SPRINGFIELD - Pontiac prison workers, their families and community supporters descended on the Illinois Statehouse on Wednesday hoping to convince Gov. Rod Blagojevich to back off his plan to shutter the maximum-security facility. | Photo gallery | VIDEO: Springfield rally | VIDEO: Prison worker interview | Mayor: State cooking the books | Transfers blocked

Blagojevich was in California attending a conference and wasn't expected back in Illinois until the rally was over.

Protesters took notice of his absence.

"Where's Rod? Save our jobs," the crowd of about 700 people chanted.

The event, which drew supporters from around the state, was aimed at stopping Blagojevich's efforts to close Pontiac and open a mostly unused prison in Thomson, north of the Quad Cities.

Schoolchildren submitted packets of letters to the governor, asking him to stop the closure. One called Blagojevich a "mean man," and another said the closure will "affect our town big time."

More than 130 people wearing "Save Pontiac Prison" T-shirts and carrying signs boarded three charter buses in Pontiac for the trip to Springfield. The event also drew people from other communities, such as Vienna, that have prisons.

Pontiac officials say the loss of the 570 jobs in Livingston County will devastate the region. And, employees say being forced to move to work at another prison will hurt them because it will be tough to sell their houses in an already down economy.

"The stress level is pretty high," said correctional officer Bruce Brand, a 22-year veteran of the prison. "Everyone is just trying to do the best for their families."

The governor says closing the 137-year-old prison will save an estimated $4 million a year. Aides say the savings could be higher this year if the 1,600-bed facility is completely emptied by Dec. 31.

A spokesman did not return a request for comment regarding the rally.

In the run-up to closing Pontiac, however, the department has been shuffling prisoners between facilities to make room for the transition.

Union officials say the transfers are destabilizing the state's sprawling prison system. For example, medium-security prisoners in Pontiac have been sent to minimum-security lockups in East Moline and Taylorville.

"The closing of Pontiac will make the Department of Corrections less safe," said Anders Lindall, spokesman for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

Elaine Cornejo, a teacher at the minimum-security prison in Robinson, said she attended the rally because closing Pontiac has already sent shockwaves through the entire prison system via mass inmate transfers.

"The ripple effect of this is affecting me too," Cornejo said.

Employees of Asta Care Center of Pontiac, a nursing home next to the prison, were among those lending their voices to the rally.

"We're supporting our town 100 percent," said Asta Care employee Kathy Finkenbinder.

The event came a day after a Johnson County judge barred the department from transferring more inmates out of Pontiac in the build-up toward a Dec. 31 closure.

The court case is among three being pursued by AFSCME in various courts in the state in an attempt to use the legal system to halt the closure. Already, a legislative panel has voted in opposition to the plan, but that vote is advisory only.

State Sen. Mike Jacobs, an East Moline Democrat whose district includes Thomson, said the judge overstepped his bounds by dictating what the state can do with its employees.

"I don't think a judge can stop the closure of Pontiac," Jacobs said.

Some people in Pontiac gathered to see off the busloads of protesters.

Among them was Dennis Sullivan, who said both of his sons, who work at the prison, would have to transfer out of town. Sullivan, who has delivered baked goods to the prison since 1974, also said his business would take a hit.

"I feel that it is very important that we do everything we can to stop this closure," Sullivan said. "The people of Springfield and the governor need to realize what is going on here."

Tony Sapochetti contributed to this report.