In September, Richardson hired Huma House’s first female employee to work in the gardens: Ilka Rosales. She served 25 years in prison before her release in June 2019. She is also the co-founder of a nonprofit called People’s Pottery Project, which employs people who have served their sentences in the ceramic business.

At Valley State Prison for Women, Rosales took a landscaping class — and a seed was planted inside of her. She wanted to do landscaping work after coming home but found it hard to find jobs. So, when she met Richardson through a mutual friend and was offered the opportunity to work at Huma House, she seized it.

“Just working outside, it's a breath of fresh air because I feel closer to God. Being out there, it's like you're in tune with nature,” Rosales said. “It was just one big blob of trees and bushes, and it didn't make sense. But then after you go through and trim and you take some plants out and replant others, then it becomes like a song. It becomes like a piece of art.”

Step into Genea Richardson's world in 360° video. Writing poetry and gardening have been two pathways on her healing journey.

The Prison Policy Initiative’s research found that 27 percent of people who have experienced incarceration are unemployed, which is 6.4 times the current unemployment rate of the United States.

“[Prison administration] are always telling you how bad you are, how you don't belong in society, you're never going to make it,” Rosales said. “So for us to make it and do something in society and actually make a difference and change people's lives, or change the way people think about formerly incarcerated people; it's an amazing feeling.”

For each morning walkthrough — going through the client’s checklist and assessing work progress — Rosales’ favorite part of the job is working with Richardson.

“It's easier to relate to somebody who's been formerly incarcerated and still carry the same sisterhood, even if you have not been in the same institution as them,” Rosales said. “Like, I never knew Genea but just meeting her, knowing her background was similar to mine, it's like we knew what each other needed.”

Tubbs reinforced the idea saying, “We know how to cultivate safe spaces that are creative, that are cultural and that are empowering. That is why it is essential that people like myself and Genea take the lead on anything that has to do with a reentry citizen.”