Jail chaplain keeps the faith with his `hidden ministry'.

Byline: Bill Bishop The Register-Guard

Leaps of faith are a way of life for Dan Blomberg, Lane County's jail chaplain for the past 30 years.

His own leaps took him from a steady private sector job into a fledgling ministry in a small jail, and then into an international prison ministry. But he says it's the small leaps that he sees other people make that impress him.

There have been many, he says. It's what keeps him coming back to jail day after day, year after year.

"I've seen thousands of lives changed," he says. "We provide them an emotional outlet, a listening ear, encouragement, instruction in the Scripture, and hope. People die without hope."

About 16,000 people flow in and out of the Lane County Jail annually. Blomberg and his volunteer staff of 30 see upward of 12,000 of them each year in weekly Bible studies, Sunday services at the jail, work release center and work camp, and in one-on-one counseling.

But Blomberg's ministry is no free-ranging evangelical group. It functions within the security and legal protocols of jail operations, says Senior Deputy Joe Pishioneri, the jail's special services officer.

While Christianity is the predominant faith in the community, the sheriff's office provides access to all religions, he says. Blomberg's job is to provide religious services that inmates request or volunteer to attend, not to push Christianity on anyone.

"Dan knows the rules," Pishioneri says.

The first rule is that jail security comes first. Religious services, counseling appointments, Bible study groups - for that matter, any program involving the jail's 149 community volunteers - sometimes get canceled, postponed or moved when circumstances require, Pishioneri says.

Allowing access to religious activity, aside from the personal benefits to those who seek it, is a well-used tool in jail management, Pishioneri adds.

"A lot of inmates find solace in practicing religion. It makes our job easier, and it makes our facilities safer," he says.

Blomberg's ministry is both a public and private service, Lane County Sheriff Russ Burger says.

"He has been an inspiration for many of the offenders who are trying to make positive changes in their life," Burger says. "Dan has been a tremendous resource for the entire corrections division."

Blomberg's ministry comes at no cost to taxpayers.

About a dozen local churches pitch in, along with individuals and businesses to provide about $60,000 annually for the ministry. Blomberg trains the volunteers. His wife, Marilee, who also is a minister, provides musical support and conducts women's services.

"The problem with my congregation is, they don't tithe," Blomberg says with a laugh. "This kind of work, you don't get a lot of thanks. We're a hidden ministry. The average pastor really can't relate to what goes on here."

Over the years, Blomberg has ministered to some of the area's most notorious offenders. The topics of murder, rape and child abuse are everyday conversations among his fold.

Blomberg finds the best approach with inmates is to share stories with them, and Blomberg is up front about the troubles in his family while he was growing up.

"You've got to make it personal. They want to hear about your warts, too. No one is perfect, and they know that," Blomberg says. "There are times when you get discouraged. It is heavy. It wears on you."

The antidote is travel. The Oregon coast is a powerful recovery spot, he says. When they can afford it, the Blombergs join in overseas prison ministries through the Coalition of Prison Evangelists.

"For 30 years, God has taken care of us. He has taken us all over the world," Blomberg says. "If God wants you to do something, he can pay the bill."

For a ministry that may rank in size among the top three locally - on par with Faith Center and the First Baptist Church - Blomberg operates on a shoestring.

"The numbers in his ministry are astounding," says Faith Center Associate Pastor Steve Overman, whose congregation has long helped to support Blomberg.

Blomberg's commitment is total, Overman adds.

"It's a shepherd-sleeps-with-the-sheep thing," Overman says. "He never punches out."

DAN BLOMBERG

Title: Lane County Jail Chaplain

Job: Coordinates ministry for thousands of inmates annually, at no cost to taxpayers.

Personal: Age 61. Wife of 28 years: Marilee Blomberg. Hobbies: Travel and the Oregon coast.

More information: E-mail: [e-mail] or phone [phone].