The Returning Citizens Assistance Network (RCAN) is composed of 21 congregations in Washington, DC and works with clients of the Public Defender Service who are returning from a time of incarceration or are still in prison. The network assists these individuals and their families in a variety of different ways with a focus on the practical barriers to effective reentry—housing, clothing, food, transportation, employment and the need for ongoing personal friendship and support.
Since its founding in 2018, RCAN has assisted hundreds of individuals and every week we get new referrals of individuals and families who need assistance as they struggle to build stable lives after a time of incarceration. RCAN also provides support and help to those who are currently incarcerated through the Prison Friendship Project which matches individuals in the community with men and women who are still in federal prison. These "prison friends" write to the inmate they are matched with and also offer other support during and after a time of incarceration.
Through these and other programs, the individuals and congregations associated with the Returning Citizens Assistance Network do everything we can to help those who have been in prison find stability and success in their return to the community.