Creating Community in Re-Entry Ministry & Among Families

Join CPMC for a conversation with Bruce Noddin (Maine Prisoner Re-Entry Network) and Rev. Dr. Margaret “Dodie” Sheffield (MPRN’s Rose’s Room). They will share about how to build community through re-entry ministry and support networks for families affected by incarceration.

Maine Prisoner Re-Entry Network (MPRN) is  a statewide organization established to measurably reduce Maine’s recidivism rate. MPRN convenes community recovery/reentry stakeholder meetings from York to Aroostook Counties and established a “Weekly Statewide Convening”, where 60-80+ individuals gather every Tuesday, to address the challenges of reentry & recovery and build connections across all sectors & regions of Maine. MPRN has 2 major focuses; providing pre-entry preparation, resource connection, and follow through peer support for individuals reentering our communities from prison and Peer Support, Recovery Coaching, and community connection to folks in county jails, Treatment Courts, and treatment centers.

Speaker Bios:

Bruce Noddin is the founder and Director of the Maine Prisoner Re-Entry Network (MPRN), a statewide organization established to measurably reduce Maine’s recidivism rate. Bruce is also the co-founder of Rose’s Room, a support group for the family and loved ones of those who are, and have been, incarcerated. Bruce was appointed to the Maine State Workforce Board by Governor Mills in April 2022 and appointed by Senate President Jackson to the Maine Recovery Council in August 2022. Bruce is a “6 Who Care”, “Rising Tide”, and Spirit of Goodwill Award winner, and the recipient of multiple awards for MPRN’s community collaboration. Bruce is also the former Executive Director of The Rest Center (Lewiston) and Columbia Street Project (Bangor). Bruce also leads a weekly Jail Ministry at the Androscoggin County Jail in Auburn, Maine, every Thursday evening.

Rev. Dr. Margaret (Dodie) Sheffield is a retired United Methodist pastor, living in Wells, Maine. She served in local small church ministry for 24 years, and under her leadership her churches in southern Maine helped fund the establishment of the Transformation Project: a center providing re-entry support for Mainers after incarceration.  She currently has a nephew who is incarcerated and a brother who is being released after 27 years. Dodie has been participating in Rose’s Room since September 2018, when an in-person group started meeting in Westbrook.