Inside story of Sonoma County's Probation Camp
Tom Neuwirth, director of the Sonoma County Probation Camp near Forestville, talks with a couuple of inmates during lunch.
BETH SCHLANKER / The Press DemocratPublished: Sunday, September 26, 2010 at 1:20 p.m.
Last Modified: Sunday, September 26, 2010 at 1:20 p.m.
What sort of work camp for teen offenders is Tom Neuwirth running anyway?
There are no razor-wire fences to keep young inmates inside the Sonoma County Probation Camp, located in the countryside north of Forestville, not far from the Russian River. And the camp's bustling workshops are virtual arsenals of tools and industrial materials that could make lethal weapons.
Neuwirth believes the camp for up to two dozen convicted boys 16 to 18 years old is cutting edge — and was all the more so when it opened as the first of its kind in California 55 years ago.
The mellow-tempered, 50-year-old Neuwirth is fond of quoting the camp's late co-founder, John Gurley, as saying, “I want to teach kids to build fences within them so we don't have to build fences around them.”
To keep the teens locked in would be fairly simple for Neuwirth, the camp's director for nearly 20 years, and his staff. Much more demanding, and rewarding, is their mission to guide troubled young men to erect internal fences to contain their behavior and to help them discover constructive uses for their hands.
“Boys need things to lift and to push against,” Neuwirth said. Such things are plentiful at the six-acre camp on Eastside Road.
The orderly workshops are California's primary source of the sturdy redwood picnic tables and heavy, steel fire rings and barbecue grills found at many public parks. Some of the camp's boys had never touched a tool before instructors taught them safe and proficient welding, drilling, sawing and other occupational skills, such as operating a forklift.
“They do a great job and they're so proud of it,” Neuwirth said.
The guiding premise is that working with others to create high-quality, substantial products gives teens a sense of belonging and power.
“That's what the gangs often give them,” said Neuwirth, a father of four and grandfather of three. He's a former Outward Bound excursion leader who discovered decades ago that even hard, tough kids can soften when given some attention and a chance to do something productive.
The fire rings and picnic tables are sold to government agencies. Money from the sales buys more materials and tools, and it pays for camp enhancements, such as wilderness trips and supplemental counseling.
In addition, the teens receive compensation for their manufacturing work, although most of that money goes to restitution to the victims of their crimes. Neuwirth said sales profits also provide aid to boys who want to attend Santa Rosa Junior College but have no money for books and materials.
Every weekday at the camp, the teens spend three hours in high school classes conducted by the Sonoma County Office of Education and three hours in the workshops.
The boys sleep on simple, steel-framed beds on the periphery of the camp's day room and mess hall. They rise at about 6 a.m., clean the place and help the cook prepare breakfast.
“This is their house,” Neuwirth said, and they are trained to treat it as such. Chores, discipline and sustained, reliable mentoring by adults who care for them are new to many of the boys.
They're sent to Probation Camp by judges who hear their cases and decide, after consulting with probation officers and others, that they're good candidates for behavior modification in a residential facility without fences. Other options include lockup at the county's Juvenile Hall or transfer to the state's Division of Juvenile Justice, formerly the California Youth Authority.
“Usually they're pretty deep in the system by the time they get to us,” Neuwirth said.
Teens typically spend six to 10 months at the camp, although on occasion one takes advantage of the lack of fences and runs off. When a boy does well at the camp and then in the three or four months of after-care, he's transitioned to what can be a very tough place — home and the streets and relationships in which he lived when he got into trouble.
Neuwirth said 55 years of Probation Camp history show that not all former camp residents will conquer the pressures and temptations and will stay on track to productive, lawful lives.
“There are no silver bullets. We don't have all the answers,” he said.
But on Neuwirth's best days out on Eastide Road, a former inmate who once bunked and made redwood tables there comes back to say he's married or has a new job and he appreciates the care the camp staff showed back in the day.
You can reach Staff Columnist Chris Smith at 521-5211 or chris.smith@pressdemocrat.com.
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