WASHINGTON — An investigation is underway after someone smashed the window of The READY Center in Southeast D.C. It's apparently not the first time the building has been vandalized in recent weeks.
"I'm angry and frustrated," said Eric Weaver, the founder of the National Association for the Advancement of Returning Citizens, adding "This is a place for returning citizens".
Weaver is a returning citizen himself, and a former director of The READY Center.
"It's a place where a returning citizen can go to one location and see all the agencies and get all the services in one spot," said Weaver.
"I have a lot of friends and family who are just coming home and I send them to The READY Center to get help get services. My organization, we send people there every day and It affects the work we do and people I love and care about too," he said.
The READY Center initially opened in 2019. They operated out of a trailer behind the D.C. Department of Corrections. Last year, they moved into 3640 MLK Jr. Avenue in Southeast.
Weaver told WUSA9 that he got a call from the current director on Monday.
"She called me and told me they'd busted out the window," he said.
Weaver says it's happened several times in the past few weeks.
WUSA9 reached out to the Department of Corrections Wednesday night. They sent us the following statement from Director Thomas Faust:
"The READY Center is dedicated to serving the community by providing a safe and welcoming space for District residents returning home from incarceration, but it can only be successful with the support of our neighbors and the local community. The recent vandalism incidents are disheartening and undermine the positive environment we strive to maintain. Our dedicated staff, partners and provider network works hard every day to offer valuable programs and activities, and both they and our clients deserve to feel safe at the center. We are collaborating with the Metropolitan Police Department and community leaders to prevent future incidents, and we appreciate the ongoing support from our community in preserving the safety of the READY Center in fulfilling its purpose."
Weaver says each time this happens, it has an impact on the people who rely on the center.
"They have to close the place down," he explained, in order to make repairs.
"So if somebody may have got released from the halfway house that day, now they're trying to get services and now the place is closed," said Weaver.
He has a message to whoever's doing it:
"Hands off The READY Center! Just hands off The READY Center! We need this place to help us get acclimated back into the community so, just hands off," said Weaver.
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