(L-r) Mary Miller McClellan, Columbia Chapter of Links, Inc.; Katrina Shealy, chair, Board of Friends of DJJ; Ruby James, friend of DJJ; Gretta Jackson, recipient of the Habitat Home; Stacey Atkinson, director of the Community Behind the Fence; Lynne Rogers, Columbia Chapter of Links, Inc.; and Margaret Barber, director of the SC Department of Juvenile Justice. Members of the Columbia Chapter of Links, Inc. recently attended The Lift This House Ceremony at SC Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) in Columbia.

The incarcerated youth at DJJ worked over the past month with Habitat for Humanity, community partners, and volunteers to build a house behind the fence.

Upon its completion, the house was lifted over the razor wire fence to be transported to a permanent residential site where the final touches will be added, and the family for whom it was constructed will take residence.

The main objective of this project was to empower the youngsters with employable work skills. The construction skills that the DJJ residents learned will hopefully reduce their recidivism and will serve as a rehabilitative tool to prepare them for the workplace when they leave DJJ to return home. A secondary objective was to provide a home for a very deserving family.

This is the first time that the South Carolina juvenile system has ever undertaken such an innovative initiative. The agency is responsible for providing rehabilitation for the state’s juveniles who are on probation, incarcerated, or on parole. The opportunity to gain construction skills will greatly enhance their rehabilitation and provide them with a better opportunity for success upon their release from DJJ.

The Columbia Chapter of Links, Inc. is a proud foundation partner with the SC Department of Juvenile Justice’s project: The House that DJJ Built. The members of The Links, Inc. are distinguished women who are individual achievers, who make a difference in their respective communities. They are business, professional, and civic leaders; role models; and volunteers who work towards a common goal by collaborating with likeminded organizations and individuals for partnerships.

Members of the Links, Inc. contribute more than 500,000 documented hours of community service annually through their five facets of service that include: National Trends and Services, The Arts, Services to Youth, International Trends and Services and Health and Human Services. According to its president, Brandolyn Thomas Pinkston, the Columbia Chapter of Links, Inc. will celebrate its 60th anniversary this year.