“I have worked hard since my release to get back on track and stay on track. I am looking forward to celebrating my success.”
Sara is celebrating nearly 7 years of being released. When she was released she promised herself she would never return to prison.
Zerri’s enthusiasm is contagious as she recounts how her life has shifted since she began doing trauma healing work.
Michelle is quickly approaching the one year mark of her release. She continues to make a daily choice to continue doing the work to live her most authentic life.
April was released in April 2020. She is embracing her newfound voice by telling her story to empower other women.
“The people in the prisons are just people like you and I, who just happened to have made a bad choice, mostly because of their own past traumas.”
Lainey grew up in prison. Literally. Grew. Up. 30 years behind bars.
“I want people to know that it’s time to break the stigmas surrounding incarceration. Most people are unaware of the day to day issues incarcerated women face.”
While incarcerated, Lainey graduated from Truth Be Told’s Talk to Me Writing program, in which participants write and share the story of what they believe put them on a path to prison. She also participated in Living Deeper and Freer and Pay It Forward, two programs that Truth Be Told offers to Talk to Me graduates serving lengthier sentences.
TBT: You were incarcerated as a teenager and spent 30 years in prison. This week, you celebrate one year and three months of freedom. What are you most proud of over these past 15 months?
Arianna graduated from Truth Be Told’s “healing through storytelling” program called Talk to Me at Bryan Federal Prison Camp. Just last month, she celebrated one year of freedom from incarceration. In that short time, she completed a city health department community reentry network program and received special recognition among her peers at graduation. She now works as a youth peer specialist at a mental health services center and began school this month to become a licensed chemical dependency counselor.
Of her peer specialist role, Arianna says: “I work with youth, ages 10 to 20, drawing upon my own experience to help them navigate the behavioral health system by building trust, support and validation. The goal is to enhance wellness and create strategies for self-empowerment.”
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