Miracle Village, 2015.
In southern Florida on the southeast corner of Lake Okeechobee lies a small community called Miracle Village. The rectangular compound made up of 52 off-white duplexes on 6 streets and 2 roads was formerly used to house migrant workers that would work in the surrounding miles of sugarcane fields. Now it’s home to over 100 sex offenders. The community was founded four years ago by a Christian ministry that seeks to help individuals reintegrate into society. The residency restriction is the most difficult law to abide by for sex offenders since they must live a minimum of 2,500 feet from any bus stop, school or place where children congregate. Thus the village is isolated— 5 miles from the closest small town of 8,000 inhabitants and 40 miles from the closest city in the West Palm Beach area.
Over a year and a half, I befriended, lived among and photographed the residents of Miracle Village. The men are mixed in age and from various educational and ethnic backgrounds. Together they are all coming to terms with the permanence of living with the label. There is also one woman. In my book, I have chosen 12 individuals that tell the story of a community where everyone shares the same label.
Feature Links:
Muck City Road, Pahokee, FL. The road that leads to Miracle Village.
The houses of Miracle Village.
Paul standing outside on his porch.
Paul's last letter from his wife. "All that's left is my 'Dear John' letter"
"You can't talk to dead people anymore."
Gene starting up his El Camino on a morning in the village.
"As a sex offender I can not trust anyone because maybe someday they could be in a bad mood, tired of dealing with me or just mad. All they have to do is call 911 and say that a sex offender has bothered them and Bang! I am in jail. No questions asked."
Gene laying down with his dog Killer. "Only a fool would truly trust anyone if you are a sex offender."
Ben taking a walk around the sugarcane fields that surround Miracle Village.
Ben playing with his cat Cindy on his day off from work. He works at his mom's office in Hollywood, Florida 4 days a week. It take him 3 hours of driving each day to go to and from work. He must be back home in Pahokee before his 10pm curfew. "Being forced to live in a swamp would seem to limit the types of food I can enjoy. In this sorry excuse for a town, I'm forced to hole up in, the closest thing to "exotic cuisine" you'll find in Tobasco sauce. As someone who loves everything from Indian curry and coconut Thai soup to Jamaican jerk chicken and Kung Po beef, this was another bummer. Fortunately, the sex offender I live with is an unemployed Italian chef who watches cooking shows all day long. I actually eat so good now that I needed to buy all new pants, as my old ones became too tight!"
The City of Pahokee's water tower on Muck City Road.
David smoking a cigarette outside his house where he lives with his mother since his release from prison. "My mother is my rock...she stood beside me from start to finish."
David puts away Christmas decorations with another resident, Matt. "Honestly I'm the one who says thank you cause being sentenced to prison saved my life from drugs. And I was blessed with a safe place to live and a place where I fit in at." David's crime was being in a relationship with his 16 year old girlfriend. He was 19 at the time.
Matt and David relaxing on David's porch after a day of mowing the lawn in the village. They make minimum wage working for the ministry doing various jobs including lawn work on the property. "David and I are like two peas in a pod."
"Growing up with my mom was enough, I'm ready to move on. All I did was go to school and take care of the house. It was like living in boot camp. She was the one that called the cops on me in order to protect her job or so she said."
Richard playing basketball in the village.
"Living in Miracle Village is quiet, peaceful, yet isolated. When people call me about jobs, they never know where Pahokee is. Being constantly working, I don't get out as much as I would had I had the time. It is also more isolated when I have my son here since I can't put others at risk. I know there are cliques, as there are in most places. I am kinda glad I am so busy all the time so I don't have to deal with all the drama."
Richard in his kitchen. "Up until the age of 18, I had a terrible stutter. I hated talking. I was always a good student and often knew the answers to the questions asked in class. However, I never raised my hand because I dreaded being called on. My stutter was bad, and when I was talking to a girl it was even worse. When I discovered chatting in 1988, that I could communicate without having to talk, it was the greatest thing ever."
The church, Jacob's destiny at Miracle Village during Christmas time. Service is every Sunday morning and welcomes the residents as well as people from outside the village.
Rose sitting outside of the church. "People judge you, you're a monster. I am the only female here who is a registered sex offender. I can go to court and pay hundreds of dollars to get it taken away, but it doesn't bother me now. All these guys look to me as a sister."
Rose's refrigerator with an image of her kids. The last time she saw them was many years ago.
Tracy cleaning off leaves from his porch. Tracy is HIV positive. His medical condition played a factor in him getting released from the Florida Civil Commitment Center, a sex offender treatment program in Arcadia, Florida where he was sentenced for an indefinite amount of time.
"About a year before I was released my son Jamar got the number to my dorm at the Florida Civil Commitment Center and we started talking and getting to know each other. I didn't think I would ever see him again. Once I made it out, my son called me and asked if he could come stay with me. I said yes and Nov 26th at 1:45am he showed up to my front porch. I was overwhelmed with feelings of fear, love and surprise but when my son called me daddy to my face the love just flowed between us and I was happy to answer all the questions he had for me."
Tracy wearing his wig and a shirt that he designed in his bedroom.
Lee taking a walk outside the complex. "Country club living is not for everyone."
Lee laying down inside his room. Lee went to prison when he was 18 and served 12 and a half years of his 15 year sentence. He is serving the other 2 and a half years on conditional release. His restrictions include a 7pm curfew, no driving other than for employment purposes- not alone, no internet, monthly urinalysis, no contact with minors even family members, GPS monitoring and paying the cost of his supervision. He must register as a sex offender for the remainder of his life.
Lee before the 9am Sunday service at the church. "Primarily I feel like an outsider. It seems like so many people around me experience life and pursue what they want. Almost as if there's an exclusive club that they all have a membership to and I'm stuck at the gates looking at their activities. However whenever I try to climb over the hedges and fences, I find out that I do not belong. I do not know the lingo, protocol, procedure or culture. My clothes do not match theirs, I do not know how to play their games, what places to visit or how to fit in. And, they all know. So, they call security to escort me off the property. Even if I do get invited in, it is still just as a visitor and as a charity case, to show how privileged they are to be members of the club and reinforce how fortunate they are to be insiders. You can clean me up, put me in the "right" clothes and give me an honorary membership, but I will still be that outsider and that is that."
Christmas Eve in the Village.
Mike watering his freshly planted trees at night.
Mike before going out to a bar.
"I went to a bar called Boonies and started talking to one of the servers that reminded me of my very first love. We seemed to hit it off well to the extent of exchanging numbers and agreeing to a date. I eventually was honest with her and told her of my charges. I would love to fall in love"
Doug playing cards inside his room.
Doug after a day of working outside. He helps out in the community by doing occasional lawn work and other maintenance jobs. "I was traveling with the carnival until I was 20 years old. I had a friend of mine named Chris Billows, also known as Nightwolf. Him and my mom used to work at McDonalds together. After I got into trouble I became homeless and couldn't get a job so I lived 2,500 feet into the woods. Sometimes my friends would come hang out and we'd play manhunt."
Doug enjoying a final walk around the village before sundown. "On July 9, 2013 I moved to Miracle Village. I like living here. I have a home and a key and real friends that care about me."
A drawing by Doug.