Meet Jessica Highstreet | REshape Board Member and Poet

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jessica Highstreet and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jessica, maybe we can start at the very start – the idea – how did you come up with the idea for your business?
I began working as a resource coordinator for adults with disabilities in May 2018. Sitting behind me at orientation on my first day was Jamie Williams. I couldn’t have known then how this outgoing, confident woman would influence my life. Jamie and I shared an office and between meetings we would chat about the weather, and our hobbies, and where we grew up. We started talking about our brothers and realized we had something in common. Both of our brothers were incarcerated. I talked about how much my brother struggled when he was released. Like most inmates, he left jail with a bus ticket and a bill, and not much else. Not everyone knows this, but the vast majority of jails in America charge inmates from around $6 to up to $60 per day during their sentence. Many people leave jail with debt, no job, no housing, maybe they don’t have any family in the area. As Jamie and I talked, it became apparent that there was a dire need for resources and support for folks coming out of incarceration. Much like the work we were doing with adults with disabilities, we dreamed about how amazing it would be if this type of case management existed for people coming out of incarceration.

A few years later, it’s 2020 and Jamie and I are still great friends. She was just finishing up her masters degree in social work and wondering what was next. Jamie also has a degree in criminal justice and just the fiercest tenacious spirit. As protests around the country demanded change and spread their message of criminal justice reform, Jamie told me about her idea for a non-profit. REshape, a non-profit where case managers would work with incarcerated people and set them up with any resources they need when they’re released and after. I couldn’t wait to get to work. I joined REshape’s board, and we were approved as a 501(c)3 non-profit in October 2021. REshape has started providing case management services to several clients and we can’t wait to grow. We also started hosting community events like our annual Holiday Charity Gala and our quarterly event called Share the Love, where we write to incarcerated loved ones or pen pals.

The movement that began in 2020 continues to fight. We’ve got to do the work to make criminal justice reform happen. Thankfully, there are many organizations like ours working towards the mission of changing the jail and prison system from institutions that have historically been oppressive and purely punitive to a place of rehabilitation.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Outside of my non-profit work, I also love to write and recently I published a poetry collection called Rose Hips. Writing poetry and prose is my great escape. It’s my self-care and my stress relief. Writing also helps me push my boundaries and meet other writers and artists too. I’ve joined a few local writing workshops and everyone is always so inviting. It just gets the juices flowing when you’re surrounded by so many creative minds. I’ve been trying to brave the stage more often too, so I’ve started performing my poetry at open mic events around Denver. It’s such a vulnerable experience and I’m so grateful to have found an encouraging community at the events put on by Sacred Voices and Enigma Bazaar.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
A perfect week of seeing the sights around Denver would include: a baseball game at Coors Field (preferably when the Cubbies are in town, sorry Rockies fans) with a hotdog or two from Biker Jim’s, a concert at Red Rock’s weather permitting- Ogden or Gothic theater are great winter spots though, panning for gold in the Clear Creak river, getting in a bison traffic jam at Rocky Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge, and eating as much green chile sauce as is humanly possible.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d like to dedicate my shout to my fellow board members of REshape. You are an incredible group of people that really get the hard work done. REshape went from an idea, a hope, a dream to now connecting people with the services they need. It’s so unreal sometimes to think about what we’ve accomplished in such a short amount of time by working together toward a common goal. You have taught me so much about the criminal justice system, about building a non-profit from the ground up, and about being a part of dedicated team like no other. I am motivated and inspired by you all constantly. Thank you for being the change.

Website: https://reshapeminds.org/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessicahighstreet/

Other: JessicaHighstreet.com

Image Credits
Rozae Co. Photo