‘Everyone deserves a second chance,’ woman starts nonprofit to support women leaving incarceration

MILANO, Texas (KBTX) – A Milano woman is working to carry on her dream of helping women get back on their feet after being incarcerated.

Katelyn Smith and Judith Hammock met while they were incarcerated. Katelyn said the two of them dreamed of helping women like them once they went home.

“That was kind of our goal, want to hope that we could help find a way to protect them from ending up back in the system,” she said.

That help takes many forms, from providing essential items like clothing and toiletries to helping navigate government aid programs.

“Being able to know that we’re helping even one or two people not end up back in there is the most rewarding feeling,” she added.

Judith died in 2020 following a battle with cancer, and Katelyn was released around a year later. As soon as she was out, she began helping other women in her shoes.

“Judith just opened my eyes to a so much bigger scale of what could be done,” she said.

That work grew into R.I.S.E. – which stands for rebuild, independence, self-love, and empowerment. They started the nonprofit in 2023, and are working to obtain 501(c)3 status. Katelyn said their organization has grown in a short period.

”It just snowballed so quickly. I mean, within two weeks we had like 15 50-gallon bags of clothes in our storefront,” she said.

R.I.S.E. is headquartered at a storage unit in Marlin, but Katelyn said there are board members across the state who are available to collect donations.

After Judith’s passing, Katelyn reached out to her mother, Kimberly, and asked if she would help continue her daughter’s dreams.

“This was her dream. This was our dream of making these things happen, without a doubt,” Kimberly Haberman, Judith’s mother, said, “I wanted to make sure that, you know, my, you know, my daughter’s part in this didn’t die with her.”

Tuesday, R.I.S.E. delivered clothing to their first official client, who currently resides in a halfway house.

Katelyn said that when she made contact with her, she told her, ‘I just want you to know how much hope you’ve given me,”

For Kimberly, the organization’s message is simple, “Everyone deserves a second chance.”

Now, Kimberly said that Katelyn has become like family to her, and she’s proud to see her daughter’s dreams come to fruition.

R.I.S.E. is currently unable to accept monetary donations but does have Amazon and Walmart wish lists linked below.

If you or someone you know needs the services R.I.S.E. provides, call (254) 931-2554 or email riseupinyourself@gmail.com for more information.