Makayla was in the Orange County Juvenile Detention center from February 2020 to
November 2020 with little expectation that her life after her sentence would be much different
than before. But during her time in jail, she had a weekly ritual to look forward to that not only
gave her something to be excited about, but also served as an encouragement to behave better so she could attend.
Every Monday a group of volunteers, coordinated by a nonprofit organization known as
The VERB Kind, gather at numerous county jails throughout Florida (and now Alabama) to
spend time with minors who have been incarcerated for a variety of reasons, and each serving
different time lengths.
The group of volunteers go in every Monday, start with a group discussion, then break up
into smaller groups to have a closer interaction with the teens to discuss what got them there and
what their goals are to do better after they leave. While the whole meeting takes less than 3
hours, split evenly between the male and female inmates, it has a resounding impact.
Beyond the walls of the county jail, The VERB Kind works with kids who are recently
released from jail and serves as a first point of contact to connect them with the resources they
need for better education, extracurricular activities, and employment opportunities.
The VERB Kind has 3 main societal goals of reducing re-incarceration rates, improving education via higher graduation rates, and connecting previously incarcerated youth with potential job opportunities.
Makayla was one of thousands of teens who benefited from The VERB Kind’s impact on
incarcerated youth in Florida and after her sentence was over The VERB Kind’s volunteers
assisted her in finishing high school and applying for, then attending college. Stories like hers are
what drives the more than 250 volunteers to give their time every week to mentor the kids. The
ultimate goal of The VERB Kind, according to its founder is to “give back hope to the 60,000
incarcerated teens in America” and ensure they get the same opportunity as the rest of us, despite
their youthful mistakes.
For more information contact the CEO and Founder Haley Hunt at
To donate: https://www.theverbkind.com/donate