 What Our Voices Carry weaves the individual experiences of women into the larger picture of incarceration, addiction, and mental health systems. It is about how people without a voice in our society suffer and how society suffers from not hearing them, as well as the joy and power of finding one’s voice and being heard. Audience members will be given the opportunity to reflect on their possible roles in breaking down barriers to full acceptance of incarcerated women upon re-entry into their communities. Other local organizations dedicated to addressing criminal justice reform, the opioid crisis, post-incarceration support in Western Massachusetts’ communities will be tabling at the event.
This event will highlight the creativity, strength, courage, and hope of women seeking against formidable barriers to understand and take control of their lives. Come out to support Voices From Inside and the women who write with them!
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 Leslye Clayton
Two years ago, Leslye Clayton attended a writing program mandated by her program in Greenfield. She did not see herself as a writer, but to her surprise she discovered she could rhyme with the best of them without even trying. Leslye has been writing ever since and despite living in Easthampton now, she finds her way weekly to our Springfield group. Where once the writing was dark, now she brightens our group with her wonderful images of nature and feelings of hopefulness and light. She says writers' group saved her life and it continues to be her lifeline. "For me, I finally feel like I belong somewhere." ESSENTIAL TO MY EXISTENCE By Leslye Clayton Aside from things That we all know Like having eyes Or a nose to blow There's plenty more That I seek out That fills my soul I need the sun With its golden rays I even need Those rainy days I need the air That fills my lungs I need the nature Where I'm from I need to hear My sons' voices Too many choices I need to feel Your beautiful face I need some love Throughout my space I need security Now that is key Without that There'd be no me Guess what I need Most of all Writer's group That's what I call Essential to my existence  Amie Hyson, of Greenfield, has been a part of Voices From Inside since March of 2017. Immediately upon joining the Wednesday afternoon group at the RECOVER Project in Greenfield, Amie knew she had found something near and dear to her heart. Writing had always been an integral part of her life. As a woman in long term recovery from opioid addiction, she had utilized writing as a recovery tool on her own for many years, but she had not had much opportunity to share her love of writing with others until becoming a part of VFI. She looked forward to the group each week and was often surprised by what came out of her pen in response to the various prompts offered. In the Autumn of 2017, Amie was invited to participate in VFI's facilitator training and excitedly accepted. She began co-facilitating at the RECOVER Project immediately following her training and has been doing so ever since. In early 2018, when Amie learned that the Franklin County House of Corrections had begun housing women and that VFI would be providing workshops for the women inside the Greenfield Jail, she volunteered to co-facilitate the first one beginning in May of 2018. She loved her experience writing with the incarcerated women so much that she asked if she could be the 'point person' for the program which has recently begun its fourth round of 10-week writing workshops. Amie is very grateful for the opportunities VFI has provided her which have enabled her to grow as a writer, leader, facilitator and woman in recovery. She hopes to be a part of VFI for a long time to come!
I Am From By Amie Hyson I am from Ice cream & apple pie Pie in the sky & Sky high I double as A troublemaker in disguise I am from A darkness So vast that It threatens To consume I am from A rapid fire Heartbeat Giving way to Full blown panic I am from Sweaty palms & Lying awake Till dawn I am from Wondering where My next fix Will come fromI am from Tiny white lines Laid out & Carefully counted I am from Blue pill days & A hillbilly haze I am from Oxy-Nation Where fat pharma Thrives on victimization I am from Fed up & Had enough I am from I am done Nowhere to run And I will not be silenced!
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VFI IN THE NewsVFI's Tara McNamara organized the "Breaking Free" poetry reading in Greenfield--read about it in this Greenfield Recorder story.
An excerpt from Voices Carry's performance at Forbes Library is available for viewing on Youtube, here.
VFI writer Daisy Diaz read a poem to open Hampshire Art Museum's exhibition "Made in America: Unfree Labor in an Age of Mass Incarceration." The exhibit runs through March 10. Check out photos in the February 7 post, to the left.
VFI writer Tara McNamara's poem "Dear Ex-Husband" is featured in the October 29, 2016, issue of the Write Angles Journal. See the poem on our Writing& Prompts page.
WWLP's Ashley Kohl interviews VFI board members about upcoming fundraisers for VFI, April 27, 2016.
From the Heart: VFI Poets interviewed in the Greenfield Recorder, February 12, 2016 Hampshire Gazette Reports on VFI Performance at Lander-Grinspoon Academy, February 7, 2016 Interview with VFI Poets on the Bill Newman Show, February 3, 2016 Loud and Clear: VFI at Holyoke Community College, November 18, 2015 Women Share Stories While in Jail, June 18, 2015 Archives
November 2019
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