KINGDOM ALLIANCE
REENTRY RESOURCES
IN RICHLAND COUNTY.
A resource page, not a program brochure. Ben Lovro served five years. He is a few years ahead of this walk, not above it.
For the first-ninety-days walkthrough, see the Blythewood coming-home guide.
What is different here
The construction phase of the industrial corridor is the most reachable work here: site crews, concrete, framing and hauling hire continuously and hire on ability. The obstacle is reaching a site off the interstate with no transit, so arranging a ride with a crew is usually the first thing solved. One local advantage is that the state motor vehicle headquarters sits in Blythewood, which makes license reinstatement unusually easy to handle in person.
The interstate is the town's spine. Residents commute south into Columbia and the northeast suburbs, workers commute in from Fairfield and Kershaw counties, and there is no bus in any direction.
None of that is a judgment about anybody. It is a logistics problem, and logistics problems have solutions if you know the terrain before you start.
The list worth keeping
Program details change. Call and confirm rather than trusting any website, this one included.
- SC Works centers. Run by the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce. Job search help, interview practice and skills training, including services delivered to people still incarcerated.
- 211. The statewide United Way referral line — food, transportation, utilities and housing, by county.
- South Carolina Legal Services and the SC Appleseed Legal Justice Center for civil legal questions and plain-language guides.
- The Solicitor's office serving Richland County for expungement applications on anything other than a non-conviction in Magistrate or Municipal Court.
- SC Probation, Parole and Pardon Services for supervision and pardon questions.
- 988 for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline; 911 if anyone is in immediate danger.
County records for this area are handled at Richland County Judicial Center, 1701 Main St, Columbia, SC 29201.
Everything on this site is an extension of the free real estate investing playbook.
Clearing or softening a record
They are not the same thing. An expungement destroys the record, so the offense stops appearing on a background check. A pardon leaves the conviction where it is and marks it as pardoned. People use the words interchangeably and then apply for the wrong one.
Expungement is narrow. Dismissed charges, not-guilty verdicts, diversion dismissals, certain first-offense misdemeanors and some drug possession convictions may qualify. Traffic and fish-and-wildlife convictions generally do not. The wait runs from roughly one year to twenty, measured from completion of the sentence, probation and parole included.
Where you file depends on what happened. A non-conviction out of Magistrate or Municipal Court goes back through that court. Everything else goes through the Solicitor's office in the county where the charge or conviction occurred. Pardons go to SC Probation, Parole and Pardon Services.
Published fees have been $250 to the Solicitor, $35 to the Clerk of Court and $25 to SLED, varying by type, with some types exempt.
This is not legal advice. Every record is specific and none of these rules are intuitive. Put the question to the Solicitor's office, to South Carolina Legal Services, or to your own attorney.
What it costs an employer to say yes
The wage floor is rising because a single large project is bidding for labor. Construction trades are in demand now, production and maintenance roles follow, and every other employer is being repriced.
| Program | What it gives the employer | South Carolina contact |
|---|---|---|
| Federal Bonding Program | A free $5,000 fidelity bond covering employee dishonesty, for hiring someone considered high-risk to place. No cost to the employer | FederalBonding@dew.sc.gov |
| Work Opportunity Tax Credit | A federal tax credit of up to $2,400 for hiring someone formerly incarcerated | WOTC@dew.sc.gov |
Confirm the current terms of both with DEW rather than with a web page.
They exist to take risk out of the decision, and that is all they do. Neither one gets a person hired. What does is the ordinary commercial case: somebody who has been through this and intends to stay out of it is often the most motivated applicant in the stack.
What actually predicts success
The number, dated and attributed
South Carolina recorded a recidivism rate of 18% in 2019, tied for third lowest in the nation and down from 31% in 2008, per figures published by the state's workforce and corrections agencies. A number that old needs checking before it gets repeated, so confirm the current one.
What it does and does not mean
It is a statistic about a population. It says nothing certain about one man, and nobody honest will tell you otherwise. What it does show is a pattern among the people who do not go back.
- Somewhere stable to sleep. The first of the three.
- Income within the first couple of months. Early and modest beats late and ideal.
- At least one person paying genuine attention. One counts.
Civic life is concentrated in the town park and event hall, and the town still runs largely on volunteer boards. That is changing fast as the population and the tax base grow.
Kingdom Alliance is Ben Lovro’s service work and Second Chance Kings sits under it. Neither is affiliated with the South Carolina Department of Corrections, which runs its own separately-named Second Chance Program, or with any other state agency.
The realistic first job here
The first job is a bridge, not a verdict, and it helps to know in advance what kind of bridge this place offers.
Blythewood is in the middle of the largest economic shift in the county. Major automotive manufacturing investment along the interstate is converting a rural-edged bedroom town into an industrial employment center. The sectors that dominate here are advanced manufacturing, construction, state administration, logistics and consumer services, and entry-level hiring tends to follow them. A large automotive manufacturing project on the interstate corridor is the defining employer, and the state's motor vehicle agency runs its headquarters operation from here.
Thin on storefronts and heavy on home-based and professional businesses. Consultants, contractors, trades and service firms run out of subdivisions while residents drive elsewhere to shop. Smaller employers are often the ones who will actually sit with a candidate and hear the whole answer, because the decision is not being made by a screening system.
Cattle pasture and a national-scale manufacturing site sit within a few miles of each other. Residents watch the rural half of the town disappear a parcel at a time.
Frequently asked
Questions people actually ask
Is there a reentry program in Blythewood?
Second Chance Kings is Ben Lovro's work under Kingdom Alliance. It is not a government program or a facility. The agencies listed above are where formal services live — start with SC Works and 211.
Do I have to be religious to get help?
No. Ben's faith is his own and it is why he does this. Nobody has to share it, agree with it, or attend anything to be treated decently.
What is hardest about coming home to Blythewood specifically?
The construction phase of the industrial corridor is the most reachable work here: site crews, concrete, framing and hauling hire continuously and hire on ability. The obstacle is reaching a site off the interstate with no transit, so arranging a ride with a crew is usually the first thing solved. One local advantage is that the state motor vehicle headquarters sits in Blythewood, which makes license reinstatement unusually easy to handle in person.
Where do I apply for expungement in Richland County?
For a non-conviction in Magistrate or Municipal Court, through that court. For everything else, through the Solicitor's office in the county where the charge or conviction occurred.
I am an employer — what is my actual liability?
A question for your own attorney and insurer. The Federal Bonding Program exists specifically to address dishonesty exposure; ask DEW about bonding and WOTC eligibility before assuming anything either way.
How can my church or business help?
Consistency beats intensity. A standing ride, a skill taught, interview practice, or one job opened up is worth more than an event. Unreliable help is worse than none, so offer only what you can keep up.
Make your next move
A year from now, what will you be glad you started today?
You don't need another promise that everything will be easy. You need something useful to learn — and a next step you're willing to take.