yeah. Over the past 10 years, we've had 3,500 men and women successfully complete our inside program and be released back into the community. Over that 10-year period, less than 4% have returned to prison. Wow.

So we have a state-verified 96% success rate. If anyone's curious nationally, 70% of those who are released from prison will return within three years. And I know what that fancy word is, too. Yeah. Recidivism, right? That just means that to go back to. Can you spell it, though?

No, hell no. But, so yeah, that's, so nationally, it's. How high? About 70%, 68%. What about in South Carolina? Do you know? Well, 10 years ago, the average was about 35% would return. Would go back to prison?

And now only 18%. So we recently had the Director of Corrections speak at one of our fundraising events. So someone in the Governor's Cabinet fundraising for us. Not directly, I don't want to get him in trouble, but he was speaking to the efficacy of our program and accredited us with helping reduce South Carolina. to the lowest level in the nation. So South Carolina finally leads the nation in something,

and it's the lowest level of recidivism. That's amazing. For each person that Jump Start helps not return to prison, it's $32,000 per person per year. So now it's about $112 million per year of taxpayer savings. How many people per year are not going back? Out of 3,500. 36% of them aren't going back.

Gotcha. And so if it was... You multiply that number by... 32,000, it's 112 million. Wow. And so the prison director and the state people understand that? Oh, yes. They agree with you?

Yep, absolutely. And that's why they're helping. That's wonderful. Well, we can spend more time on that because I want to spend more time on it, but I think what's important that we back up to your beginnings and figure out how you've gotten into this situation. Why did you make me in a prison visitation? Why were you there? Everyone wanted to know why were you there.

You weren't visiting someone. While you were there, and then when you got out what you did with yourself, because you were ready at that time. You've been through the program. You were more than ready to get out and be productive. I remember that. Let's talk about going back to the year, or maybe growing up in high school, what that was like, and then the things you did to get you in trouble. So I grew up in the dark corner of Greenville County, you know, just north of Travelers Rest up in that area. And I realized pretty early on that I could get you in.

get a lot of attention if I would do reckless and outlandish things, give me a lot of attention for my peers in that culture. I come from a good family, but my mom, when I started getting into trouble, she tried hard, but there just didn't seem to be an answer. Okay. And John, long story short, I was arrested 17 times by the age of 17. Wow. I was in the Department of Juvenile Justice three different times, and most would have said I

was just a rebel without a cause. Right. Soon after my 17th birthday, I shot someone during an armed robbery in Greer, South Carolina, and was really without any hope of a future, was eventually apprehended in Canada's international fugitive from justice. And the night I was planning to commit suicide, you know, Mace, when we were recording this, and it's mental health awareness month, but I just didn't have any hope and didn't have anywhere to turn and thought suicide was my best option. And I'm not going to proselycise in here today.

I know that's not what we're doing. But in my darkest moment, I met Jesus Christ. I mean, that was in May of 2005. I went on and was in the South Carolina Department of Corrections for nine years. Was that moment when you got arrested, was that 2005? Yes. Okay. Early 2005.

Okay. And that was your lowest point. Yeah, my lowest point. Okay. Yeah. And so it was eventually sentenced, and the judge showed some mercy in the sentencing because of my age. And I was sentenced to 45 years, but I could be released after 10 if I stayed out of trouble and those kind of things. And it was fortunate while I was in the prison system to meet a lot of people who came in from the community to do volunteer work who believed that I could have a future greater than my past.

And so they didn't see me as a criminal, but they saw me as a young man who had lost his way who needed hope and who needed opportunity. One of those individuals was your friend, and he challenged me. I had about a year to go. And he said, kid, I think you need to go to college when you get out of here. I said, I think you're senile. And he said, what do you mean? I said, well, you know, people don't leave prison and go to college. And he said, well, I think you can.

and he just challenged me to, hey, you don't control the outcome, but you can influence it. Give your best. And don't cry about the rest. You did what you did. Now make the most of the opportunity that's right in front of you. And he eventually encouraged me to think about going to North Greenville University. And I really thought he was crazy then because I had a lifetime trespassing ban from North Greenville. Oh, you did.

The university for breaking in and stealing things up there as an adolescent. And so long story short, he got me an SAT prep book, and I think this translates some to sales. I was overwhelmed by it. I never saw. Didn't think that I would get the opportunity, so there was some discouragement. I'd only gotten a GED in prison because I showed up to the class. Like, I was struggling to do basic fractions at that time. And he's like, quit crying and do one day at a time.

Just solve one problem at a time. And he kept telling me, consistent. Consistency compounds, consistency compounds. Do the right things over and over and over. And in five years, you won't believe where you are. And so I just worked at that. Long story short, North Greenville University lifted that trespassing ban. I got my undergrad there, got the opportunity to get a master's elsewhere.

And then two years ago, I finished up North Greenville's four-year doctorate program. It was the first ever student there to get a full ride. for the doctoral program from the Walt Brazier family. Wow. And so I'm extremely thankful for people who have helped me have a future. Been home 11 years now. I've been married to my wife eight years next month, and we have two beautiful children.

And all the time I tell people, when they ask me, they say, Carrie, how are you doing? Tell them, man, I'm living the dream. Sure. And they think I'm being sarcastic at first. And I said, let me tell you a little story about why I'm living the dream. Yeah. And I see my mission in life is to help give people hope.

Yes. Yes. Well, after that story, I mean, certainly both sides of it. Right. When you see the second part of the story and you're like, wow, it is possible, but not like a genie. You can't just snap your fingers, right? Like your friend said, you've got to work at it and work out and work out. And next thing you know, you've got a PhD.

and you're CEO of a great company in helping 400 people a year. Yes, sir. It's amazing. Thank you. Yeah, that's wonderful. Tell us more about the future from here, because you're clearly at a good point in life and with this business. Where do you see it like in five years from now?

If you just keep pecking away at it, what does it look like? Yeah, that's a great question. question John because you know in my role at least 50% of my role is fundraising and for those in a in a business context that would be sales right and so you have to cast the vision right my hope is that in five years one of the big things is we're moving towards a sustainability as an organization and what that means in our context is that our social enterprises that we operate are generating enough profit that we're only fundraising when we have

have a capital need. Okay. And so that's a little unique in our space of not, you know, out fundraising hard every year to generate, you know, revenue for the mission. But we're actually, like right now, we're operating Jumpstart Landscaping. People in Greenville have probably saw our trucks all over town and doing great work. And that's, we're paying those guys above a living wage. And then we're also able to profit share with them each quarter, which incentivizes their hard work.

They know they've got a real shot at upward mobility and they're not building somebody a third lake house. Yeah. And so it generate buy-in. And then it also generates revenue for us to make a difference in people's lives. Yeah. So you're trying to create sustainable operations in your venture

so you won't need to have to always raise money. Right. So there's a landscaping operation. What else do you have? generates money. We operate a staffing agency. We're providing employees to about 40 different employers in the Greenville-Spartenburg area. And they get some credit for that?

They get some like state credit or anything? They get more out of it than we do. There's a great question. There's a federal bonding program that will provide insurance for them if something were to happen. And then through South Carolina Works, there's a tax credit of about $3,000 a year per person. if they're employed 500 hours. Okay. And so often that offsets the employer's cost the first 90 days of employment for an individual.

Right. So staffing agency, landscaping service, what about when you do the housing? When do you think the housing will be finished? The hope is that all 22 homes will be built by the end of 2025. Okay. So the end of next year. Okay. And then...

And each of those homes, while it provides each participant who's in the home, who is employed they pay a hundred and twenty five dollar a week fee okay that covers rent utilities yeah and transportation so that's set intentionally low donors are subsidizing the cost of their living and the services they receive yeah so they can save towards that home ownership okay and propel them out but each home in the village will generate about twenty five thousand dollars a year and program revenue which will enable us to serve those coming next yeah when you work with the people that are doing well when they get out what's their attitude like are they

generally have good attitudes or neutral or still kind of cranky 99% of them are just over-the-top grateful that people didn't give up on them yeah and that they actually have a pathway towards flourishing yeah you know because a lot of them have experienced the not and I don't want to bash other nonprofits because we don't have all the answers and we're learning and growing but what we've learned is that for people to those broken cycles, they not only need hope, they need holistic support. And a lot of nonprofits are only offering hope.

They'll go in and give a great speech, they'll have someone who has escaped addiction, and they can tell it and pull out the tears. But for the person who's in the cycle of addiction, they're not even sure how to go to DMV and get ID, much less go fill out a job application and how to get there and how to stay clean. And so we've learned that, It takes that hope, but it also takes holistic support. Yeah.

And you have a lot of volunteers from various parts of business and other life that come in and talk and give like seminars and stuff. Oh, yes. Yeah. Charles Wall with South Carolina Steel is pretty well known in the upstate. He comes every month to look the guys and ladies in the eye before they've started work and to say, hey, I know you're a little shamed of your past. But as an employer, this is what I care about. If you'll show up and work hard, your past doesn't matter here. We'll give you an opportunity for you and your family to do well.

The past wouldn't matter well if it was a glorious past either. That's right. You've got to show up and work, right? That's right. So that's a very interesting, interesting perspective. But we have so many from the community who have made our work possible. There's no incredible genius on my part or the part of our team. I've gotten to speak in, you know, places like D.C. and Austin and a lot of other big cities because they've, the Department of Justice published about our work.

So other places are like, man, how can we do this in our area? Yeah. And I tell people all the time it's because in the upstate of South Carolina, there are a lot of people who are willing to serve those who can do nothing for them. We live in a special place. I agree with that. I agree with that. We had a couple from California move here. They just loved Greenville.

And the guy was speaking the other day. He said, we love Greenville so much. We looked at each other after six months and said, no one's honked at us yet. Not one person is honked at us. So, yeah, we do live in a special place, but you've done a special job. I think because of your unique background,

not that you'd want to repeat that, but since you saw how, you know, getting to the lowest of the lows and, you know, at such a young age having to go to prison and then feeling like there was nowhere to go. Right. You know, and then finally, I think from meeting some community volunteers

started to tell you, hey, maybe you can do something. Yeah, if you don't believe you can, you certainly can. No, no. Yeah, that works in all walks of life. Everyone needs to have someone encourage them. Be kind along the way. Absolutely. That's unbelievable.

I wanted to ask you a few other things. Selling-wise, when you're trying to sell, let's say, some business owner or someone who's on your donor list, potential donor list, what does that sound like? Yeah, I like to think of fundraising. I mean, I think it has some translation to sales, but I define fundraising as the art of teaching people the joy of giving. And so what I'm trying to do for a donor is to help them have the opportunity. to make a difference in the world because I think most people want to make a difference. They want to see things better for other people to provide them a pathway to do that. And so I don't look, we don't try to guilt people into giving or put any high pressure sales or

we don't automate emails and all of those things, which I'm sure there's some value in some of those things, at least the automation of technology and a customer journey. But in just helping people see that they can. make a difference in the world because that's a need a lot of people have so we're helping meet that need. Is there anything like social media or chat GPT, any of that stuff affecting what you're doing? I think all marketing now is social media.

It's headed that way in a hurry. Social media is no longer really a part of marketing. It is marketing, I think, at least in our context. We use Microsoft co-pilot pro, which is build on chat GPT, and it helps improve some of our time spent brainstorming and correcting grammar and, you know, coming up with ideas. But your market, I mean, your primary market, they're in prison, and you can't, they're not going to be on social media, right?

I mean, unless they're breaking the rule. I don't know if that's our prime, that's probably our intended service audience, So your market are the people with capacity to support. To support. Because about them you don't do the work. Yeah, either the time, the facility, the money. And you could, maybe you could reach them on social media. Absolutely.

Are you on social media? We are. What's your main one? I prefer LinkedIn a lot, but we are pretty active on Facebook as well as an organization. I've seen a lot of success just on my personal. my personal LinkedIn page sharing about our work consistently. You know, oddly enough, those are my two main ones also. I've got most of my followers on LinkedIn and Facebook.

I love the X platform, but I don't have a lot going on there. Maybe that's just because those two have been around the longest. Well, let me ask you this. I think I know the answer to this, but what's your favorite book? I don't answer that question in that way. I'll typically answer, this is what I'm reading right now. Okay. And so my current book is radical hospitality or unreasonable hospitality, I think is the name of it.

Okay. It's from a chef in New York. And he's really emphasizing the power of making people feel welcome, of making them feel like they belong and that they're wanted wherever they are in that moment. So just over the top serving them well in a genuine way. not to manipulate or extract something from them. Yeah. But just to serve them well.

I have to read that. That's great. That's a great subject. I can remember going sometimes if I'm in a city long enough for a week or two and I'll go back to a restaurant and they'll say, John, you're back. I'll be like, wow. Right. Boy, that made me feel good. Yeah.

That's probably the kind of stuff he talks about, isn't it? Absolutely. Little things. Yeah. What about favorite band? I don't know that I have one. Can you say the John Sterling Sweet P. Trio? Sure.

Check it out. Downtown under the bridge. That was a nice moment when we ran to each other outside playing. And then what about favorite word? I would say hope. Hope? Great word. Okay.

Wonderful. Tell the group how they can help what you're doing. What's the best thing they can do to be? helpful with your cause? I would say a good first step is to maybe just follow me on LinkedIn and learn about what we're doing and see what resonates with you. I've got the plug for the website and signing up for a volunteer and having me come speak and lead a business, you know, talk. I can do all of those things and do them really well. But just to not be sent, don't be a cynic. You know, we've got an overwhelming body of proof that lives can be changed and that it affects our entire community in a way that's positive and transformative.

And people can be a part of the solution, even if they have very little margin. Yeah. So go to LinkedIn, look for Kerry Sanders. C-A-R-Y-Sanders. C-A-R-Y-Sanders. Well, C-A-R-Y-Sanders, thank you very much for being here. Yeah, thank you. Appreciate it.