Next year, women released from prison will have the opportunity to find transitional housing in a new, renovated home near downtown Burlington. Northern Lights at Varney House will open on Cherry Street, providing round the clock services to help women offenders avoid recidivism.
Tiffany Bluemle is Executive Director of Vermont Works for Women, and helped create the housing project. She spoke with Mitch Wertlieb about how it will help with of the most challenging aspects of emergence from prison – the separation from the rest of society that can often make women feel isolated and vulnerable.