Important Contact Information

Click on the underlined words to access the website.

Mass Health Member Customer Service 

Phone: (800) 841-2900

Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) 

Phone: (877) 382‑2363 

Office Phone Directory:  Locations | Mass.gov 

Website:   DTA Connect - Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance 

Eligibility Calculator:   Massachusetts SNAP Eligibility: Income Limits, Benefits & How to Apply – SNAP Eligibility Calculator 

Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles (ID, License, Permit)

Phone: (857)-368-8580 or (800)-858-3926 

Website:   Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles | Mass.gov 

Find a Location:  Locations | Mass.gov 

Social Security Administration (Social Security Card)

Phone:  1-800-772-1213 

Website: The United States Social Security Administration  

Registry of Vital Records (Birth Certificate)

Phone:  617-740-2400

Website:  Order a birth, marriage, or death certificate | Mass.gov 

Passports

Phone:   877-487-2778 

Website:  Apply for a U.S. Passport 

Housing Authority

Phone: 617-573-1100

Website:  Massachusetts | HUD.gov / U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) 

Massachusetts Parole Board

Phone (Central Office): (508) 650‑4500

Toll‑Free: (866) 480‑6272

Fax: (508) 650‑4599

Parole Board Website: mass.gov/parole-board — for hearing schedules, victim services, and case information.

Probation & Parole Directory: probationdirectory.com — searchable list of adult and juvenile probation/parole offices  

Massachusetts Probation Service Contacts

Office of the Commissioner of Probation:  Massachusetts Probation Service Contacts | Mass.gov 

Probation Directory:  Massachusetts - Probation & Parole Directory 

Click on the underlined title to access the website for each resource.

Most mental health services are delivered in outpatient and community settings paid for by insurance, including MassHealth. 

If you have private health insurance, contact your insurance provider using the number on the back of your health insurance card is to see what services might be available to you through your provider.

• For individuals insured by MassHealth (Medicaid in MA), contact the member services number on your MassHealth card, or consult with your primary care physician.

• For individuals insured by Medicare, contact the primary care physician’s office or Medicare for a referral to counseling services. 1 (800) MEDICARE (or 1-800-633-4227).

• Individuals who do not have health insurance can obtain coverage through the MA Health Connector.

• Call or text the Massachusetts Behavioral Help Line: 833-773-2445

• Chat live with a representative here: https://www.masshelpline.com/ 

Click on the underlined title to access the website for each resource.

• The Greater Boston Food Bank  Need Food? | The Greater Boston Food Bank 

• Project Bread Food Hotline:  1-800-645-8333   Website:  Get Help Directory | Project Bread 

• National Hunger Helpline:  Call 1-866-3-HUNGRY (1-866-348-6479)  

• Spoonfuls: Spoonfuls - Food Recovery - Massachusetts 

• Locate a Food Pantry:  Food Pantries in Massachusetts

• American Red Cross provides free food Wed & Saturdays from 9a-Noon at 1033 Mass Ave. entrance is on Proctor St.

• Fresh Truck:  Fresh Truck 

ABCD operates neighborhood food pantries across Boston and nearby areas, they require a Food Source Hotline Referral Food Banks organization.

Massachusetts has hundreds of food banks and pantries. 

• Boston – 19+ locations, including ABCD sites and others Food Pantries
• Dorchester – 31+ locations Food Pantries
• Worcester – 25+ locations Food Pantries
• Hyannis – 9+ locations Food Pantries
  You can search by city on FoodPantries.org or HomelessShelterDirectory.org for exact addresses, hours, and whether you need a referral.

Many soup kitchens serve hot meals daily. The HomelessShelterDirectory.org list includes soup kitchens in Boston (20+), Dorchester (28+), and other cities Homeless Shelter Directory. Some also offer free breakfasts or lunches.

You can apply for SNAP (food stamps) or the WIC program through the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance. These can be used at participating grocery stores Mass.gov.

• https://www.intelligent.com/education-and-career-guide-after-incarceration/Education resources for returning citizens

• https://resume.io/blog/how-to-list-a-ged For many people, earning a GED while incarcerated is a huge accomplishment, and listing it correctly on a resume or job application is crucial when searching for employment opportunities.

•  https://justice4housing.org/Justice 4 Housing is a grassroots  organization committed to end housing discrimination and homelessness for justice involved individuals impacted by domestic violence and incarceration. 

• After Innocence After Innocence is an organization that provides assistance for wrongfully convicted prisoners upon their release. Realizing the tremendous disadvantages these former inmates face. After Innocence works to coordinate with different social services in order to ease the transition of former inmates into civilian life. 

• Family ReEntry Family ReEntry is a nonprofit organization that works to provide community based services to individuals and families impacted by the criminal justice system. Through the integration of three sectors; Prevention, Intervention, and, Reentry, Family ReEntry aims to break the cycle of incarceration.

• National Reentry Resource Center This site, maintained by the Dept. of Justice, profiles prisoner reentry grant programs and resources. A number of downloadable publications related to reentry and recidivism are also available.

• Federal Bonding Program Information page for the Federal Bonding Program, which provides free fidelity bonds to employers as an incentive to hire ex-prisoners.

• New York Public Library's Correctional Services The New York Public Library's Correctional Services delivers a range of library programs at city, state, and federal facilities, including Connections, an annual guide and directory of resources in New York City available to help people when they are released from incarceration.

• Prisoner Reentry Network The Prison Reentry Network is a nonprofit that works with prisoner prior to their release in aiding their transition back into their communities. Their work encompasses providing information to inmates on how to find food, shelter, and work opportunities. They distribute this information directly to prisoners through print editions of their programs as well as online to the families of the incarcerated individuals. 

• Restoration of Human Rights Project The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers offers a collection of individual downloadable documents that profile the law and practice in each U.S. jurisdiction relating to relief from the collateral consequences of conviction. 54 jurisdictional profiles include provisions on loss and restoration of civil rights and firearms privileges, legal mechanisms for overcoming or mitigating collateral consequences, and provisions addressing non-discrimination in employment and licensing.

• The Fortune Society Provides post-release services and programs for prisoners in the New York City area and occasionally publishes Fortune News, a free publication for prisoners that deals with criminal justice issues, primarily in New York

• Angel Tree Prison Fellowship’s Angel Tree ministry serves the children of prisoners by giving them gifts on behalf of their incarcerated parents and by surrounding them all year long with a loving community. For more information on Angel Tree, click here or contact their National Angel Tree Support Center at 1-800-251-7411.

• Prisoner Pen Pals You could reach out to other inmates by becoming a pen pal. Contact CLPRM to become part of this ministry. Or start your own pen pal ministry using the Visit Prison in an Envelope guide from Prison Fellowship. Sometimes the best way out of a dark place is to reach out with much-needed source of encouragement and friendship to a lonely prisoner. This simple guide explains how to find a prisoner pen pal, how to write letters of encouragement and discipleship, and how to trouble-shoot typical problems that may arise.

• Bethel Bible Village Residential care agency provides support and ministry to children and youth of families shattered by crime and troubled environments.

• Center for Children of Incarcerated Parents The Center for Children of Incarcerated Parents provides services in four components. (1) The Information component includes publications and audio-visual materials free of charge to prisoners, their children and their families; and provides advice to groups of incarcerated parents and family members. (2) The Educational component provides materials and holds parent education training for parents in the criminal justice system. A correspondence course in parent education is offered free of charge to incarcerated parents. (3) The Family Reunification component has about 60 service projects to help prisoners and their children maintain a relationship. (4) The Therapeutic Component provides therapy for incarcerated mothers and their infants and young children. 

• Families for Justice as Healing Families for Justice as Healing focuses on raising public awareness about the incarceration of women and the impact on children and communities.

• Child Welfare Information Gateway Provides information and resources related to issues involving incarcerated parents and their children.

• Forever Family (Formerly Aid to Children of Imprisoned Mothers) Forever Family (formerly AIM) is a service organization based in Georgia (with chapters in other states). The agency assists incarcerated mothers, their children and other family members in maintaining critically important family ties during the mother's incarceration.

• Friends Outside Friends Outside is a advocacy and outreach organization committed to improving the quality of life of families, children and communities impacted by incarceration, and to assisting with successful community reentry and family reunification for those transitioning from confinement to freedom. Friends Outside provides direct services to prisoners and their families in the State of California, and conducts advocacy worldwide.

• Legal Services for Prisoners with Children (LSPC) Legal Services for Prisoners with Children (LSPC) offers a comprehensive site dealing with issues involving incarcerated parents, families and children of prisoners, and women prisoners. Their focus is on women prisoners and their families, as well as prisoners rights. Publications available through their site include the Incarcerated Parents Manual, which is highly recommended.

• Prison: The Hidden Sentence: The Hidden Sentence is a blog and online platform with a focus on educating and empowering families and friends of incarcerated individuals. The aim and purpose of which is to create a community where the people affected can share their stories with one another.

• Save Kids of Incarcerated Parents (SKIP) Save Kids of Incarcerated Parents (SKIP) has chapters in several states; the organization provides supportive services to children of incarcerated parents and their families, and seeks to increase public awareness of the underlying problems these children face.

• The National Resource Center on Children and Families of the Incarcerated NRCCFI is the oldest and largest organization in the U.S. focused on children and families of the incarcerated and programs that serve them, providing a comprehensive directory of programs, a library of helpful resources, and more.

• https://pigly.com/savings/guide-for-kids.php   
  Pigly is a free online personal finance guide offering over 100 financial calculators.

• https://followsuitmentoring.com: Follow Suit mentorship program enhances the quality of life of the young men we serve by our commitment to their spiritual, social, emotional and intellectual development. 

• https://nnw4justice.com/:  Never not working for justice arededicated to confronting one of the most profound injustices within our legal system: wrongful convictions. Our mission goes beyond mere statistics – we are committed to raising awareness, providing critical resources, and amplifying the voices of those impacted by wrongful imprisonment.

• https://utecinc.org/: UTEC helps young people overcome the challenges of poverty, gang involvement, and unemployment.

• https://familynurturing.org: Family nurturing programs are designed for parents and children to experience together. Family members learn how to build their nurturing skills and understanding of healthy development, appropriate expectations, and discipline with dignity.

•  https://www.justsolvent.com: Solvent empowers the financially excluded, disadvantaged, underserved and overlooked through affordable technology-driven financial empowerment tools, products and services around banking, credit, financial literacy and entrepreneurship education, and more.

• https://www.everydayboston.org/the-bridge-project: The Bridge Project helps incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people strengthen their life skills, sense of self-worth, and feeling of belonging, so they can become active, engaged citizens of Boston and beyond.

• https://www.wab2g.org/services: We Are Better Together Warren Daniel Hairston Project (WAB2G) connects and heals women and girls affected by homicide and incarceration to prevent the cycles of violence and victimization.

• https://www.yardtimeent.org: Mental Health support groups.

• https://www.outforgoodbehavioralservices.org: Mental Health and substance abuse support.

• https://www.freefuquan.com/theharriettubmanproject: The Harriet Tubman Project is a modern railroad to mental and physical freedom. Currently we serve the wrongfully convicted, the actually & factually innocent men of MCI Norfolk Correctional Facility.

• https://www.responsibleparty3.com: Our mission is to foster a restorative justice framework that recognizes the inherent worth and interconnectedness of all individuals.

• https://www.mass.gov/masshire-career-centers: MassHire Career Centers serve as a vital link between workers and employers to bring about economic opportunity. 

• https://www.fathersuplift.org: Fathers' UpLift provides mental health counseling, coaching, advocacy, and resource support to assist fathers with overcoming barriers (racism, emotional, traumatic, and addiction-based barriers) that prevent them from remaining engaged in their children's lives.

• https://nbreentry.org: empowers incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals.

• https://www.boston.gov/departments/returning-citizens: city of Boston services for returning citizens.

• https://mahomeless.org/individual-shelters/: homeless shelters.

• https://accessma.org/: develop, support, and address reentry efforts and initiatives to assist returning citizens, their families, and their communities.

• https://www.boston.gov/departments/workforce-development/powercorpsbos:  PowerCorpsBOS is a 10-month Green Industry Workforce Development Program. It provides young adults with training, career readiness support, and connections to employers in the green industry. An “earn and learn” program, PowerCorpsBOS pays members to participate in hands-on training that prepares them for living-wage careers.

• https://teenempowerment.org/: Teen empowerment employ, train, and empower youth. 

• https://www.fountainfund.org/: Provide low-interest loans and financial coaching to formerly incarcerated people, helping them build credit and achieve their self-determined goals. The Fountain Fund also advocates for public policy that increases economic opportunities and reduces obstacles for formerly incarcerated people.

• https://rizeprevention.org/: Equip teens with the knowledge, skills, and resilience they need to grow up drug-free, ensuring a brighter and healthier future.

• https://www.transformprison.org/overview.html: TPP encourages healing and accountability by facilitating restorative dialogue between those responsible for harm and those who have experienced harm.

• https://www.boston.gov/departments/returning-citizens: The Office of Returning Citizens envisions a Boston where returning citizens can return to their families, flourish in their communities, and regain their sense of dignity.

• https://www.boston.gov/departments/black-male-advancement: The Office of Black Male Advancement improves outcomes and reduce systemic barriers to advancement for Black men and boys living in Boston. 

• https://ldbpeaceinstitute.org/: Louis D. Brown Peace Institute is a center of healing, teaching, and learning for families and communities impacted by murder, trauma, grief, and loss.

• https://www.juliesfamily.org:  Julie’s Family Learning Program is a welcoming, inclusive space that provides free educational programs and supportive services to help develop strong, successful families and adults.

• https://buildingpathwaysma.org: Pre-apprenticeship program in partnership with the Greater Boston Trade 

• https://www.onelovesports.org/:  Boston youth program.