‘The House That DJJ Built’ Kicks Off with Signing Ceremony
Youth incarcerated at the S.C. Department of Juvenile Justice will start building Habitat for Humanity houses in a few weeks.
By Tiffany Barkley October 18, 2026
DJJ, Friends of Juvenile Justice and Central South Carolina Habitat for Humanity signed a memorandum of agreement Tuesday at the Bill Rogers Community Connections Center, formalizing DJJ’s largest volunteer project for incarcerated youth.
“The House That DJJ Built” will allow youth ages 12 to 17 to build Habitat for Humanity houses behind the fence at the DJJ complex on Broad River Road. After the houses are framed, they will be lifted over the fence and moved to their permanent locations . . .
Not only will the youth learn to give back to the community, they’ll learn valuable construction skills, said Katrina Shealy, chair of Friends of Juvenile Justice, the nonprofit organization that supports DJJ.
“The House That DJJ Built” involves partners from the community, such as the Mechanical Contractors Association of South Carolina and the Columbia Electrical Council.
The supporters will be the ones who work alongside the youth and teach them the valuable construction skills, Shealy said.
“They’re going to help us teach these children skills so when they go back into the communtiy maybe they can have something to build on and be a better person,” Shealy said. “They can go back and say ‘Look what I did. I built a house.’”
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“Katrina Shealy: True Public Service”
By Working Tommy C
Katrina Shealy has been working for years in charitable organizations. The Friends of Juvenile Justice organization mentioned above has been one of Shealy’s favorites and she has spent a lot of time, money, and energy doing volunteer work in the one area of the penal system that has some real hope of changing people’s lives for the better. But Katrina Shealy is savvy in the way that she goes about it.
In a recent interview (more to come on Stuffed Suits next week) Katrina noted: “You can look at my checking account and see that I probably help people more than I should . . . I think I give people a hand up-not a handout. I think you’ve got to work for what you get but you’ve really got to do the right thing. If I’m going to help somebody, they’ve got to show they’re trying to help themselves.”
Shealy gives her time and energy to what is true public service. For her it is all about doing the right thing. She considers her campaign for state senate district 23 to be about true representation of the people and an extension of her goal of serving important community needs through her charitable work. She stated, “I don’t think I’m better than anybody else . . . I’m more about being one of the people, not being ‘above the people.’ I want to work for the people-the people won’t work for me.”
I am supporting Katrina for State Senate District 23. She is a genuine and caring conservative leader in our area. Her selfless attitude, and tireless participation in the lives of troubled youth, speak volumes about her character.
Katrina will bring a much-needed breath of fresh air and honesty to our State Senate.
Having followed her around for over a year, and having watched her actions, which match her rhetoric, I proudly endorse her candidacy for the nomination to the SC Senate. She will do as she says, because she says what she means. Go Katrina! Let’s work together to bring real change and genuine representation to the Senate!