-Instant Checkmate donates $10,000 to Together We Bake, sponsoring women through reintegration and empowerment program-
WASHINGTON—(Oct. 2, 2013)—Instant Checkmate, one of the largest online public records and people-search engines in the world, donates $10,000 to Together We Bake, a workforce and personal development program centered around a baking business for women recently released from the corrections systems and in need of a second chance.
“There is so much potential in each and every one of these women and they deserve to be given the skill sets they need to be successful,” said Stephanie Wright, co-founder of Together We Bake. “Instant Checkmate’s support is going to make major changes in these women’s lives.”
According to the Correctional Association of New York, the majority of women in prison have been victims of crime themselves, stating that 82 percent of female inmates suffered physical or sexual abuse as children.
“We hope that Instant Checkmate is used as a tool to help end the cycle of abuse and crime,” said Kris Kibak, the company’s co-founder. “Instant Checkmate can help moms learn more about the people they invite into their homes, and it can help single women research the men they date before getting too serious.”
InstantCheckmate.com is an online resource for the public—it compiles reports from millions of public records to help protect individuals and their families from would-be predators and help online daters research potential dates before meeting them in-person. The service can help individuals discover if someone has an arrest record or criminal history, whether they have been married or divorced, what assets they possess, and much more.
Terry Garrett is the daughter of two addicts who were usually passed out or manic when she arrived home after school—Terry had her first sips of alcohol cleaning up after parties when many kids have their first tooth fairy visit. The product of her environment, she also became an addict and spent 17 years in and out of prison for drug and theft offenses.
Garrett has been clean for eight years and is now a graduate of Together We Bake’s inaugural class where she was trained in food production, food safety education, customer service, and product packaging and delivery. Through the program, she acquired the confidence, skills and experience she needed to believe in herself and inspire confidence in others. A natural leader, she now uses her Together We Bake training and lifetime of experiences to support and empower other Together We Bake students. She recently became Together We Bake’s first graduate hire, working as a Together We Bake graduate liaison and program assistant while excelling at her other job as a sandwich maker for Cosi.
“Together We Bake has shown me that I can do anything I want, if I believe in myself,” said Garrett. “The team believed in me when I didn’t, and I can now go out into the working world with confidence.”
Instant Checkmate’s partnership will enable Together We Bake to help more women like Garrett who are ready for a fresh start. Their curriculum helps the women gain self-awareness and self-esteem, and encourages responsibility and accountability—skills that help them not only sustain employment in any field, but also live as self-sufficient members of society.
About Instant Checkmate: Instant Checkmate is an online service that provides people finder, public record, and criminal record information to individuals on a subscription basis or for a one-time fee. Instant Checkmate aggregates data from federal, state, and local sources, which have been processed and made available electronically. Some of the databases used by Instant Checkmate include state sex offender information, court dockets, census records, county arrest records and other public records. Instant Checkmate compiles public records and creates user-friendly reports describing people living in the United States. Instant Checkmate is not a consumer reporting agency, does not provide consumer reports, and may not be used for consumer credit, employment, insurance, tenant screening, or any other purpose subject to the Fair Credit Reporting Act. For more information, please review Instant Checkmate Terms of Use. Customers can follow Instant Checkmate onFacebook and Twitter.
About Together We Bake: Together We Bake is a comprehensive workforce training and personal development program for women in need of a second chance. TWB is an innovative collaboration with Friends of Guest House, a supportive transitional housing program in Alexandria. TWB is centered around a micro baking business where the women learn and participate in Food Production, Food Safety Education, Product Packaging and Delivery, and Customer Service. Through the program, women acquire the confidence, skills and experience to reintegrate into society and lead an empowered life. For more information, please visit www.togetherwebake.org.
