Riviera print shop, with help of Mark Wahlberg's brother, gives work to those who did prison time

RIVIERA BEACH — Angel Penalver didn't often get a chance to tell employers that he was looking to turn his life around after serving five years in prison for assault.

Employers would see him — sometimes sweaty from a long walk to the interview in the hot Florida sun — and dismiss him.

"It was hard," Penalver said. "I was homeless a couple times."

But Penalver caught a break when a print shop in Riviera Beach not only granted him an interview but hired him as well.

Turns out, he was just what they were looking for.

K12Print, the successor to the firm that hired Penalver, does a brisk business selling identification cards and lanyards. But its real product is redemption and opportunity.

The firm, co-owned by one of the Wahlberg brothers of acting and singing fame, hires people who have been incarcerated when it has openings. And it looks for other ways to help the community, like its recent purchase of a 15-seat passenger van and laptops for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County.

Jim Wahlberg, 58, wouldn't have it any other way. Nor would his K12 co-owners, John Kilburg, 54, and John DiDonato, 65.

For Mark Wahlberg's brother, the opportunity of a fruitful life after prison hit home

Long before the Wahlberg name became famous, Jim Wahlberg was growing up tough in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston.

Wahlberg developed drug and alcohol addictions at an early age and was in and out of juvenile detention centers for various offenses. He served five years for armed robbery and was sentenced to another six to nine years for breaking and entering.

During that second prison stint, Wahlberg, a Catholic, got help from a priest, who gave him a job in a chapel. That job led to what he described as a life-changing moment, meeting Mother Teresa during the nun's visit to Massachusetts.

"The way I look at it is God sent his No. 1 assistant on Earth to help me," Wahlberg said in the offices of K12. "In my limited capacity, I thought I was looking at God."

Wahlberg said he was stunned to learn that Mother Teresa struggled with feelings that she was not worthy of God's love and certainly not the devotion of admirers around the world.

"I witnessed true humility," Wahlberg said.

When that second prison stint ended, Wahlberg set about working with people who had been like himself — down and out and needing a helping hand.

Wahlberg discovered he was uniquely qualified for such work.

"Only God can take your deficits and the ugliness about you and turn that into assets," he said.

Wahlberg, who would make a documentary about Mother Teresa and other films that put a spotlight on addiction and its impact on children, worked in several jobs where he helped those struggling with substance abuse.

A move to South Florida and a chance meeting opened the doors for Jim Wahlberg

Then, about 24 years ago, Wahlberg said his wife, Bernarda Wahlberg, told her husband she had had enough of Massachusetts' cold winters.

"She said, 'We're moving to Florida. You can come with us if you want,' " Wahlberg said of his wife, who is from the Dominican Republic.

The Wahlbergs moved to South Florida, and Jim continued with this work. He met DiDonato at a family holiday party. The two hit it off instantly.

"He was saying, 'I want to give back,' " Wahlberg recalled. "I want to get people jobs, jobs people can do. I want to help young people.' "

Wahlberg helps run his family's charitable foundation, and he and DiDonato look for ways to make an impact in the community.

Riviera Beach print shop founder thought to himself: 'Is this all you can do?'

DiDonato, 65, founded K12Print after a career in manufacturing that included making parts for cellphones. He co-owns the company along with Wahlberg and John Kiburg.

Rather than grow the company as rapidly and as profitably as possible, DiDonato took a different approach.

"I could have made the company larger, but I wanted to build something that would be more beneficial to the community instead," he said.

DiDonato said he's been interested in helping young people and others who have had a hard time since his earlier days in manufacturing.

"I thought to myself, 'I'm making good money. I can do more,' " he said. "I'm not super-religious, but I felt God was asking me, 'Is this all you can do?' "

Jaene Miranda, president and chief executive officer of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County, said DiDonato and K12Print are doing plenty.

"The only way the Boys and Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County can operate 20 Clubs and serve more than 31,000 children a year is through the generosity of our corporate partners," Miranda said. "Our organization has been warmly embraced by K12Print and we are overwhelmingly grateful for this donation of an incredible new bus and seven laptops.

"The positive impact from these gifts is almost immeasurable, but we know that this bus will transport thousands of children to places that will enrich their lives.  And those laptops given to the seven Youth of the Year nominees will be used throughout their college careers, as they go on to change the world."

K12Print co-owner: 'People who work here have a reason to get up'

Kilburg, whom DiDonato had taken on as president of K12 and a co-owner, gives the company a 1-2-3 punch focus on community outreach.

Kilburg grew up in Detroit. His family had worked in the automotive industry, and he believes in manufacturing work as another way to provide a good life for those who, like himself, did not attend college.

He said he was drawn to DiDonato's commitment to hiring and training people who had been incarcerated.

"We're offering opportunity to people who want the opportunity to make their lives better," Kilburg said. "I bought into it, especially the blue-collar second chance."

Kilburg said the company takes great pride in providing a much-needed second chance.

"The people we hire here, once they start thriving here, they have a reason to get up," Kilburg said. "You see them thrive in other areas of their life."

Kilburg, DiDonato and Wahlberg said people who are imprisoned can't simply be thrown away.

Florida has an estimated 80,000 prison inmates, according to state Department of Corrections figures. Most of those locked up will be released.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said the average length of prison stays in Florida is less than three years.

Getting work after getting out is a tall order.

Wahlberg knows that all too well.

"If you can imagine doing five years and getting out, it's like being dropped onto another planet," he said.

Penalver, 41, said he learned a lot about himself when he was in prison.

"I said, 'This is not the life I want,' " said Penalver, who works as a machine operator and all-around handyman at K12Print. "I thought, 'If I can work all day in here for free, I could do the same out there and make money.' "

More could put that assessment to work if given a chance, Wahlberg said.

K12's community work helps him answer questions he and his partners at the company are driven to answer, questions he'd like others to ask of themselves.

"If we want things to change, it starts with us," he said. "We need to look at ourselves and say, 'What am I willing do? What small thing am I willing to do?' "

Wayne Washington is a journalist covering West Palm Beach, Riviera Beach and race relations at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at wwashington@pbpost.com. Help support our work; subscribe today .

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Riviera print shop, with help of Mark Wahlberg's brother, gives work to those who did prison time