The Penitent tHIEF · Central Florida

restoration
‍is Possible

We invest in the lives of returning citizens across Central Florida, through housing, employment, and a community that does not give up on people.

Invest in a Life

Learn Our Story.

Incarceration does not just affect the person behind the gate. It fractures families, displaces children, and breaks cycles that take generations to heal. The Penitent Thief exists to interrupt that cycle. Through housing, employment, mentorship, and community, we walk with returning citizens all the way through — not just to the door, but beyond it.

When a returning citizen comes home, their family comes home with them.

"Our Mission"

Housing and Services

A safe place to land is the first step toward a new life. We provide housing, clothing, transportation, financial assistance, and life skills support for returning citizens and their families.

Employment and Growth

DOC Grown gives returning citizens more than a job. It gives them a future. Through our affiliated businesses, participants gain real skills, real income, and a real path forward.

Explore DOC Grown →

Faith, Community, And Family

We plant. We water. Only Jesus changes a heart. Through Bible studies, weekly and monthly classes, our women's program, and mentorship, no one walks this road alone.

Three pillars, one path forward.

What we do

Man in paint-stained shirt holding a wooden cross and a nail gun in a workshop.

Our beginning

This mission was born in a prison cell.

Paul Del Favero was sentenced to 25 years at the age of 20. He served 18 and a half of them. In the middle of those years, in the place where most people lose hope, Jesus showed up. That encounter became the blueprint for everything The Penitent Thief is today. The name says it all.

Read Paul's Story.

OUR WOMEN'S PROGRAM

Compassion Doesn't Require Credentials.

Stacy Del Favero is Vice President and Director of the Women's Program. She had never experienced incarceration or addiction, and there were times she wondered whether her story was enough. God reminded her that compassion doesn't require credentials. It requires a willing heart, presence, faith, and love. She shows up without all the answers and walks alongside women rebuilding their lives.

Read Stacy's Story.

15

Transition Homes

45+

Residents Currently Housed

300+

People Directly Assisted Annually

2,000+

Lives Touched by
the Gospel

A story from home

They said getting their family back was impossible. We disagreed.

“We did not just get a place to stay. We got our family back.”

Miguel and Angie came to The Penitent Thief with nothing but a desire to rebuild. DCF had filed to terminate their parental rights. They were told reunification was an impossible task. Today their children are home, their family prays together before dinner, and they are building a future that looks nothing like the statistics predicted.

Watch Their Story

A smiling family of six with three boys and a woman holding a toddler standing by a beige van.

Employer spotlight

What happens when you give someone a real shot

Chip Crutcher has owned the Hideaway Bar in Orlando since 1993. When Paul Del Favero introduced him to DOC Grown, Chip did not hesitate. Today one of Paul's program participants works in his kitchen. And Chip has one thing to say about it:

"The opportunity he offers people is unreplaceable."

Chip Crutcher — Owner, Hideaway Bar, Orlando.

Watch what happens next →

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restoration ‍is Possible