The Last Mile

10/23/2026

“I dreamed of stuff like this when I was getting out of prison.” — Dave Dahl

On May 14, Dave Dahl, founder of Dave’s Killer Bread, returned to San Quentin for The Last Mile’s Showcase—and saw how far a vision he supported from the beginning has come.

Dave has been an advocate and partner since our earliest days, visiting our first entrepreneurship classroom and speaking at TLM’s first Demo Day. Back then, he watched men pitch business ideas with confidence, preparation, and purpose.

“I remember thinking, this is what opportunity looks like.”

This time, he stepped into San Quentin’s newly built, state-of-the-art Education and Training Center, where advanced technology is expanding access to education and preparing students to contribute to a rapidly changing workforce.

From those first business pitches to students developing skills in coding and emerging technologies, Dave has helped champion the belief behind it all: people can build extraordinary futures when given the opportunity.

For Dave, that belief is personal. Learning computer-aided drafting in prison helped him discover his abilities, teach others, and imagine a different life.

Today, he sees that same potential in our students—and the impact their success can have on families, employers, and communities.

Thank you, Dave, for showing up, believing in our students, and continuing to support better futures for men coming home from prison.

Watch Dave reflect on his journey and what it meant to return.

10/13/2026

AI is already changing what it means to be workforce-ready. Our students need the technology to keep pace.

Today, 71% of business leaders say they would rather hire a less experienced candidate with AI skills than a more experienced candidate without them, and 75% of global workers are already using AI at work. The employment gap is increasingly becoming a gap between people who have had the opportunity to practice with these tools and those who have not.

The Last Mile is working to close that gap before our students return home. Our newest curriculum teaches AI literacy through hands-on practice, including a secure AI Simulator that allows students to work with a real language model, develop prompt-writing skills, and receive real-time feedback within the security requirements of a correctional environment.

That is why Joe Stocker is such an important voice in this campaign. As Founder and CEO of cybersecurity company Patriot Consulting, Joe understands both the accelerating pace of technology and what it takes to deploy it responsibly and securely. After visiting TLM classrooms, meeting our students and alumni, and seeing the work firsthand, he decided to help us address one of the most immediate barriers to preparing students for this changing workforce: aging classroom technology.

Joe and Patriot Consulting are now matching donations dollar-for-dollar, up to $100,000, toward a $200,000 technology refresh that will help put modern, workforce-relevant devices in the hands of TLM students.

Watch Joe explain why this investment matters, learn more about the campaign, and see how your contribution can go twice as far:

paving.thelastmile.org/joe-stocker-fundraiser

10/06/2026

Our students are preparing for tomorrow’s workforce on computers that date back to 2014. We need to change that.

Across The Last Mile’s classrooms, approximately 300 students are building the skills they need for careers and successful reentry. Now, we’re working to replace aging classroom computers with modern, workforce-ready technology.

And right now, every contribution can go twice as far.

Joe Stocker and Patriot Consulting will match every donation dollar-for-dollar, up to $100,000. If our community raises the full amount, together we can create $200,000 in total impact for TLM classrooms nationwide.
If you’ve been looking for a meaningful moment to support The Last Mile, this is it.

👉 Visit the campaign page to watch the video, learn more, and join us. LINK IN BIO!!!

10/02/2026

Every single attendee at this week’s GAF Roofing Academy workshop was offered a job by the end of the three days.

Over two dozen careers started in one workshop.

This is the epitome of what The Last Mile stands for — helping returning citizens build a stable future for themselves and their families. From classroom fundamentals to hands-on membrane work in the yard, these men showed up ready to learn a trade, and GAF’s contractors showed up ready to hire them.

Huge thank you to GAF Roofing Academy for building a program that turns training into real employment, start to finish.

10/01/2026

Huge thank you to KRON 4 News and reporter Philippe Djegal for covering our GAF - Roofing Academy event in San Leandro!

Over two dozen previously incarcerated participants and TLM Alumni spent three days learning commercial roofing from the ground up — torch-down, membrane work, safety fundamentals, and an optional OSHA-10 credential. Then they sat across the table from contractors who are actually hiring.

This matters because employment is the single strongest predictor of successful reentry. Stable work lowers recidivism. Skilled trades like roofing can't be automated - that makes this kind of training a durable path forward.

Thank you to GAF Roofing Academy and recruiter Roderick Colvin Sr. — who built this program after serving 15 years in federal prison himself — for believing returning citizens deserve a real shot, not just a certificate.

Watch KRON4's coverage at the link below!

https://www.kron4.com/video/formerly-incarcerated-people-offered-free-roofing-training/12222833/

KRON4's Philippe Djegal reports https://www.kron4.com/

09/25/2026

Chris Schuhmacher first pitched Fitness Monkey through The Last Mile’s entrepreneurship program, before he’d ever touched a smartphone. Fitness kept him sober through all the years inside. Now he has built an app to help others do the same.

Swipe to see what Fitness Monkey can do 👉

Search “Fitness Monkey” on the App Store or Google Play to get started

Read Chris’s full story - Link in bio?

09/24/2026

Comment “SHARE THE LOVE” and we’ll send you 2 free Flikshop Credits!

When Marcus Bullock was 15, he entered an adult maximum-security prison with an eight-year sentence. At one of his lowest points, he told his mother to stop visiting and stop writing.

She refused.

For the next six years, she sent him letters and photos from the outside world — family moments, everyday life, even pictures of cheeseburgers with reminders that one day, he would be home to enjoy them again.

Marcus says those letters changed something in him. Years later, after his release, he realized his friends still inside needed that same connection.

That realization became Flikshop — a platform that helps families send photos and messages to incarcerated loved ones as physical mail.

As Marcus told us, “Hearing your name get called was magic.”

If you want to learn more about Flikshop and how to send that kind of connection inside, comment “SHARE THE LOVE” below and we’ll DM you the link.

09/23/2026

After nearly five decades in prison, Freddie Nole returned home to a world he barely recognized.

He also returned with a purpose.

Today, Freddie Nole meets people at prison gates and helps them navigate their first hours of freedom—with transportation, clothing, a phone, a meal, and the dignity of knowing someone is waiting.

His work inspired the acclaimed documentary The Second Life of Freddie Nole, which is introducing audiences nationwide to the human realities of reentry.

In our latest Changemakers Spotlight, Freddie shares the experiences that shaped him, the barriers he faced after release, and why he refuses to let others come home alone.

Read Freddie’s story and watch the documentary trailer - link in bio!

ReturningCitizens

09/21/2026

Chris Schuhmacher had never seen a smartphone when he first imagined the app he wanted to build.

Inside San Quentin, fitness had become an essential part of his recovery. Push-ups in his cell, improvised weights, and laps around the yard helped him build daily habits that supported his sobriety.

In 2012, Chris joined the second cohort of The Last Mile’s entrepreneurship program. His idea was personal: help others connect physical fitness with addiction recovery.
He called it Fitness Monkey.

Chris practiced his pitch while walking the prison yard, then presented it to an auditorium of peers and technology leaders.

When TLM launched its coding program in 2014, he joined its first 18 students. At night, he wrote code on paper in his cell.

Eventually, he built a prototype.

After his release in 2017, Chris built a software engineering career at organizations including Fandom and Checkr. Through those years, he kept his original idea alive.
Today, Fitness Monkey is available to download.

The app brings together sobriety tracking, workout logging, journaling, and daily reflections. Behind those tools is Chris’s desire to share what helped him—and help others feel less alone.

“Movement has always been a huge part of my recovery,” he told us.

For everyone at The Last Mile, this is a moment to celebrate. An idea from one of our earliest classrooms is now something people can use in their own lives.

Read Chris’s full story in our newly released article at the link in bio. Then search “Fitness Monkey” in your phone’s app store, try it, and share it with someone who might benefit.

09/21/2026

Chris Schuhmacher had never seen a smartphone when he first imagined the app he wanted to build.

Inside San Quentin, fitness had become an essential part of his recovery. Push-ups in his cell, improvised weights, and laps around the yard helped him build daily habits that supported his sobriety.

In 2012, Chris joined the second cohort of The Last Mile’s entrepreneurship program. His idea was personal: help others connect physical fitness with addiction recovery.
He called it Fitness Monkey.

After his release in 2017, Chris built a software engineering career at organizations including Fandom and Checkr. Through those years, he kept his original idea alive.

Today, Fitness Monkey is available to download.

The app brings together sobriety tracking, workout logging, journaling, and daily reflections. Behind those tools is Chris’s desire to share what helped him—and help others feel less alone.

“Movement has always been a huge part of my recovery,” he told us.

For everyone at The Last Mile, this is a moment to celebrate. An idea from one of our earliest classrooms is now something people can use in their own lives.

Read Chris’s full story in our newly released article at the link in our bio. Then search “Fitness Monkey” in your phone’s app store, try it, and share it with someone who might benefit.