Legislator Anker Celebrates S.T.A.R.T Resource Center's Opening

YAPHANK, NY – On Thursday, July 30^th, Suffolk County Legislator Sarah Anker joined Suffolk County Sheriff Errol D. Toulon, Jr., Tracey Edwards, LI Regional Director for the NAACP, non-profits and other local elected officials in celebrating the grand opening of the Sheriff’s Transition and Re-entry Team (S.T.A.R.T.) Resource Center. The S.T.A.R.T Resource Center’s aim is to aid those who are transitioning out of county jails by providing them with resources and connections to employment assistance, educational opportunities, housing, substance abuse treatment, mental healthcare, food, transportation, clothing and other necessities. Individuals are connected by Correctional Counselors to the necessary resources to help their transition back into the community.

“I am honored to be celebrating the opening of the S.T.A.R.T Resource Center with Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon, Jr. and everyone else who made this opening possible.” said Legislator Anker. “The work of the center is important in ensuring that our community members are provided with the best chance of success.”

“The Resource Center is the realization of a lifelong dream to send people back into the community with the tools they need to be productive members of society,” Sheriff Errol Toulon, Jr. said. “When I was a young child, I asked my father, a warden on Riker’s Island, what he did for a living. He said, ‘We rehabilitate people.’ That stuck with me throughout my 30 year career in law enforcement.”

The resource center is open Monday through Friday from 8:30am to 5:00pm. Throughout COVID-19, the resource center has continued to provide services through one-to-one phone interviews, video conferences and by coordinating with various facilities and providers. For more information about the resource center, please visit https://www.suffolkcountysheri... or call 631-852-5391.

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