the OUUC spark

On November 30 of last year, OUUC launched its OPOP Team. OPOP, One Parish || One Prisoner, is a program sponsored by Underground Ministries to help further their work on prison reform and reentry. For most incarcerated people, reentering the community is challenging. Just imagine showing up in a new town with no job, no home, and many obstacles to obtaining them. Some releasing individuals don’t have a driver’s license or health insurance. And sometimes they are released, often for good reason, into a community where they have no friends or family.

The One Prisoner || One Parish (OPOP) program poses this question: “What if every person releasing from prison had a local community waiting to embrace them?”

The OUUC OPOP team consists of: Nancy Reid-McKee, Liz Clement, John Crutcher, Maggie Smith, Cheryl and John Tafejian, and Zoë Myers. Reverend Sara attends our meetings as our church support. And we have chosen to be that community, embracing an incarcerated person on their journey to, and through, reentry.

The OPOP program lasts two years. Underground Ministries connects the OPOP team with an incarcerated person who is to be released in about a year. The team spends that year building a relationship with each other and their incarcerated friend through letters, emails, prison visits, and phone calls. We are also charged with helping our friend find work and housing and to help them navigate their return to society. At our launch last November, we were connected to Dan, who is currently incarcerated at Monroe Correctional Center. We all find him a remarkable young man. He just turned 28 this past January. The picture below is of our team celebrating his birthday.

Dan was incarcerated at 16 and has literally grown up in prison. Through monthly meetings and training modules, provided by Underground Ministries, we have been learning how we can support Dan by being his friend and how we can be there to help him take those first steps toward his life outside of prison. He is a thoughtful man with a good sense of humor. He is working to improve his situation. To the right is a picture of Dan with Buddy, a puppy he is raising to be a service dog.

Unfortunately, there has been a significant snag in our work with OPOP. Dan had applied for resentencing based on a relatively new law allowing incarcerated individuals, who were children when they were tried as adults, to petition for resentencing. Everyone, including the Department of Corrections, had expected Dan to be released within a year. But his petition was denied. Dan is appealing, but a prisoner’s appeal for resentencing can take a long time. So, we don’t know if he will be released in a year or two, or if he will serve the full six years he has left on his sentence.

We have all established relationships with Dan and so, even though we are not at this time following the original plan, we want to continue to grow our friendships with him and prepare to support his reentry, whenever that time comes. We all exchange letters or emails with him several times a month, and we have visits scheduled with him in May and July.

With Dan’s permission, we will be sharing more with you about Dan and his life before prison, and the many accomplishments he’s made while incarcerated.

We will be sharing with you our individual stories, and why we all signed up for the OPOP team.

And we will also share ways that you can be involved in this work.

In the meantime, as we build our friendships with Dan and each other, we are growing spiritually.

We are motivated to make a difference for this one person, our friend Dan, without judgement.

We find our work grounded in several of the UU principles that prompt us to engage with compassion, work for justice, and accept the inherent worth and dignity of every person.

We are excited about meeting Dan, in person, in the next few months, and bringing his story to the full congregation.

12:15 pm on Sunday, June 1 — Deep Dive into the Budget. Bring your questions! (The draft budgets will be posted on the OUUC website by this Sunday, 5/25 — look for a "slider" image at the top of the homepage about the Congregational Meeting.)

12:15 pm on Sunday, June 8 — Annual Congregational Meeting to vote on board members, Leadership Development Committee members, and budgets. (Click the slider described above for full details on each of these.)

NOTE: You will be able to participate (including voting) in both of these forums either onsite or on Zoom, as usual. Links and info about other upcoming services and forums can be found on our website, OUUC.org, under Worship -> Upcoming Services.

This week's dinner will be curries, dal, rice, and more.

All are welcome for food and fellowship at 5:30pm. If you can help cook or set up, starting at 3:30 or 4:30pm, please email Rev. Sara.

After-dinner (6:30 pm) options include: UU Buddhist Sangha and Kids Class: Dharma Kids.

Website: https://www.ouuc.org

Email: office@ouuc.org

Location: 2306 East End St NW, Olympia, WA, USA
Phone: (360) 634-2005

Office Hours

Tuesday and Thursday, 12:00 – 4:00 pm

Sunday, during services

Staff Contacts

Rev. Mary Gear, Minister

Rev. Sara Lewis, Director of Community & Faith Development

Troy Fisher, Music Director

Isaac Jennings, Business Manager

Su Sikora, Interim Office Assistant

Teresa Madsen, Tech Coordinator

Marie Arensmeyer, Facilities Manager

Anissa Bentlemsani, Religious Education Assistant

Carbon Marshall, Tech Specialist