Soooo we are now done with the second day working with the DOC (Department of Corrections) here in Seattle. First off, this is incredibly exhausting, but incredibly awesome at the same time. I get up around 6:45, and our days at the DOC doesn't usually end until about 5:30 (roughly). There is sooo much that goes on that it's pretty hard to process all of it, but hopefully this helps me out. I'm feeling incredibly (apparently I really like that word) blessed and grateful to be able to do what I am doing. The decision I made to come to Seattle this summer was definitely the right one. I'm connecting with so many people, and getting hands on experience in things that I never even thought I would. I'm getting sooo much insight into what the police, correction officers, state patrol, and what other criminal justice fields deal with and see everyday.
So on Monday I was super excited to wear my professional clothing so that I could feel all big girl like. We got to the DOC and just went through a lot of administration information. Then we took pictures for our BADGES!!!!!!!! so that we could walk around the building, and be all official without anyone stopping us. It's seriously one of the coolest things ever. It makes things feel more real. Unfortunately, when we are done we can't bring them home because they belong to the state, poo ):. Then while everyone was going in groups to take pictures, and get out badges, we were watching a film on the dangers of Meth that was based in Portland, Oregon. I really did learn a lot from it; like how 50% of the children that are in foster care in Oregon is because their parents got involved in meth, first time users can be addicted, and the importance of rehabilitating the family as a whole.
We then watched a documentary called, The Iceman. It was about a man obsessed with murder. He wasn't a "mass" murderer, or a serial killer, but they called him a "predator of human beings". The documentary described it as a "conversation with a killer". It was just really bizarre and eye opening. The way he talked about murdering, and how he did it was so non-chalant. He even described how he doesn't have feelings for his killings during or after them.. The crazy part was he lived a completely normal life. He had a wife, and kids, and they had no idea about his double life. It was a really good look into the mind of a murderer.
After we got all the badges done we had the Field Administrator of King County (which is the county Seattle is in, and the biggest county in Washington) come talk to us about his job, and what community correction officers do (another name for probation/parole officers.) My favorite thing he said was that correction officers are the gateways for resources for the offender. I just thought that was really cool, and basically describes the work of a social worker (which is what I'm majoring in). Supervising an offender won't automatically change a person, you need to get them the education, life skills, support systems, rehabilitation, and resources. But ultimately they need to want to change for themselves (which is always the most difficult part). I realize as a social worker (or whatever title I have in my future career) I can only encourage a person to change to a point, the rest they have to do themselves. A key point that can make the biggest impact in correcting an offender is "the immediacy of the response". He then went into talking about the "Swift and Certain" model (you can google that if you'd really like to know). A few more different types of officers, one being the Community Response Unit (CRU) came and talked to us, one being a woman named, Leslie, and she was absolutely amazing. The officers talked a lot about "The Human Condition", and I really like this concept. I love that I get to work in a career field that looks at offenders in a human condition way. Even though they have done horrible things that we can't even comprehend, they are still human, and must be treated like so. The last thing we got to do at the DOC on Monday was come in contact with real, legitimate evidence. It was really crazy to have them in my own hands. It was a veryyyy long day, ending at the DOC at 6:00, but back at our dorms we went into our DNA groups for the first time. D.N.A. stands for discipleship, nurture, and accountability. They are basically a bible study group while we are here so that we can get to know a group of people on a closer level, and stay in the Word.
On Tuesday (that would be today) our group separated in half. My group, which would be all the sociology, social work, psychology, criminology majors etc. first went to what is called, The Work Crew. The Work Crew is the community service that offenders are required to serve. We went under an interstate highway to where a few offenders were cleaning up to see what it was like for them. A lot of offenders really like the benefits of being on the Work Crew, and it enables a lot of them to get their acts together. We got to talk to a state patrol officer that comes a few days before the Work Crew to come and clear out the homeless that are there living under the highway. We got to see the areas where the tents were, and you can definitely tell where they set up housing for themselves. Once thing that stuck out to me was the caps, and cartridges of the needles that the people used for drug purposes. It made everything more real. There actually was a lot of beautiful graffiti everywhere. I felt like some of those people could become famous for their work. We also got the chance to talk with, and hear the story of one of the offenders that was working. She was a drug addict, and has spent a lot of time in and out of jail, and in rehabilitation centers. She is still very young, and has been clean for awhile now. She has a daughter, and just talked a lot about how she is her motivation that keeps her from relapsing. Hearing her story was super inspiring, and has encouraged me into giving more thought into working in chemical dependency. People really can change their lives around and get better, and it would make my life worth so much more if I could help them with that.
After seeing the Work Crew site, we went back to the DOC and has a presentation on Gangs. I had known some of the things from my Human Behavior, and the Social Environment class last spring, but hearing the officers stories of real interactions with the gangs was really cool. My favorite part of the gang presentation was having a former gang member come talk to us, share his story, and answer basically every question we could ever think of. Honestly, it was a really scary idea at first, but he was a really good guy. He is currently on DOC supervision, but is doing a lot for himself to turn his life around. He has a job, and is doing the best he can to stay out of the gang life so he can be a better father for his children. The first time he went to jail was at 11 years old, and he grew up without his father or mother to support him. His story was really humbling, and inspiring to hear. He was a really humorous guy, and if you ever wondered what a "gangster" talked like, it was legit like a movie haha. He was tossin f-bombs everywhere, but it was a good time. He always said "I'm just going to do me." Literally, my little brothers say that all the time hahahah so that was a good laugh. He said if he had a choice he would go back, and change his lifestyle, but he wouldn't change the knowledge he gathered on the street and that "he'd rather die than end up behind bars for the rest of his life." I have so much respect for people like him, and the women for the Work Crew. People who take the initiative to change their life are the inspiration for me to do what I want to do. I firmly believe that all people can create better lives for themselves. The experience of hearing the woman's story from Work Crew, and this man's life story will stick with me forever, and I'm forever honored and grateful for being able to hear them.
Today has touched my heart in sooo many ways. Beyond all the things at the DOC, tonight we had a Team Training meeting for when we minister to homeless and youth for the next two weeks after this. My faith is something I continuously work on, and I learned a lot about myself tonight, and what it truly meant when I gave my heart to God a few years ago. Our director, Tom, started the meeting out by talking about how we can combine our work with the DOC to help us minister just by the way we interact with people while on the job. It is so true that we don't have to be in a Christian situation to be able to be a representation of our faith. We then had a speaker come and talk to us about "How to be Sure you're a Christian". This is something I struggle with because of my self esteem issues of not being good enough, or worth anything seeps into my faith life. To keep it short and sweet for the sake of my blog I'm just going to share one thing that I learned through the speaker tonight: Once you begin your relationship with God you become his child, and once you become his child you can't change that. You might fall out of fellowship with him, but you never lose the relationship. He compared it to the relationship you have with your parents, you may not talk to them for years, but the relation you have to them doesn't change. It's the same thing with God. This concept brought me to tears. It think this might be a new starting point for me to continuing growing without living in complete doubt, and fear. One of the theologians we have with us on project also spoke a little, and one thing he said was, "People can't make permanent changes without God." So all those people in prison who have screwed up? They all need God in order to really change their lives and I have heard story after story of inmates coming to God, and I truly believe that can happen to anyone.
It's getting late so I should probably rap this up, but TOMORROW AND THURSDAY we get to begin job shadowing, and doing ride alongs with Correction officers that might require a bullet proof vest!!! khafkjehfhawjefkanwhkjfhkaj SOO EXCITED!! It's crazy to believe this trip has only just begun....
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