Supporters

Supporter Profile: Marcus Bullock

Marcus Bullock spent several years of his youth behind bars. While there, he made a pact with three of his codefendants: they promised each other and themselves that they would be successful in each of their chosen fields. They have all held to their promises!

Of course, the road leading up to that point hadn’t been easy. Marcus recalls a significant turning point in his life prior to coming home. While he was incarcerated, his cousin was killed. At only 16-17 years old, Marcus had difficulty controlling his grief and anger. An older man in the prison “took the opportunity to be a mentor, kind of a father figure … He said ‘some of us are never going home, and when you go home you’ll be 23 years old. Why don’t you go home and make something of yourself?’”

Graduation speaker Marcus Bullock with Michael and Antwan at Antwan’s graduation from the Apprenticeship program.

Marcus had always been a very driven person, but while he was incarcerated he found a support system in his three co-defendants, including author and Free Minds Advisory Board member Dwayne Betts, who introduced Free Minds to Marcus. “We’re brothers,” he says, “committed to one another. We’re held accountable by one another.” If one of them messed up, the others would be there to help him pick himself back up. This support system hasn’t failed yet.

Coming home from prison, the hardest thing for Marcus was to find that first job. But with determination, hard work, and support from friends and family, he soon found the opportunity he needed. He got a job at a paint store, which led to contacts with a contracting company, which eventually helped Marcus when he established his own company, Perspectives Premier. Perspectives started as a painting company but grew into a home remodeling company.

Now, as a businessman, Marcus enjoys the flexibility of working for himself and deciding what he wants to do and when he wants to do it. This flexibility allows him to enjoy life. His favorite book is 1984 by George Orwell. When asked about his proudest accomplishment, he says, without hesitation, “My son.”

For Free Minds members and other young people in the situation he was once in, Marcus says that they have to find something they like to do and learn to do it well so that they are ready for success. “You only get lucky once, and once you get lucky you want to make sure you’re prepared for that opportunity. Stay positive, find something that you really enjoy doing, and do it well.”

Marcus has found something he enjoys doing: business. His latest entrepreneurial venture is Flikshop. Flikshop is an app that enables users to take a photograph and send it as a postcard to an inmate, encouraging and strengthening the ties between inmates and their loved ones.

Flikshop also offers incarcerated people a vital way to stay in touch with people on the outside. Marcus was inspired to create Flikshop partially in recognition of the changing face of technology. Previous generations might have sat down and written letters to be mailed along with family photos, but, he says, “Nobody does that anymore. Cell phones, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram … with all of these different new forms of technology that are on the horizon, it allows you to take advantage of the quickness of the technology.” With the app, people can send a picture to an incarcerated friend or family member within seconds of taking the picture, enabling a faster and easier form of communication.

Learn more about Marcus Bullock’s work at www.flikshop.com.

 

Supporters

We are so grateful for the generosity of both the individuals and institutions who make our work possible. Free Minds receives and has received financial support from the following foundations:

Aliza Family Foundation
Capitol Hill Community Foundation
Commonweal Foundation Fund of The Community Foundation for the National Capital Region
Community Foundation for the National Capital Region
Compassion Capital Fund's Communities Empowering Youth Program
Crowell & Moring Foundation
Daughters of the American Revolution (Eleanor Wilson Chapter)
DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities
The District of Columbia Daughters of the American Revolution, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution
Dealy Foundation
Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation
The Fullen-Smith Foundation
The Global Fund for Children
Harman Family Foundation
The Herb Block Foundation
The Jovid Foundation
Lainoff Family Foundation
Mental Wellness Foundation
Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation
National Book Foundation
New York Avenue Foundation
Philip L. Graham Fund
Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors
Ronald McDonald Foundation House Charities® Global
Ronald McDonald Foundation House Charities® of Greater Washington D.C.
Share Fund
Snave Foundation
The SuPau Trust Private Foundation
United Way of the National Capital Area

Free Minds thanks Mr. Thomas Faust, Director of the DC Department of Corrections, Deputy Director Carolyn Cross, Warden Simon Wainwright, Reverend Betty Green, and Public Information Officer Sylvia Lane, as well as Correctional Treatment Facility staff Warden Isaac Johnston, Assistant Warden and Public Information Officer Walter Fulton, Reverend Kenneth Napper, and all of the dedicated staff at both facilities who continually support our program. We are also grateful to the staff and teachers of the DCPS Incarcerated Youth Program, let by Principal Ms. Soncyree Lee.

© Copyright 2006 Free Minds Book Club and Writing Workshop