Workshop 1 Feedback: Becky and Britt

October 4--Britt Harwood:

Ariel,

Hey. We didn't have any trouble getting the photos today; it took about ten minutes total, which was great. We went over to Medium and got in at about 6pm, and decided to teach in the classroom on the third floor of B Wing. There was a question about conflicts--visits are on Mondays and NA is on Thursdays at the same time as SPACE--so I was wondering if you have a plan worked out for that. Otherwise, the workshop was more of an introduction and meeting session, we all talked a lot about ourselves and our goals (we all = both us and the women), we did a short writing exercise, we threw out some ideas for future workshops, and then we called it a day. All told, about an hour and ten minutes. It was really really good.

A few of the women are wondering about certificates from last semester. Do we give them out? Does the prison? Why did some women get them and not others? Did you and Ruki give them, and Tess and Mariya and I just dropped the ball? I'm not sure how that works, but they asked that I try to see if it's possible to let someone know that they were skipped over. Do you think Janet would know?

I'm too tired to think of anything else right now... I hope this is helpful... See you soon, have fun tomorrow,

Britt

October 4--Becky Mer:

Hi Ariel!

I thought it went really well last night. Photos took a total of 1 minute, and after they were taken they went directly into the computer. The COs were really accommodating and friendly. We had about 15 women from A and B, and our classroom was on the 3rd floor next to the common room (which definitely was distracting for some of them, but we did have the benefit of a wonderful CO nearby). Some women did say that they preferred the basement room because it was bigger. Also, two women told Britt that they never got their certificates last year, and they really want them. We began the workshop with introductions, which really was a wonderful chance to see why people came, what they wanted and expected, and definitely made it a really comfortable atmosphere. We were able to tell them our goal for the space as a safe and expressive place. After intros, we did an envelope activity that Rosi did last year: on the outside, draw or write what people see on the outside/what you want them to see, and on the inside write what's inside you. The women could chose to seal it or not. Most women shared, and I never expected the high level of honesty and openness we had in just that first activity. The sharing of the envelopes was my highlight for the workshop. After that, Britt gave them the option of reading the memoir now, or saving it for next week and instead brainstorming ideas for workshops. The women really wanted to share their ideas, so we got a nice list of what they'd like to do with us. We ended around 7:15, and I think we were able to communicate that we really wanted them to come back and have some continuity in the group. Also, Britt and I talked to one of the women about their schedules (when they have AA, NA, visits, etc) which was really helpful--it seems like Wednesday is clear for many of them.

Thanks so much Ariel, have a great weekend!
-Becky