“I was shell-shocked.”

That’s how Michael felt when he came home from long-term incarceration.

He had fallen into the gang lifestyle in his teenage years and spent his youth in juvenile hall and probation camps. After returning in his early twenties, he continued the same path—coming in and out of prison until 2024.

While Michael was in prison, he made the decision to turn a new leaf. He earned his GED and began seeking out resources that would be available when he came home. One day in the prison yard, he found a Chrysalis flyer. It read like a message directed to him, and he decided to respond.

“I wrote a letter to the Chrysalis Pacoima office, and Mrs. Rose [Client Services Coordinator] actually wrote back,” remembers Michael. “She told me to come to the office when I come home—that she would be able to help with job readiness, career exploration, and other services that Chrysalis provides.”

From that point forward, Michael trusted the process. He was determined to have a better life when he got out, and he took every step necessary to make that happen.

“I happened to be in a situation where I was ready, and I wasn’t going to take no for an answer. Chrysalis saw that in me.”

Because Michael had been in and out of the justice system since he was a teenager, he had limited professional experience. Chrysalis supported him with fundamental job-readiness knowledge as a client, offered him transitional employment to develop on-the-job skills, and eventually hired him as a full-time supervisor.

His time working with Chrysalis’ Roads crew doing freeway maintenance was formative in his experience with team-building, leadership, and self-improvement.

“I just developed personally and professionally in ways I would not have been able to in any other job. Chrysalis was able to put me in a position to be a leader,” Michael reflected. “They provided me with the tools that I needed. They helped cultivate a culture of hard-working men and women who all wanted the same thing—who came to work and were striving to do better.”

With a supportive team in his corner, Michael found more than just resources—he found a community that wholly embraced him. This much is clear when he thinks about his face tattoos, many of which have now been removed but still serve as reminders of his past life.

Thinking of the barriers that his tattoos created elsewhere, Michael shared: “Any other job—nine times out of 10, I wouldn’t have gotten hired. Chrysalis took the opportunity to help me grow. They provided me with the tools that were necessary. They surrounded me with managers who took time to pour the love and the good work ethic into me. At Chrysalis, they sincerely want to see the best in you.”

This experience was foundational as Michael continued to develop his skillset and step into his life’s calling. After leaving Chrysalis, he started a career role at Alliance for Community Empowerment (ACE), an organization empowering San Fernando Valley residents with education, job training, housing, behavioral health, violence intervention, and advocacy. There, Michael serves as an Assistant Housing Manager and Reentry Specialist, supporting men who are coming home from long-term incarceration.

Michael says his own journey made him realize he wanted to do more to support his community: “I didn’t just want to change myself, I wanted to change everything around me. When you come to the conclusion of I want to change my life, it’s contagious. I started to pick up on everybody around me who needed help. How can I help you? What is it you’re struggling with? What is it that I can do to help? Ultimately, that’s what turned into the job.”

In his role, Michael helps participants with housing navigation and career exploration—paying forward the services he received at Chrysalis. For Michael, this work is personal and urgent. He knows firsthand the stigma that formerly incarcerated people face, and he wants to help them carve out paths of dignity, stability and success.

“Some of the biggest challenges are the stigmas about people who served long-term incarceration—that they’re violent, that they’re uneducated, that they don’t care, that they’re destructive, that they’re hateful and hurtful. That was the furthest thing from the truth because I knew that that wasn’t me. Those weren’t words that described who I was. I felt like I could advocate for this community better than anybody else because I lived it.”

As Michael supports others who’ve walked similar paths, he leads with vulnerability. He chooses to be transparent about how challenging, and sometimes defeating, the reentry journey was for him. By being honest about his struggles, Michael was able to get the support he needed at Chrysalis, and it continues to be freeing for him today.

“I’m purposely vulnerable about my failures and rejections because I feel like that sets me free. I don’t just do it for the people I serve, but I do it for me. It sets me free. It allows me not to get paralyzed with that fear or that hurt or that pain.”

Today, Michael is fulfilled and thriving. He has a career that he’s passionate about and one that provides him the financial stability to build the life of his dreams. He has dedicated his life to creating opportunities for formerly incarcerated people, the same way Chrysalis and ACE have done for him.

To folks coming home from incarceration, Michael wants them to know: “Be prepared for the setbacks, the mishaps, the failures, and the rejection. But be 10 times more prepared to recover from those things because it’s possible.”