Michael Cox of New Haven has been chosen as Hang Timer of the Month for September 2024.
Michael Cox met Michele Litt at a Job Fair event and heard her rave about Hang Time. He promised her he would attend, and he doesn’t go back on his word. He is very grateful that Hang Time New Haven has become a lifeline for him.
After 32 years in prison, the Department of Corrections released Michael to a halfway house, then to live on the street. Due to kidney failure, he requires three days of dialysis treatments every week. He requested to extend his stay in a halfway house but since his sentence was completed, that was not an option. Through the grace of friends, he was in a hotel for ten days. The waiting list for housing presents another challenge.
Michael remains positive. He has many friends and is glad to be back in New Haven despite his problems. “I know a LOT of people and I have been inviting them all to Hang Time.” He had a friend check in with him from Rhode Island and he encouraged him to come visit and check it out. “You never know who that word will carry to, so I keep putting it out there for Hang Time. Positivity influences energy in your life. I try to explain how it feels to be faced with genuine acceptance and love. They don’t trust it yet but little by little I will convince them.”
“I was lucky to have a couple good influences in my life. One was my cousin Vincent Moore. We were very close, and he was a person who gave me a break in life. Then he was killed behind the wheel because he fell asleep. When he died, I was in a very bad place mentally. A close family member was gone.”
“I was doing all kinds of programs to improve myself and keep busy. Then one day in prison I met a woman named Kim Sharpe. She was a Social Worker who helped me start the “Lifers Group.” This gave me a focus. We started bringing at-risk middle school kids for a tour of the prison. We had discussions about how we got there and how they could avoid it. It was very helpful for the kids and also for us to interact and help them see another way. Kim also opened many new programs including an Addiction series, Moving the right way through life, Computer Classes, A.A. N.A., Parenting from a Distance and others. These all really helped me make the changes I needed. One group we talked with had a young girl from Waterbury who was beating everybody up. She was being bullied badly and being told she was “ugly.” I told her the story of The Ugly Duckling. When she heard that story a tear went down her cheek. She opened-up and was able to see the wrong in her decisions. By the end she hugged me and cried and cried for about 20 minutes. I felt I made a real difference in her life that day.”
“I have good people in my life. My Mother instilled goodness and kindness in me and I never forgot it. I have forgiven my father and now he helps me with getting to my dialysis appointments and to run errands. My Sister, LaMonica, has a son with special needs. I try to do all I can for that boy, Sonny, ‘cause i love him SOOOOO much. I help him as much as I can.”
What is your favorite music genre: “I like all music. Old Rap. Bon Jovi, Blue Grass, oh and Motown, there ain’t never been anything better than Motown.”
Where would you like to travel: “Hawaii.”
What do you do to make change in the world? “I try to show people a good way. A true leader knows how to lead and when to follow.”
What is something people may not know about you? “I earned my Certified Nursing Accreditation while in prison. I became a Nurses Aid and was able to do a lot of good work there for the inmates. My kidneys started to fail in 2001. I think I wanted to help others because I could understand how much it was needed. I am a healer at heart. “
What does Hang Time mean to you? “Everything!! Every week I am so pumped up by Hang Time that I get upset that it is only every other week! Let’s meet every week! We all need more of that positivity!”
