God Gives the Growth
Thrive For Life expands to Palm Beach, Florida
“I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused the growth”
1 Corinthians 3:6
A Message from Fr. Zach
Nearly ten years ago, a small seed of faith was planted, a conviction that incarceration need not be a person’s final sentence, but could become the beginning of a hope-filled future rooted in abundant life and generous service.
Since then, countless people have nurtured that seed through their prayers, generosity, friendship, and faith. And God has given the growth.
Today, with tremendous gratitude and joy, we announce another exciting chapter in the life of Thrive For Life Prison Project: our expansion into Palm Beach, Florida, bringing our mission into the American South.
Through the extraordinary generosity of Frank Crivello and Phoenix Investors, who have made possible the purchase of this property, we are establishing a new House of Studies where men returning from incarceration can find not simply a house, but a home, a community where they can continue their education, rediscover their dignity, and flourish.
Our Palm Beach House of Studies will join the growing Thrive For Life community of Ignacio House and Abraham House in New York, and Joseph House and Bakhita House for Women in Milwaukee. Together, these homes are becoming a national Catholic continuum of accompaniment, transforming lives both behind and beyond the prison walls.
None of this would be possible without the steadfast encouragement and spiritual leadership of His Eminence, Timothy Cardinal Dolan, whose belief in this mission has helped animate its growth and whose commitment to the dignity of those returning from incarceration continues to inspire our work.
As we prepare this new house to become a home, we look forward to welcoming others into this growing community of hope.
Our mission is not growing simply to reach more places. It is growing so that more people may find a place to belong, an opportunity to flourish, and a future filled with hope.
What began as a seed of faith continues to bear fruit in ways we could scarcely have imagined.
We planted. Others watered. And God gave the growth.
Fr. Zach Presutti, SJ
Founder & CEO
Thrive For Life Prison Project
With gratitude and prayers,
The Need in Florida
The need is neither abstract nor far away. Florida returns tens of thousands of people from incarceration every year, and for many of them there is almost nowhere to land.
26,000
people are released
from incarceration
in Florida every year
21%
of formerly incarcerated
Floridians return
to prison
30,000
people are homeless in
Florida today
10x
more likely to
experience homelessness
after incarceration
A lack of regional services
In nearby Fort Lauderdale, people returning from incarceration are required to report to a shopping mall parking lot each evening, and to sleep in their cars or on the ground, instead of in a supportive living community.
They face significant barriers to finding gainful employment and education, and to rebuilding their lives. A House of Studies addresses all of these needs in one place, under one roof, with professional and dignified care.
Sources: Palm Beach Country Public Safety; WPLG Local 10
A House of Studies in West Palm Beach
Our Palm Beach House of Studies will bring the Thrive For Life model to South Florida. It is not a shelter and not a halfway house. It is a disciplined, goal-oriented community where resident scholars live together, follow a personalized education plan, build a career, and move toward permanent, independent housing.
The main house
The sunroom
The resident bedroom
The property
The property is under contract: a three-building campus on nearly an acre in West Palm Beach, with 15 beds for resident scholars. We are now completing the requirements to open the house and operate the Thrive For Life model there.
Education and work within reach
The house is within reach, by public bus, of colleges, trade schools, certification programs and CareerSource Palm Beach County, the county’s central job placement center.
It begins behind the walls
Reentry begins before release. Through retreats, accompaniment and the sacraments, rooted in the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola, we meet people while they are still inside. The Palm Beach care team will include a Jail and Prison Ministry Coordinator.
Impact on the community
Every resident scholar who finds a home, an education and a career is one fewer person caught in the cycle of homelessness and incarceration. Across our houses, 95% of graduates have moved into full-time work or study, and fewer than 3% of our alumni have returned to incarceration, compared with 39% nationwide.
“Recidivism is a pretty low bar for humanity.
At Thrive For Life, our standard is much higher. It is about flourishing.”
Fr. Zachariah Presutti, SJ
What the House Could Become
The property needs work before it can become a home. The images below are concept renderings, created with AI from photographs of the property, to imagine how the campus and a few of its rooms could look once renovation is complete. They are illustrations, not photographs, and the final design will differ.
A concept site plan of the campus, with resident living, a care team office and education center, a chapel and a fire pit.
The kitchen: one table for the whole household
Today
Concept Rendering
The main house
Today
Concept Rendering
The sunroom: a place to read, study and gather
Today
Concept Rendering
Hear from Our Friends
His Eminence, Timothy Cardinal Dolan
Recorded at the Mamertime Prison in Rome
Click the image to hear from Fr. Zach and Carlos Orozco!
Thank You
To everyone who has prayed for, given to, and walked alongside this mission: this new house is your work too.
Help us prepare it to become a home.
transforming lives behind & beyond prison walls