NEW ORLEANS — A tale of resilience and redemption, a formerly incarcerated woman has turned her life around after her release. She's not only rebuilt herself but is helping other incarcerated women get their second chance.
One word that describes Danena Williams is 'determined.' Williams said, "I have always been goal-driven, purpose-driven, God fearing person so knowing what needs to be done and knowing what I know needs to be done I have always had that instilled in me."
At 20 years old she was sentenced to 20 years for armed robbery, she said, "Just a young girl that made a very bad decision."
She served 16 of those years, and finally, last March she was released, saying, "I will forever regret the mistake that I made but I will never allow it to define who I am."
In less than 18 months she's achieved more than many people have in years. She became a general manager at IHOP and this week she became a homeowner, but she says it hasn't been easy.
"People don't know you, they look at you on paper and they see your conviction... The stigma of being a convicted felon, being formerly incarcerated is very hard to combat," she said.
Upon her release, she stayed at Diamond House, which is transitional housing for women, a safe space for women reentering society.
Norris Henderson is the founder and Executive Director of Voice of the Experienced, he helped establish Diamond House, he said, "Our first resident when she came home she was sitting at this very table and she just started crying because she didn't know what to expect, and when she saw this it was beyond her expectations was."
Henderson says there needs to be more resources at a state and local level to help those formerly incarcerated, he said, "Most of these ladies have been gone for decades and the world changes every five minutes so you can only imagine what that looks like, 15-20 years down the line."
He went on to say, "There's a housing crisis everywhere, this city has a lot of property, that this city just owns that is blighted you're not doing anything with it, but you're trying to sell it, give it away."
Williams too is giving back, she's hired six formerly incarcerated people at her IHOP, and she said, "I do my best to give them a position or create a position for them."
According to data from the State Department of Corrections, there are approximately 1600 women convicted of felony crimes in state and local jails.
Williams also wrote and published her book "The True Vine- Reflection Journal: Apart from him, we can do nothing".
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