Ronnie’s House resumes mission of late activist, brings resources to the justice-impacted

Shirin Senegal has a mission. She vowed to continue the work of her husband, Ronnie Senegal, advocating for the formerly incarcerated after losing him to gun violence. For the past six years, her voice hasn’t faltered. 

On a sun-soaked Saturday morning, Senegal’s voice carried through the rooms of a North Long Beach church where 30 justice-impacted individuals took part in a three-day “Resiliency and Healing” summit. 

In the main hall, Senegal talked to the group sitting before her about the importance of credit and financial literacy as they navigate their way back into society. 

Bridging the resource gap for re-entry

Since its inception, the organization has aimed to bring justice-impacted people mental health support, family support services, one-on-one re-entry coaching and financial literacy among other resources.

One of its services is a 24-hour hotline that connects people to service providers that can assist in their re-entry. Some of the resources provided include workforce training and access to food or clothing. An app with the same service is coming soon.

“Everything that we do is to make sure that access is available for our justice-impacted at any given moment,” Senegal said.

When she and her team ask folks what could have kept them from going back to prison they all have a similar answer—mentoring and direction—something the organization strives to do.

“They release you with $200 and a lot of times they give you a book of resources,” formerly incarcerated summit attendee April Watkins said, noting that the lists are often outdated.

“You’re stuck to your own devices,” she said. “Getting information that is actually going to help is helpful because unfortunately there’s so much recidivism because people are left to their own devices.”

According to a 2019 report by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation recidivism rates in California “have remained stubbornly high” averaging about 50% over the past ten years. 

The same report concluded that Corrections is failing to place incarcerated folks in appropriate rehabilitation programs, leaving people’s needs unmet upon release. 

Pushing for re-entry investment since 2017, Ronnie’s House led two roundtables during the City of Long Beach Racial Reconciliation Initiative in order to push policy forward.

“It’s so important that people are given that ability to [have] their talent fostered and not left for dead inside which is really such a big issue,” Senegal said. 

Through the “Art and Writing to Healing” project, folks write blogs and letters about their experiences—for two men their stories have turned into books that the organization is helping put together. 

A man currently incarcerated in San Diego wrote a book where the main character steals a bicycle and is sent to his grandfather’s house for the summer. There he is taught how to build bikes—eventually opening his own shop. 

“I try to get them to use their own life lessons and stories to integrate into their writing,” Senegal said.

Upon his release, he’d like to open his own garage to teach young people how to build cars and provide mentorship, Senegal said.

“You gave me a purpose,” a young man from the Bay Area who was recently released told Senegal about the memoir he wrote. 

Although the writing program is a start, the nonprofit’s goal is to be fully integrated in the prison system to provide support to incarcerated folks 24 months before release.

A program like this would allow staff to prepare folks for re-entry by addressing substance abuse issues, cultivating a career path and connecting them with family.

“These are brilliant young men and women, but in many ways, their lives have stopped,” Senegal said. “They don’t know how to use a phone, basic technology, so how do you expect someone to come out into society that way?”

Upon her release 21 years ago, Watkins enrolled in school to expand her job options, earning a degree in nutrition. 

Upon finishing that degree, she realized that although she’s been out of prison for over two decades, becoming board certified may be an issue because of her record.

“I find it pretty asinine that you say ‘Once you’ve done time on an offense, you can’t have it expunged,’” Watkins said.

She first turned to Ronnie’s House at the summit for additional resources with other roadblocks.

“I feel like you never can learn enough,” she said. “I’m still, even after all these years facing barriers. This being an active support system, that’s a great thing.”

Leon Taylor, who was released in 2020, recently turned to Ronnie’s House for help in transferring his casework from Orange County—which has jurisdiction over his case—to Los Angeles County, where he once lived.

Unable to find resources in Orange County, Taylor —who works a part-time job—rents a room to sleep and some nights resorts to sleeping in his car.

“There needs to be more people doing the things that [Senegal] is doing. They’re really serious about trying to help me get back to L.A.,” he said. 

At the summit, Taylor had access to workshops on entrepreneurship and financial literacy, which will help in his career as a chef. After he gets his finances in order, his dream is to own a food truck.

“I’m just really trying to better myself,” Taylor said.

Tackling re-entry with intervention, prevention and wellness teachings

Integral to the team are Ronnie’s House two re-entry coaches—Billy Brown, who is the director of violence prevention and intervention, and Logan Baughman III, director of wellness.

Born and raised in Long Beach, Brown knows the people in his community, many at the summit pointed to him as the reason they were there.

Brown’s community organization F.O.C.U.S. has forged a connection with different groups like Amer-I-Can, which specializes in life skills. His experience brought Brown to Ronnie’s House. 

Some of Brown’s work with Ronnie’s House focuses on violence prevention, having been part of various town halls and roundtables discussing a rise in shootings in the city.

In the early 90s however, Brown’s life looked different—having served time in prison. Fueled by his passion for education, he forged a different path.

Also driven by a passion to help underserved communities—earning a master’s degree in social work— Baughman’s goal is to address trauma. 

“What we’re doing is beginning the conversations,” he said, noting that this work takes time. “We’re not going into it with a surgical scalpel to cut things out on day one.”

Both coaches go back about three decades, according to Baughman. They’ve used their experiences to propel them to this moment and give back to their community. 

“I’m looking forward to talking to [the summit attendants] in six months, a year,” Baughman said. “I bet you they’ll be in the work, doing the work to tell others that this is a place for help, hope, healing and restoration.”

Ronnie’s House fights for funding and support

The re-entry work Ronnie’s House has been doing has been funded by the County.

Through the Transforming L.A. grant, the nonprofit has been able to fund its summit, the development of its app, the Rising Entrepreneurs Academy and support for clients for the next few months.

With the determination to keep going, the Ronnie’s House team has begun the process of fundraising so there’s no gap in re-entry services once the money runs out. 

“[I] just [want to] let people know that we’re here,” Senegal said. “That they’re not by themselves.”

Ronnie’s House also provides other services such as business support, to learn more visit their websites Black-Owned Long Beach and Accelerate Uptown.

To keep up to date with Ronnie’s House re-entry work visit their website here and LB Re-Entry’s website here.

Updated Friday, Aug. 6: This story was updated to reflect the involvement of Ronnie’s House in re-entry policy.