Monday June 22

Ok, so I've been really busy the past few days, so I haven't been able to update the blog. I'm going to split each day up into separate posts though. This is Monday:

This morning was a rough start. we were supposed to be up and ready for breakfast by 6:40, and I woke up at 6:36. Finally after rushing and getting to breakfast, I thought I had last my ID card that we use for meals. Mari and Drew helped me look for it, and we didn't find it. Luckily, I found it in my purse later.

We left SPU around 7:15 and headed to the Criminal Justice Center in Seattle to get our volunteer ID badges made. We listened to a few workers there share a few stories for a couple of hours, then headed out. After that, we went to the Department of Corrections (DOC) in Tacoma. There we learned about offenses, sex offenders, and forms of manipulation that they try to use. Once we had lunch and finished up there, we spread into different teams for our next job shadowing.

Eight of us were taken to the other DOC office in Tacoma. After arriving, we then split up into pairs and singls to talk with the officers. Sean and I were paired up with a parole officer named Vanessa. Her area focuses on sex offenders, so she's around them and talking to them everyday. We got to learn about her job. Sean then asked her about her faith and what she believed. Turns out, she was a Christian as well, so we spent some time talking about that. She said that she didn't think she would be able to handle the job if it weren't for her faith in God.

Then we were taken back in a prison van. Caytlin and I got to ride in the back where the offenders usually ride. It was pretty cool. We then went to dinner at a fantastic Mexican restaurant. Mindy, Susan, Angie, and I had some really great conversations dealing with death, miracles, and other crazy things. Finally, we headed back to the dorm. We had a little bit of time to relax before our meeting, so a good amount of us girls watched hilarious YouTube videos on my computer. (I recommend Kittens by Kittens) At our meeting, Tom and Brooke shared their testimonies. Both of which were tear-jerking and amazing.