Sisters by Love House in Rockford to help women rebuild their lives after prison

By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — A house on the city’s south side has become a new home designed to help women rebuild their lives after returning from prison.

The Sisters by Love House, a reentry home that’s part of the national nonprofit A New Way of Life’s SAFE Housing Network, will soon welcome three women coming home after time in the Illinois prison system. They’ll be given access to counseling, job readiness programs, family reunification services and other opportunities designed to help them turn their lives around.

“This home stands as living proof that our stories don’t end with incarceration,” said Shimere Shanklin, a Rockford native and the housing director for Sisters by Love. “It’s a place for women to heal, rebuild and rise again. It’s a place where second chances aren’t just talked about, but they’re lived out every single day.”

Shanklin, who was inspired to bring the program here after her own experience returning from prison about five years ago, said that women will likely stay at the home for six months to a year before moving on to their own place. An application went out to women at Logan Correctional Center in Lincoln to choose the future residents at the home, she said.

The nonprofit Beyond The Walls assists women in the network’s homes with re-establishing connections to opportunities in education, workforce development and entrepreneurship, while helping women heal from trauma.

“My hope is that when people think about someone who’s been incarcerated they no longer see a record, they see resilience,” said Shanklin, a 2009 East High School graduate. “They no longer see a mistake, they see a mission. … They no longer see a past, they see a person still worthy of love, purpose and opportunity.”

The opening of the new reentry home was celebrated Wednesday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by Illinois’ First Lady MK Pritzker and Susan Burton, a Los Angeles resident who founded the New Way of Life Re-Entry Project. There were also dozens of supporters and local officials including Mayor Tom McNamara, state Rep. Maurice West, state Sen. Steve Stadelman, state Rep. Dave Vella, Alderman Tamir Bell and Alderwoman Janessa Wilkins.

“This house signifies more than a shelter. It embodies our belief that every woman deserves dignity, stability and the opportunity to rebuild your life,” Pritzker said. “By investing in women and safe housing, we foster stronger families, healthier communities and a brighter future for our state.”

Pritzker said opening a reentry home in Rockford shows the city understands the difficulties facing women after returning from prison. She said access to support significantly improves their outcomes.

“This home is an integral part of the solution, offering healing and promoting fair second chances — and we believe in second chances,” she said.

The Rockford home is one of two being added as the national reentry model expands into Illinois. The other is The Daffodil House in Carbondale, which opens on Friday. Organizers said the goal is to add more in Rockford in the future.

Since opening its first homes in 2019, the SAFE Housing Network has housed more than 1,100 formerly incarcerated people across the country. The network has also provided reentry services to an additional approximately 20,000 formerly incarcerated people.

“We must understand that a woman can’t rebuild her life while wondering where she will lay her head,” West said. “Housing is not just a place to sleep: It’s the foundation for healing, for parenting, for employment and dignity.”

Women in prison often faced significant trauma at a young age, but weren’t given the support needed to heal, Burton said. She said that fact was reinforced to her again this week when she visited a women’s prison.

“I asked the women in the prison how many of you were harmed as a child. About 80-90% of the women raised their hands,” Burton said.

Then she asked how many received support. Of the roughly 45 women who said they were harmed, only three raised their hands.

“We have to do better as a nation and a community,” Burton said. “When you don’t get help for the harm you received it shows up in different ways that our society says are unacceptable.”

West said helping women rebuild their lives after prison also pays dividends for future generations.

“A woman can not only transform her life, she can transformer her children’s lives, that transforms forms neighborhoods and then takes care of generational curses,” he said.

This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas