State Legislators View Community Service Work Performed by Probationers at Soldiers' Home in Chelsea,
Including the Creation of a New Ward for Women Veterans

State Representatives Robert DeLeo, D-Winthrop, the new chairman of the House of Representatives' Ways and Means Committee, and Kathi-Anne Reinstein, D-Revere, the new committee vice-chairman, joined Probation Commissioner John J. O'Brien, Office of Community Corrections Executive Director Stephen V. Price and Statewide Supervisor of the Trial Court Community Service Program Kevin Duggan for a recent tour of the Soldiers' Home in Chelsea to view the community service work being performed by probationers.

One of the community service projects includes the demolition and renovation of a special quarters for women veterans. The Soldiers' Home is planning to open an eight to ten-bed ward to accommodate the rising number of female veterans.

"Put simply, this program works. Offenders assigned to 'Community Service' are doing just that -- serving their community. In this case, we were able to match dedicated and professional coordinators with a Soldiers' Home that is both deserving and in real need of attention. The result has benefited both," stated Representative DeLeo.

Representative Reinstein, who also serves as vice-chair of the Veterans and Federal Affairs Committee, said "I am pleased to see that these offenders have been able to make a positive contribution to the Chelsea Soldiers Home and to the community. The Chelsea Soldiers Home continues to play an integral role in the quality of life for our Veterans. Our distinguished servicemen and women deserve only the best, especially after risking their lives to ensure that the safety of our country is not compromised."

For the past six weeks, more than 100 offenders from Suffolk County have spent more than a thousand hours painting walls and stairwells, and moving furniture, entire offices and a medical lab. The offenders have also assisted with the creation of the new ward for women veterans.

"The work at the Soldiers' Home is one of many community service projects being performed by offenders throughout the state. This work by offenders saves the Commonwealth money and gives offenders the opportunity to give back in a positive way," said Kevin Duggan, Statewide Supervisor of the Trial Court Community Service Program.

Domenic Cirelli, Trial Court assistant court service coodinator, supervises the crew at the site and has noticed that the offenders are motivated by the work they do at the Soldiers' Home. "A lot of the offenders look forward to doing this work. They see this as a way to help veterans. They are really driven and have a sense of accomplishment when they complete a project," Cirelli said.

Scott Glucker, a Senior Aide to Commandant Michael Resca at the Soldiers' Home, is pleased with the work that is being done. "The community service crews are very helpful. They are doing extremely hard work and provide a valuable service to our veterans."

Glucker added, "This work is saving the Commonwealth a great deal of money. The construction of living quarters for women is essential. There are so many more women serving in today's military and we must be prepared to accommodate those who will need our services."

The community service crews will continue to do work throughout the year at the Soldiers' Home, according to Cirelli. This Spring and Summer, community service crews will be dispatched to the home to do landscaping and painting.

In addition to the work the community service crews perform at the Soldiers' Home, the offenders have also worked at the Greater Boston Food Bank where they load food onto trucks for distribution to shelters, food pantries and other social service agencies. The crews have also shoveled snow at several Boston Public Schools, local housing authorities, courts and along the state highways of Suffolk County. Six to eight community service vans are dispatched each day throughout Suffolk County. In Suffolk County last month, community service crews completed 4,185 hours of work.

The Massachusetts Trial Court Community Service Program operates out of the 21 Community Corrections Centers throughout the state. The Office of Community Corrections is a department of the Office of the Commissioner of Probation.

The Soldiers' Home is comprised of 11 buildings set on 17 acres of land on top of Powderhorn Hill in Chelsea. The home currently services 450 veterans, ages 35 to 90. There is a nursing home, dormitory and Outpatient Department at the site for all honorably discharged veterans residing in Massachusetts.