WASHINGTON, Ind. — Carol Gregory is a teacher, a mother figure and a friend to many, but her classroom can’t be found in a school. Her students are a bit nontraditional and her only textbook is the Bible.

At age 83, Gregory makes her way to the Daviess County Security Center in southwestern Indiana to spread Christian teachings to those seeking a new direction in life.

She spends four to five hours each Monday and Wednesday at the jail counseling men and women. A friend, Donna Gentry, who has since passed away, was in a prayer group with Gregory, and she opened her eyes to the opportunities inside the security center.

“Donna, such a beautiful person, came in to one of our gatherings and said she was sorry for being late. She’d been at the old jail trying to help a lady who didn’t have anyone,” she said.

Gregory said she and Gentry volunteered to work with the woman.

“We got to teach her so many things,” she said. “Until she passed, she would call us so many times a week. (God) opened doors for me. I also did counseling with another young lady at the old jail. These ladies didn’t have any idea, or even myself, how the love and experience I had with them would lead me to all the many other lives I would get to touch and counsel with.”

Recently, more than a dozen of the inmates whose lives she’s touched gathered to share some of their fondest memories of the woman they’ve grown to love.

“People find out about Carol pretty quick,” said Christy, a member of a program known as R.A.R.E. (Resisting Addictions with Recovery and Education).

Gregory told the Washington, Indiana Times Herald the first time she meets with a new friend, as she calls them, she always has a special time sharing with them a passage from Jeremiah 18.

“The potter molds the clay with his hands and water into beautiful pottery,” she said. “God gave me such a beautiful ending that lets them know without a doubt, they are His masterpiece and He will never throw them away. He just keeps molding us.”

Gregory also stays in contact with many of the inmates if they get sent to state prison, or after they get out.

“I get letters from prison inmates that I have worked with,” Gregory said. “I always answer as soon as possible and I want them to know that there is life after this. God has great plans for them. They just need to see it.”

Gregory says she meets individually with about two dozen male and female inmates each week. More are on a waiting list to meet with her. She’s also served on the support team for an Aftercare class started by Daviess County Sheriff Jerry Harbstreit. She teaches classes on Friday afternoons with Clark and serves on many other committees around the county.

“We have a lot of fun together,” said Chris Clark, a nutrition program assistant at the nearby Purdue Extension who works at the jail with Gregory and who also serves on the Day of Prayer committee. “She’s a wonderful and inspiring lady.”

Everything said between Gregory and the inmates remains confidential, but that doesn’t stop her from making recommendations for programs and other forms of help to Hamilton and Luchtefeld.

“Carol wants to do so much more than what she can for you guys,” said Hamilton, adding Gregory brings a special kind of peace to the lives of those on the inside. “She tells us what she thinks you need and what would be helpful to you.”

Gregory doesn’t plan to stop her visits anytime soon.

“I hope God keeps me healthy until I pass so I can keep up with my visits,” she said, wiping a tear from her eye. “I think he keeps me well because He knows I still have so much here that needs to be done.”

The Washington, Indiana Times Herald contributed details for this story.