Article contributed by Free Minds Volunteer Jaclyn Zubrzycki

As part of a new effort begun this summer, Free Minds is now hosting volunteer Write Nights, where volunteers from throughout the community gather to read and respond to the writing of the young authors of Free Minds Book Club & Writing Workshop.

Free Minds members’ poems are also posted on a blog, but the personal touch is important. Free Minds sends birthday cards, a monthly newsletter, and letters to inmates, and this mail is often the only mail the members receive. At Write Night, volunteers read, illustrate, and respond to the poems – almost all of which deal with tough themes like forgiveness, regret, and loneliness. The poems and responses are then mailed back to their authors in DC Jail and in Federal Prisons across the country, where the feedback is read eagerly and used to improve their writing. One member recently wrote in a letter from prison in Pennsylvania, “Thanks so much for the feedback, the comments helped me look at things from a different point of view.”

At a recent Write Night, Darius, a Free Minds Member who has been home for several months, reinforced the importance of the personal notes: “It’s powerful. Their families may not be reaching out to them in that way.” D.C. youth charged as adults are often sent to prisons across the country when they turn 18, which makes staying in touch with family and loved ones even more difficult. Darius said that Free Minds had helped keep him positive and “on the right track.”

Michael, another Free Minds Member, described waiting for mail in prison “like a dog wagging its tail.” He said it was interesting to see the other side of an organization that had been important to him during his 33 months in prison – “I wasn’t a poet before Free Minds.” He said he’d often reread the feedback to his poems again and again while in prison. “It helps you know you’re not there to rot and die.”

Volunteers shared stories about what drew them to Free Minds. Several were former teachers, and two had worked with Free Minds students at the juvenile facility; one had donated books to the organization. Write Night is the newest of several ways for volunteers to be involved: Free Minds has always looked for volunteers to respond to poems on its blog and donate books.

Attendees at a Write Night in September included not only Free Minds volunteers and members, but representatives of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Eleanor Wilson Chapter. They came to present monetary support with a check to fund the new initiative Books Across the Miles!, but they didn’t stop there—they stayed to provide critical writing support by sharing caring feedback on the poems. After Write Night, the DAR representatives were so inspired that they brought copies of poems to their national conference to collect even more feedback.

Daughters of the American Revolution at Write Night

Daughters of the American Revolution join Free Minds Volunteers and Members at Write Night (Photo Carla Ruas)

Every letter and poem at Write Night finds a reader, and participants leave with the young poets in mind. Free Minds members will get a reminder, Executive Director Tara Libert says, that “People believe in you. You’re not out of mind, though you may be out of sight. You’re not forgotten.”

If you are interested in participating in volunteer Write Night, please email Juliana Ratner, who will pass the information on to our volunteer coordinator.

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