The design of a new Safer Foundation mural honoring U.S. Representative Danny Davis and his work making the successful reentry of citizens with arrest and conviction records a national priority has been completed on Wednesday. The painting of the 3,500 square-foot, 30- foot-high mural, designed on the Safer Foundation’s Community Office building, 808 S. Kedzie Ave. in East Garfield Park, was led by artist Janel Young who began working on the mural with her of four other artists on June 2nd. In the coming months, the Safer Foundation building will also get light renovations to its façade and lobby area and a new name – The Safer Foundation-Danny K. Davis – Second Chance Center. The Safer Foundation building, which offers a holistic suite of reentry services, including education and training, employment, housing and behavioral health services, is located in the 7th district, which Rep. Davis has represented since 1997. Rep. Davis was chief sponsor of the national Second Chance Act of 2007, which authorizes federal grants for vital programs and systems reforms aimed at improving the reentry process. The Second Chance Act was signed into law on April 9, 2008 and reauthorized in 2019. Since 2009, more than $1 billion in grants have been issued to grantees, including Safer Foundation, across 49 states. In turn, more than 100,000 returning citizens have accessed training, employment, treatment and other vital services to help them reintegrate into society.

Photo Credit: Safer Foundation