Please join us in congratulating one of our Roots of Success graduates, Mark Mack, on his recent completion of the Windy City Harvest Corps program! Mark served 10 years behind bars in the state of Ohio, and came to the Roots of Success program in 2015. “I always wanted to do something educational,” Mark said about why he chose to take the class. “My favorite part was learning about renewable energy, because of global warming and greenhouse gases.”
Upon release, Mark went to Chicago, where Roots of Success staff introduced him to Windy City Harvest at the Chicago Botanic Garden. “It was awesome,” Mark says about the urban agriculture program. “I wish I could get a lot of young brothers and sisters off the street and into a program like that. It was very helpful, educational, and humbling, especially the people that get you through the program.” In addition to his urban agriculture training Mark also obtained his forklift, OSHA, and SafeServ certifications while at WCH.
“I thought a lot about the environmental topics that I learned from Roots of Success while at Windy City. Coming back to a big city, I had a deeper knowledge than the others in the program from having taken all the Roots of Success modules.”
What’s next for Mark? “I’m considering going back to school to get a degree. When the time comes, I will. I’m coming out of my shell after being incarcerated, developing my communication skills. I’m applying to work as a custodian at the research laboratory. I want the Roots of Success community to see this is very inspiring to me. Roots of Success has put me on a path to success.”
Learn about the Roots of Success Apprenticeship and Pre-Apprenticeship programs