CAC Awareness Week - January 19 – 25, 2014 will be a Big Week

CAC Awareness Week - January 19 – 25, 2014 will be a Big Week

By Murray Lincoln

January 19 – 25, 2014 will be a Big Week for some “quiet people” across Canada. Most are people that want to help other folk in the community rather than make a big noise about what they do.

Who are these quiet people? What do they do?

These people are volunteers that have answered a call to help keep their community safe.  Safe? Yes – safe.

The volunteers are part of the Citizens Advisory Committee – CAC that works along with the Correctional Service Canada – CSC.

I am a CAC volunteer working in the community and have been for the past 15 years. 

The CAC folk meet at two different locations across generally. One location could be inside of a Federal Prison or inside the Federal Parole Office situated in the communities across Canada.

These volunteers are there to do the following all important tasks. They Observe, Advise and Liaise.  This happens with CSC Employees and the offenders in prison – or in the case of the community the CSC Employees (Parole Office Staff) and the folk on Parole living within the community.

If there is some kind of disturbance within the prison a CAC volunteer is called in to do these three very important roles.

If there is a problem with an ex-offender in the community the CAC volunteers are in contact with the Parole Officers and Management to Observe, Advise and Liaise how the situation was handle by staff.

Most importantly the CAC Volunteers are an important link with each of their communities.  They are encouraged to make the community aware of what the CSC staff and organization does to protect the community as a whole.  Through community forums and engagements of different kinds accurate and relevant information is shared with the community that they live in.

Each CAC is trained and has become aware of what they can and cannot say in their community.

Often times because of community and media concerns, with more high profile ex-offenders, “community fright” is generated.  This in turn can possibly turn into real fear that should not really be happening.  But fear sells in and also hurts the community where it happens.

Without a doubt I can say that CSC in Canada has one of the highest standards when dealing with all of its offenders – inside of prison or outside in the community.  Their goal is help keep the community inside or outside safe in every way.  The CAC volunteers believe in this and join in the task helping the community to see that is possible… in spite of the fear being generated!

CAC Awareness Week will be held the week of January 19-25, 2014 and the theme will be ‘Getting to Know Us’.

Suppose you are a CAC Member. If you ask someone in the community if they know what a CAC member does or what CAC is all about... do you think they would know?


There are close to 600 citizens that participate in 106 Citizen Advisory Committees across Canada. Members represent various social, cultural, and demographic backgrounds and occupations, and usually live close to the facility that the committee serves. Members are volunteers who are appointed for a period of three years, by the director, warden or parole representative of the CSC.


CSC Commissioner Don Head states that, “…as informed participants in the correctional process, you are charged with not only representing the views of the communities in which we operate, but also in representing CSC’s mandate and values to the community. By actively engaging community support, you help bridge the gap between offenders in correctional facilities and the community.”

So this year when a CAC volunteer in your community invites you to a special function, accept and come along.  You will meet some amazing people and witness some amazing programs that are in place to keep us all safe.