Restoring Families: Inside Out Recovery Aims to Heal and Reunite in Jasper County

Tristian Addington (left), Community Outreach Advocate for Loula Foundation, Alisha Bean (center), Director of Operations, and Stacia Morris (Community Integration Specialist) lead a peer recovery session inside Jasper County Jail. The Inside Out Recovery Initiative provides support, healing, and second chances to incarcerated parents.

On Monday, June 17, the Jasper County Commissioners Court will formally recognize June as Family Reunification Month — a proclamation that not only honors second chances, but also highlights the life-changing work of the Loula Foundation and its new Inside Out Recovery Initiative, supported by Jasper County Sheriff Chuck Havard.

The Loula Foundation, a nonprofit rooted in Southeast Texas, supports families impacted by substance use, domestic violence, and child welfare involvement. Its mission is simple yet powerful: to promote safe and loving homes for children through family recovery.

While the Inside Out Recovery Initiative is Loula’s jail-based program, the organization’s support reaches far beyond the justice system — helping families across the region heal from trauma and reconnect through recovery.

That focus on healing led to a new partnership with the Jasper County Jail, where Loula now facilitates peer-led sessions with incarcerated parents.

“I thought this program would be good because they are hearing from people who have experienced things similar to them,” said Sheriff Chuck Havard. “They offer many things that can help them while they’re incarcerated and even when they get out.”

The Inside Out Recovery Initiative is a peer-led program offering guidance, support, and hope to justice-involved parents. Sessions are facilitated by individuals with lived experience — including Tristian Addington, Community Outreach Advocate for Loula Foundation.

“Without the support of programs like Inside Out Recovery Initiative, I would never be the husband, father, and man I am today,” Addington said. “God and recovery gave me a second chance, and it is both my responsibility and my expression of gratitude to serve in this capacity today.”

Sessions begin with team members sharing their personal stories of addiction, incarceration, and healing, followed by targeted discussions based on participants’ stages of recovery. The goal is to foster trust and inspire change by showing what’s possible on the other side of hardship.

Though the program is still in its early stages at Jasper County Jail, Addington said the emotional breakthroughs have already been significant.

“There are buckets of tears and hearts being poured out,” he said. “That tells us we’re earning their trust — and that they want help.”

The initiative doesn’t stop at the jail doors. Inside Out is designed to support participants from incarceration through reentry and, ultimately, family reunification. Addington said the community needs to reframe how it sees people in the criminal justice system.

“These individuals are not bad people trying to become good,” he said. “They are sick people who need help getting well — and we are living proof that healing and restoration are possible.”

Addington hopes parents in similar situations know they’re not alone — and that there is support available through programs like Loula’s.

“It’s okay if you don’t know what to do,” he said. “Loula is here to help you find your way home. There is hope. There are resources. And there is a life more beautiful than you could ever imagine — if you’re willing to reach out and do the work.”

To learn more about Loula Foundation’s programs or request support, visit loulafoundation.org.