WRC

Sheriff's Work Release Center

The Work Release Center was created by Sheriff Winchester as a way to relieve overcrowding in the
old jail and put inmates to work helping the community. With some research and learning, Sheriff
Winchester proposed the concept to the County Commissioner and the Fairgrounds Trust Authority.
The proposal would be to renovate an existing building at the fairgrounds for the housing of inmates. In
return, the inmates would provide labor and skills at the fairgrounds.
To date, inmates' labor assists in setting up and tearing down of most events held at the fairgrounds,
mowing and grounds maintenance, the cleaning of barns, grandstands, Expo Center, building of stands,
trailers, stage and other items at the fairgrounds. This use of labor helps reduce the labor costs at the
fairgrounds, and provides inmates with the ability to acclimate back into society since they are used to
going to work each day and not just sitting in a cell at the jail. We have a lot of inmates that have a job
set up and ready to start when they are released. The inmates also go help the Kiwans Club at
Medowlake Park with upkeep on the train track and park. They also help the Friends of the Libary
when needed. Inmates work up to seven day a week and most days at least 45 total hours for the group,
we have had some days with as many hours of 110. This comes to a great savings to the county and
fairgrounds ( at a wage of $7.25/ hour at 45/ hours a day that total can be around $119,081.25 a year.)
      The center can house up to 18 inmates in a bunk area setting. They have a living room area with a
television, game tables, video games and they also have a secured area outside where they have a weight
room that is used by inmates from the time they start their day until they go to bed at night. When the
Speedway has races the inmates have a great view of the track from the 2nd floor windows that overlook
the Speedway and the outside recreation area.
   The center is staffed with 1 supervisor and 4 jailers, a jailer is on duty 24 hours a day 7 days a week.
WRC always has need of work clothes (men sizes - shirts, paints,belts, socks, underwear, work or
tennis shoes/boots) for inmates that don't have area family to bring what they need. The Work Release
Center is located on the fairgrounds just north of the Speedway grandstands.

WRC visitation hours are on every Tuesday from
8:00am to 1130am. Visits are 15 minutes & are
for immediate family members only. (Parents,
Grandparents, Wife, Kids, Sisters & Brothers.)
No friends or girlfriends!! Photo I.D. Required.
Items inmates need can be brought to the center
until 6:00pm on Tuesday.

Photo by Mike Hoffman Photography

*Click on photos to enlarge.*

The following photos show some of what
we do and some of the events that take
place at the Garfield County Fairgrounds.

Sheriff's Work Release Center
Garfield County Fairgrounds

The Enid Speedway started the 2007 season under new management and with a lot of work being done to improve the
racing. Check out the Speedways web site link at bottom of page. WRC does the set up and clean up of the speedway.

Action photos of races at the Speedway by Mike Hoffman Photography Enid, Ok.
Check out Mike Hoffman Photography &Enid Speedway Park on Links page.

Inmates welding in shop, learning skills they can later use.

View of Speedway that Work Release Center inmates have from WRC windows, by Roger Parson.

Working on stage.

Setting up Basketball Court

Inmates set up and take down pens for bull riding, roping events, and all types of live stock shows, ect.

Shrine Circus

Agri Fest

Monster Trucks

Each year the Chisholm Trail Expo Center has it's
Christmas Concert. They also have had many other
concerts over the years. WRC inmates help with
  setting up / taking down all of them, even stage,
lights,sound systems. Sheriff Department deputies
      and reserves are at events to help with security.

Monster Trucks

Mel Tillis Concert

OTCA 30th Indoor Games 2007 Oklahoma
Track Coaches & 2007 Trojan Indoor
Track & Field Games, Oklahoma Bible Academy.

Unbolting Track

Taking up the high
jump floor.

Stacking track to be stored.

This bolt will come out!

Disaster Drill

WRC and it's staff/inmates took part in a disaster drill where a plane had crashed on the fairgrounds. The drill was a joint
effort by Vance Air Force Base, Enid Fire Department, Enid Ambulance Service and others.

Web site and some photos
by
Roger Parson
Enid, Ok
All photos and web pages are
Copyrighted by Roger Parson
and the Garfield County
Sheriff's Office 2009.

WRC Staff

32nd Annual Home Show

Home Show

Garfield County Fairgrounds

The WRC inmates helped Expo Staff clean up the Expo Center after tornado.

One part of a most events that the public never sees when they go to any concert or other events is the large number of hours
that goes into setting them up. Some events can take a day or two of work before the show starts. The inmates at
the Work Release Center help set up the stage, lights, sound system, seating and tables on the Expo floor and what
ever else is needed to make the show take place. Then after a concert or event they go back to the Expo to take everything
back down so a band, ect. can go to the next show in another city. This can make for some very long days. The photos
below show some of those set ups of event lights, stage and wrestling ring.

Inmates helping the stage crew set up a stage. Legs have to
placed on bottom side of stage, turned over & locked in.

Inmates helping the light crew set up lights for a event. The light
rales must be layed out on the floor and bolted together so each
set of lights can be locked into place.

Each light has to have a white or colored filter placed
on it to get all the colorful lights you see in a show.

The lights and sound system hang from the top of the Expo.
This can only be done with a big lift by the light/sound crew,
we will let the inmates go up in the lift for safety reasons.

The lights set on racks to be
moved to each event and are
set into the frame that's on
the floor on left side of photo.
The frame and lights are then
lifted from the top of Expo.

A wrestling ring being set up
for this event. The lights had
to be put up before the ring
was set up.

WRC Top Dog
Hoover is the Work
Release Centers K-9.
He's a good friend to all
of us and lets us know if
anyone is around.

On Aug. 28, 29 & 30, 2009 the fairground was home of the
Chisholm Trail Classic 2009
Team Roping.
Photo's of the team roping provided by 3 Lazy J Photo's
www.lazyjphoto.photoreflect.com

Photo's of outside the event by Roger Parson.