Las Vegas native Mike Divicino has experienced life in a way that few can truly understand.
Having faced the consequences of his actions at a young age, Divicino reflects on his troubled youth, which ultimately led to his involvement in crime.
“I ended up in the street at a young age with my fighting.
Pretty soon that turned into delinquent behavior, and that just continued to escalate,” he admitted.
His last arrest occurred in 1990 when he was in his twenties.
What began as a six-year sentence morphed into a life sentence without the possibility of parole.
Divicino vividly recalls the moment he realized his fate: “I had to lace my boots up pretty tightly, and here we go. Now I’m in maximum security for the rest of my life.”
A life sentence can offer ample time for reflection and, for Divicino, also a chance for rehabilitation.
He dedicated himself to improving not only his life but the lives of younger inmates around him.
“I was trying to pull the youngest of inmates and gang members out of the gangs and their nonsense.
So they had a shot at life,” Divicino said, adding, “Still to get out and create a life, have a family, something that I had chalked up by my poor decisions.”
On August 14, 2019, after nearly three decades behind bars, Divicino was released.
This came as a surprise to him, as he had been living with the expectation that he would never get out.
“I was terrified when I first got back into the real world,” he shared.
However, his commitment to helping youth remained strong, leading him to establish his own organization: Together It’s Possible.
“It’s to deter at-risk youth from going down a very grimy road if you will,” Divicino explained.
The initiative aims to empower teenagers by educating them about the severe consequences associated with rash decision-making.
Divicino stated, “When we’re young, we’re not always thinking about what could potentially be lifelong consequences attached to those actions.”
A cornerstone of his program is the Letters from Prison book series, which is composed entirely of genuine letters from inmates expressing gratitude for Divicino’s support.
“Dear Joey is the first book in the series.
It’s a compilation of letters from guys of every race, religion, and background sharing how they got involved with drugs, gangs, crime, and bullying,” Divicino explained.
He recounted how many inmates wrote to thank him as they departed the prison, recognizing the new paths they could take.
His impactful work caught the eye of Andy DePalma, a retired police officer now engaged with NAMI in the mental health field.
DePalma remarked, “30 years not being able to do what he wants to do, having that freedom.
The first thing this guy does when he comes out is start worrying about how to stop kids from doing what he did.
This is a guy we need to trust.
This is a guy that we have to say this is what it’s like inside and why we shouldn’t let our kids get in there.”
Divicino’s organization is working to expand its reach into juvenile detention centers and behavioral schools throughout the valley.
His mission is to connect with young people who still have a chance at a brighter future.
“Younger people that still have a shot at life that maybe haven’t had anybody to pour into them, to love on them, to tell them good job.
The simple things that could mold the kids. They could shape the kids’ entire life,” he said.
Divicino concluded, “It’s extremely fulfilling.
It’s the torch that I was long meant to carry.”
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