“Voices from Inside is a non-profit organization based in Western Massachusetts. Founded in 1999, Voices From Inside provides writing groups with and for incarcerated and previously incarcerated women, as well as women in recovery. Voices From Inside workshops have been held at Western Massachusetts Regional Women Correctional Center, Franklin County Jail and House of Correction in Greenfield, Valor Recovery Center in Springfield and After Incarceration Support Services in Springfield, MA. These workshops help the participants, find, develop, and amplify their voices through writing, while educating the public about the lived experiences of women who face incarceration and addiction through our performance group, Voices Carry. The very act of writing empowers all the participants in the writing groups to see themselves and the writings they produce as important and provide a solid sense of worth and value as writers and individuals.
The funding from the Markham-Nathan Fund for Social Justice will be put towards three costs: 1) Support the training of new volunteers to Voices From Inside and trainers who will be able to properly introduce the method of Amherst Writers and Artist (Pat Schneider) and introduce the trauma informed component and its value to this work. Additionally, honorarium for trainers, food ,space rental for training and other workshop related supplies . 2) Loding, transportation and food for a professional specialist dealing with body work/writing as it relates to trauma who will come in and assist with the training. 3) Stipend for our part-time Executive director.
By supporting Voices From Inside in these ways, the Markham Nathan fund is helping to create a space where incarcerated and formerly incarcerated women are able to have their stories and voices heard to inspire change and heal themselves and others around them.” Millicent Jackson, Voices from Inside
