Corrections_Today_September_October_2020_Vol.82_No.5

nEWS & vIEWS

Correctional Chaplain Perspectives

Fourth Purpose: A catalyst to make prison a place of transformation By Dr. Kristi Miller Anderson

H ow many more people with untapped potential are sitting behind bars right now, just waiting for some- one to invest in them?” This question haunts the founder and CEO of 4 th Purpose Foundation, Josh Smith, but it’s also the mo- tivation behind the launch of his foundation in 2019. 4 th Purpose is designed to be a catalyst to make prison a place of authentic and lasting transformation. Without a total transformation in his own life, Smith would not be the suc- cessful businessman he is today. In just over a decade and a half, Smith was able to build a small service company into a $30 million enterprise with more than 150 employees. Interestingly, for a five-year period shortly before launching his company, he was serving a federal prison sentence in Kentucky for his involvement in marijuana and cocaine traffick- ing. He entered prison at age 21 with a background of being an 11 th -grade high school dropout and with no future plans different from his past.

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Photo courtesy of Kodi Schutte and 4 th Purpose

Josh Smith, CEO of 4 th Purpose Foundation, visits Morgan County Correctional Complex to speak to inmates about the Visitation 2.0 program.

10 — September/October 2020 Corrections Today