Henrico inmate to surprise family on Christmas Eve after ‘amazing’ recovery progress

After nearly two years behind bars, Jessica Benade is about to give her family an unforgettable Christmas gift: the joy of going home to her husband and two children on Christmas Eve. 

This reunion is made possible by her participation in the Henrico County Sheriff’s Office’s Opiate Recovery Based on Intensive Tracking (ORBIT) program, an initiative aimed at supporting people with their substance use recovery and guiding them back into regular life.

Benade’s journey hasn’t always been easy. With a history of alcohol abuse, she maintained her sobriety for nearly four years, then relapsed following back-to-back pregnancies and subsequent postpartum issues.

“I’m in here for, technically, my fourth DUI,” she said, adding, “I was incarcerated when my son was only five months old.”

Benade’s son is now two years old and her daughter is three and a half. She has spent her life since February 2023 on the road to recovery but physically separated from her family. She has been able to stay connected by pumping breast milk for her son and daily video visits with family, though.

“It was extremely hard for me,” Benade said. “I was crying every day, because in the past, I had done this to myself, not my children, and this is the time that I messed up and I have kids out there.”

For Benade, ORBIT has been a lifeline in helping her rebuild her life one step at a time and offering a fresh start just in time for the holidays.

Having started in 2016, ORBIT is for people facing charges related to substance abuse. ORBIT works in four phases: 

1.    RECOVERY IN A SAFE ENVIRONMENT (RISE) program to provide the tools needed for recovery

2.    Community services across different trades at Henrico County facilities

3.    Job search assistance and work release

4.    Home incarceration, where participants are allowed to go to work and be at home while being monitored by a GPS bracelet.

The program also helps participants with job seeking and resume building. 

“The Sheriff’s Office believes in not just first, but second and third chances,” Henrico County Sheriff’s Office Program Manager Debbie Morton said.

And that rings true for Benade, who has worked at an Amazon warehouse during her work release.

“She has been amazing throughout this whole process,” Morton said. “Everything that we have asked her to do, as far as curriculum, papers, groups, meetings and leading as a peer among her peers in the recovery program, she has just been a leader. To do so well on going out to work release and just working and being focused on her family and recovery, we felt like she deserved the chance to go home to be with her family for Christmas.”

Benade is among hundreds of participants whose lives have been changed by the ORBIT program. Another participant, Marcus Parker is now approaching three years working for Henrico County Public Works after serving time for drug dealing and going through the program.

“I was 28 years old, maybe 27, at the time,” Parker said. “Never had a job, always sold drugs, and [Morton] saw that I was a good person. She introduced me to the county, and I’ve been here ever since.”

But that’s not the only thing Parker is doing. He has learned the ropes of stocks and real estate, and is even finishing his own renovation of a house he bought in December 2023. 

“I love all the skills I learned,” he said. “Just being home and doing it the right way and having fun, enjoying my life is just beautiful to me.”

A big takeaway in Parker’s journey is that the risk of crime outweighs the reward, he said.

“You got options,” he said. “Explore those options before you go into crime. It’s funny because crime doesn’t really pay.”

And just like Parker at an earlier point, Benade is looking forward to life on the other side.

“Because of the program, I’ve been able to forgive myself, been able to love myself, and when you do that and you really want recovery for yourself, you’ll be able to give your love to others,” she said. “I don’t see myself coming back here.”

And her return home is going to be a Christmas surprise.

“My kids do not know I’m coming,” Benade said. She added, “I made my daughter a little countdown calendar and I said, ‘You know, the last day is you’re going to have a big surprise.’ And I’m going to open the door.”

For more information on the ORBIT program, visit the program’s website.