Barrier Breakers: DeAndre and Vinessa Brown

At the time of his arrest, DeAndre Brown was wanted by the city of Memphis, Shelby County, and the State of Tennessee.

Today, DeAndre has business contracts with the city of Memphis, Shelby County, and the State of Tennessee.

DeAndre and his wife, Vinessa, are the founders of Lifeline to Success, an organization that helps men and women rejoin community life after incarceration. It’s a challenge DeAndre knows first-hand. He was a promising pre-med student at Rhodes College when a desire for easy money lured him into a life of crime that eventually led to a decade spent in and out of prison. Upon his release, DeAndre and Vinessa decided to make ministering to other returning citizens their life’s work.

Lifeline to Success’s clients attend work and life skills classes every morning. Afternoons are spent working in low-income areas of Memphis, performing landscaping and janitorial services as members of paid work crews or as volunteers.

In addition to transforming themselves, Lifeline clients are fighting blight, violence, unemployment, and other aspects of what DeAndre refers to as the “criminal culture.” More than 1,000 clients with felony records have joined the program over the past eight years; fewer than five have gone on to commit another felony.

An important part of that transformative process is learning to manage finances. The Browns, their organization, and their clients all have accounts with HOPE.

“Many of our clients have never earned a paycheck or had a bank account, and the process of establishing one can be intimidating. They’ve served time in prison, but the thought of going into the bank scares them,” DeAndre says. “Writing a check, applying for a loan, even something as simple as showing off an ATM card gives them a sense of pride.

“I thank God for HOPE. They’re doing more than opening accounts and issuing ATM cards. They’re helping these men and women take a step forward in life.”

“HOPE’s commitment to serving returning citizens when so many institutions aren’t interested is a ray of hope that allows me to believe change in the way returning citizens are viewed and treated
is possible,” DeAndre Brown says.