Three words that describe you?
Resilient, intelligent, passionate
What are the top challenges that you faced when reentering?
The top challenges I faced upon my release were lack of experience with recovery, adequate and affordable housing, guidance for realistic employment options, no immediate means of supporting myself, inner fears, unsupportive family, ill-informed understanding of the role of the parole office.
What resources have you found most helpful for reentering?
Case management, structured transitional living arrangements, peer recovery support familiar with incarceration.
Did you have a mentor or role model?
I had an imagined model in my head for emulation but it took me time to secure an example of what that realistically looked like.
What drives your passion and makes you excited to get out of bed in the morning?
I am driven by the idea of teaching others through advocacy and the work of forging alliances and partnerships that advance a collective response to the ill-effects of the troubled lives many who have lived the street life have experienced. Having the opportunity to motivate the people to take action or change.
Why do you participate in the Reentry Advocacy Project?
I participate in order to have proximity to the best examples of what is possible for my individual life, to be known and get to know others who share my sensitivity with the accompanying issues that have extended from our societies over reliance upon punitive measures.