A non-profit organization in Miami-Dade County is helping women who were formerly incarcerated find life after prison.
The Dragonfly Thrift Boutique isn't your average clothing and furniture store, but it's also a place of second chances and where women can change their lives.
"This is a place of love and acceptance and a great way for someone to come back into society, to feel accepted and build their self-esteem again," said store manager Nancy Denike.
Denike was one of the people who got that second chance after serving five years in the Homestead Correctional Facility.
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"I was in a bad place and took money from my employer and that's why I was arrested," she said. "Like so many who are incarcerated, I had lost all my belongings. I didn't know how to start over. Department of Corrections doesn't have things in place like that."
That's where the Ladies Empowerment Action Program - or LEAP - comes in. The organization, which helps women transitioning out of prison through counseling, housing and training, also has a boutique.
Items come solely from donors, creating a store where formerly incarcerated women can get a job. From mopping floors, Denike worked her way up to store manager and mentors other women working at the boutique.
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"These ladies when they come out of prison, they come out with a little gift card $20 to $50. And you're dropped outside of the correctional institute in the middle of nowhere," said LEAP board president Silvana Roncal. "We make sure they have someone waiting for them. We provide them what they need and make sure they have clothing, we get them their IDs back."
With a 96 percent success rate, LEAP also helps society break the stigma it has against people coming out of prison.
"There's life after incarceration, there's life after a tragedy that anyone suffers," said Roncal. "We all need room to change and have the freedom to change."
