About Us
Until he relocated to Tucson, AZ at the end of 2019 to focus on prison and reentry ministry, Fred was the lead pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church, a multisite congregation located in Park Ridge and Chicago, Illinois. He is also the founder and Executive Director of the Lutheran Church Planters Network, created to help train and network church planters across the country. A former missionary in Bangladesh and an expert in Christian-Muslim relations, Fred has been involved in prison ministry since 2005 as a volunteer chaplain at Stateville Prison in Joliet, Illinois, including founding the Under the Door Prison Ministry, writing the Spiritual Survival Guide for Prison and Beyond, and crafting RED Chicago, a reentry directory for the Chicago area.
He is the founder and executive director of the Inside Out Network, dedicated to crafting innovative solutions to connect returning citizens with service providers, churches, and ministries, as well as to connect those serving on the inside in prison ministry with those outside who are working on reentry challenges. Because of Christ’s call and claim on his life, Fred sees himself fundamentally as a change-agent – an agent of Christ’s life-changing hope and joy – to everyone he meets, but especially to those who are feeling hopeless or disconnected. He has a passion for networking, coaching, hiking in the desert, and Indian food. Fred and his wife Carol have four grown sons between them.
Maddi was born and raised in Fountain Hills, Arizona and she attended Arizona State University where she received her Bachelor of Science degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice and her Master of Arts degree in Criminal Justice. During her year off between undergrad and grad school, she became a volunteer for the Arizona Department of Corrections; she helped host activities at Perryville Prison several times per month. Working with the women at the prison made her even more passionate about wanting to assist with their transitions upon release. Maddi loves working with the Inside Out Network to improve the re-entry process in various states- she hopes to use her education and experiences to help returning citizens successfully reintegrate back into society.
Miranda is a native of Tucson, Arizona and has spent her life thriving in its close-knit community. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice from Northern Arizona University and her Master of Arts degree in Criminal Justice from Arizona State University. Throughout her life, she has seen the impact the criminal justice system has had on those close to her, which influenced her to pursue an education in the field. She is passionate about criminal justice reform and improving the re-entry process for returning citizens. She firmly believes that ION, with the assistance of Arizona’s dedicated community resource providers, will help change the face of re-entry for the better!
Through much of her childhood, Sara lived in northern Alabama with her parents and three siblings. When she was 16 years old, her family moved to San Francisco, CA. She graduated from high school in the CA bay area and went on to the University of California, Davis to earn her bachelor’s degree in Mathematics. At UC Davis, she met her now-husband Aneel Trivedi. In 2001, after graduating from college and getting married (both events separated by only one week—this was intentional so as to allow her family to travel once to be a part of both events), Sara and Aneel moved to Los Angeles. Until their oldest child Noah was born in 2004, Sara worked as an office administrator in the UCLA Math Department, and later, as an accountant at the same university. Their family then traveled to Alabama so Aneel could attend graduate school at Auburn University. During their short time in Alabama, their second child Kai was born. A job opportunity for Aneel brought the family to Chicago in 2008. Sara spent much of her children’s early lives volunteering in various roles in their elementary and middle schools (a personal favorite: the school library). For the past four years, she has worked part-time as the office manager at Redeemer Lutheran Church in Park Ridge, IL, where she currently lives with her husband and two children. She looks forward to being a part of ION and helping returning citizens obtain the resources they need to lead successful lives.
I have lived in Arizona for the majority of my life and currently attend Arizona State University. I received my Bachelors Degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice and my Masters Degree in Criminal Justice. Working alongside the community and positively making an impact has always been my passion. For the duration of this internship, I look forward to becoming more familiar with ION while also gaining knowledge and experience.
Hi there! My name is Kristina Beretta and I’m currently helping ION part-time with whatever they need. Raised in the "Egg Basket of the World," a small town turned city in Northern California, I started working customer service jobs at the bright age of fourteen. My first look into the world of Criminal Justice came while puttering my way through an English degree. After that taste I was hooked! Now here at Inside Out Network, I enjoy working with a program dedicated to helping fill a void our justice system desperately needs and provide the tools for those second chances everyone deserves. Outside of working two jobs, I still make time for writing stories and doodling in the margins of my paperwork while enjoying a wide range of music.
Hello! My name is Esmé Ringelstetter, and I am currently a junior at Portland State University where I’m pursuing a double major in Psychology and Social Science with a minor in Criminal Justice. I’ve always been passionate about helping others and hope to spend my life working for our community. It’s my love for community and what I’ve witnessed those in my life endure within the criminal justice system that has inspired me to work with ION. I’m so excited to be a part of such a great program!
I am Chloe Woods, a student studying politics and criminology at Arizona State University. Since the moment I started attending school and learning about criminology and the justice system I have been aiming to utilize my knowledge and abilities towards helping enhance and better the resources available to youth and returning citizens. I am looking forward to all that I will learn in during the duration of my summer internship and hope to make great contributions to the program.
I am Carlisha Jeter, a Buffalo, NY, born and raised. I am a senior/graduate from Arizona State University studies in Criminal Justice. Expect to graduate in May 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice and Criminology. Throughout my work experience, I have always been engaged in public communication with consumers and love to help anyone. Criminal Justice and equality are my passion. I want to apply all knowledge earned at ASU, further my education, and enroll in law school to become an attorney that emphasizes criminal and civil matters. To create a change and a difference in the criminal justice system. And provide a second chance at life for formerly incarcerated citizens. The Inside-Out Network gives a strategic platform for support and unbiased approaches.
I was born and raised in the U.K. where I became an English Chartered Accountant in 1960. Having qualified in what is now Grant Thornton I left the profession to go into industry where I have remained until retirement. I have worked in a number of industries over the years completing my career as CFO and partner in an international wastepaper company based on the south side of Chicago.
In my faith life I have been a member of the Church of England and Methodist Church in the U.K. On coming to the US in 1983, I joined the Lutheran Church where Carla and I were married. We remained Lutherans after our move to Park Ridge joining Redeemer Lutheran Church some 30 years. I held a number of positions within the congregation, including being President of the Congregation when Pastors Fred Nelson and Carol Breimeier were called. I also served as Treasurer of the ELCA Deaconess Community.
Carla and I have one son. We spend half the year in Naples, Florida which allows me to pursue my love of golfing pretty much all year round.
Evan Freund is a retired health care executive with 25 years’ experience managing inner-city health care services and ambulatory care systems in New York and Chicago. He has held leadership positions in trade organizations, has served as a board member and Chair of Ancona School, and is Treasurer of Citizens for Global Solutions Education Fund. He is currently Board Chair of Community Counseling Centers of Chicago, a behavioral care agency serving children and adults. He took an M.B.A. in hospital administration from the University of Chicago, and an M.A. in Political Science from the University of Minnesota, focusing on public administration. Evan is a Life Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.
Evan has resided with his wife, Nan, in Chicago for 48 years. He and Nan intentionally chose to live in diverse communities for their entire married life. Their two sons, Max and Alex, both live in Los Angeles with their families. Nan is an educational therapist; whose office is in their home on the south side of Chicago. She is a past President of the Association of Educational Therapists, and a national leader in her profession.
Evan has a strong interest in international politics and world federation as well as reentry of rejoined citizens. He has become a passionate advocate for criminal justice reform in Illinois, working with major coalitions of advocates for legislative and system reform. He founded the Interfaith Criminal Justice Task Force to advocate for legislative reforms in criminal justice and is member of the Cook County Justice Advisory Council. He is a member of the Rotary Club of Chicago, the founding Rotary Club of Rotary International.
John McLees is a retired partner of law firm of Baker & McKenzie LLP and an activist in connecting citizens with organizations and initiatives dedicated to reforming the criminal justice system and to improving the lives of those who are incarcerated or who have been released from jail or from prison.
He maintains a website, at http://incarcerationreform.com/, with information about resources for learning about the criminal justice system and opportunities for citizens to get involved in confronting the moral crisis of mass incarceration. John is also active in several organizations that work to pressure the United States and Israel to honor the human rights of the Palestinian people.
Aneel is the pastor at Messiah Lutheran Church in Park Ridge, IL. He worked for ION as the assistant director in 2018 and 2019. Prior to entering seminary in 2018, Aneel had a long career in sports media and holds an undergraduate degree in statistics as well as an MBA. Aneel lives in Chicago with his wife and two children.
Justin has an unconventional education when it comes to the corrections industry. His experience began as a youth as a justice-involved individual at the age of 17. He successfully paid his debt to society over a period of 10 years. He then formed alliances with his community supervision office and began working to help those incarcerated. He started his work in the behavioral health sector in 2007 in northern Arizona. He has worked in private substance abuse clinics, Regional Behavioral Health public clinics, and hospitals helping those with substance use disorders and forensic backgrounds. Today Justin strives to be a role model and demonstrates that there is more than meets the eye when it comes to those who are previously justice-involved. His uncanny ability to build connections with anyone he meets is the native Texan shining through. When he is not making connections in the world of re-entry he is making them on the football field where he has played and coached or on the mats in some of the top MMA gyms across Arizona. Saying Justin has a large family is an understatement. He is father to four daughters, one son and has a new granddaughter. Justin knows what it takes to grow strong communities and does just that here in Arizona, sharing with those who will listen to what he believes. He works hard to live his motto: “Know it, Do it, and Believe it.”
Tory has been working with the Arizona Department of Corrections Rehabilitation and Reentry Team since 2020 to align with the department's transition to support inmates through rehabilitation and reentry. She has a passion to serve God and to inspire, support, and bring positive change to all of those around her. Tory has worked with underserved populations for over 15 years including persons diagnosed with Serious Mental Illness, Substance Dependence, and Reentry Programming. Tory completed her Graduate Degree in Counseling through University of Phoenix in 2016, with a desire to better understand people first, to then create change. Tory is a Navy Veteran and it is her life's work to serve God and others "always believing in the good of humanity!"