[dropcap3]“I[/dropcap3] think most of us went in, whether consciously or unconsciously, with expectations of tension,” says Ryan Carson, sophomore. “We were coming from privilege; for them, every moment was regulated.” Ryan is a member of the PBU Chamber Singers, a student group that performed at the Pennsylvania State Correctional Institution at Rockview, in Bellefonte, PA, in November 2009.
The young women in the group were particularly nervous going into the prison, but they found their expectations overturned when they met the Church behind bars. “There were men serving double-life sentences, and you know they must have done something really bad, but you talk to them and they are gentle, kind,” says Kirsten Fornwalt, senior. “I heard their stories and realized that could be me.” Lydia Hart, junior, agrees, “It makes you appreciate God’s grace more.”
Jen Chignola, sophomore, reflects on her experience with the Chamber Singers as a time of learning, “I look forward to being with the men in heaven, free, in the presence of God. When I forget the heart of God, who God is, and that He is working, I think back to that weekend, and what I saw God doing there.”
The Chamber Singers aren’t the only student group with the opportunity to interact with men who have experienced prison. PBU-Students in Free Enterprise (PBU-SIFE) partnered with Liberty Ministries of Schwenksville, PA, an intensive rehabilitation program for men who have served prison time for felony convictions of non-violent crimes. PBU-SIFE members conducted weekly seminars in the Fall, focusing on job preparation skills.
Julie Schultz, a senior, led the seminars. “I didn’t think that I could have anything in common with these men or even impact their lives. I prayed for weeks that the Lord would give me strength and that the men would be receptive. When I got there, I found that the men were a little nervous themselves.”
The ten PBU-SIFE members focused on the importance of ethics and integrity while applying for jobs. They encouraged the men to be honest about their conviction during a job interview and they taught them how to acknowledge their past while successfully transitioning into present success stories.