Sitting in his cell prior to his release, Kalmoi had two options that would reconnect him with his daughters: find a place to give him a second chance or stay in jail until he could secure a place to live and recover his misplaced documents. The latter, he knew, would likely mean a return to jail for a new crime because he had no support. “I knew I wanted to get to my daughters, but first I needed a roof and my documents. I’m not from here and I had no one to help me – it was just me and my daughters.” Dismas changed that for him.
He arrived at Dismas in January 2023. “When I stepped in the door, I felt relief. I breathed in the air of family – the air that was circling in the atmosphere was phenomenal. I was surprised.” If you can’t tell by his beautiful use of language, Kalmoi is a poet, a weaver of words.
More than a year later, Kalmoi reflects that “the whole house has supported me in ways I couldn’t have even imagined. I can’t point to one person because one leads to another. Dismas has given me the support I needed to get my life together. Now I see my kids.” This reunification was made possible after months of work by the Local Council of volunteers that serves Burlington Dismas, a member of the Council who volunteered her legal expertise, and the support of his COSA team and University of Vermont students.
“I see my daughters every weekend. I have something to look forward to, and Dismas has helped me do that. I have put in a lot of work to be passionate and patient.” Kalmoi shared that he embraced this philosophy while incarcerated through re-entry preparedness programming and continued cultivating it post-release, with the help of his COSA team, and added: “we all have the capacity to learn from our past, not with regret but through forgiveness.” Anyone familiar with the Dismas model can see why Kalmoi is such an outstanding fit for the Dismas family. This fit has earned him the title of Resident Advisor at Buell Street Dismas and a Local Council member.
His determination not to return to jail is where he finds strength, and that strength stems from his commitment to his daughters, Sabrina and Warsan. Kalmoi has always taken pride in being a good father and a good role model. He refuses to follow a path that won’t serve him and his daughters.
Kalmoi shared that he passed on an offer for a bed at East Allen Dismas House in Winooski because Winooski is where he was arrested and would likely fall back into old patterns. Instead, Kalmoi chose to wait for a bed at Buell Street Dismas, “where my mind could be free.” He is finishing his GED, has a car he’s proud of, and manages the wash bay at Vermont Tent Company. Longer term, he hopes to be able to continue his education and become an electrician; he’s already completed a weatherization course.
Next to his daughters and his job, his priority is living a life of mutual respect. Across all the stories that he shared, it is clear that Kalmoi walks with reverence ... and that he is an incredibly hard worker who takes pride in being a grateful father with a good heart.
