Volunteer inmate mentoring program facilitates change at MCCC

It’s 12:45 on a sunny Wednesday afternoon, and six people are gathered near the front entrance of the Maui Community Correctional Center in Wailuku. A few minutes later the group of four men and two women enters the facility. After signing in, going through a security check and clipping ID badges onto their shirts, they part ways.

The men pair off and head in the direction of the dormitories and modules that house male inmates; the women make their way to the female dormitory.

They are trained mentors with Ka Ipu Ha‘a (“The Humble Vessel”), a mentoring program for inmates at MCCC. Ka Ipu Ha‘a is a subsidiary program of Mental Health America of Hawaii and is run entirely by unpaid volunteers. For an hour and a half every week, the volunteer mentors and inmates meet in one of MCCC’s multipurpose rooms and engage in group discussions that cover of range of themes, including forgiveness, humility and empathy.

Ka Ipu Ha‘a was initiated five years ago by Robert Collesano, then-director of Mental Health America of Hawaii’s Maui branch, who modeled it after the Inside Circle men’s support group at California’s Folsom State Prison. After leading the men’s-only weekly sessions for nearly two years, Collesano passed the torch to Prakash Mackay, a grief support group facilitator for Hospice Maui.

Mackay says it took only one session for him to recognize the program’s far-reaching impact. “It is a privilege to sit down with these men,” he said.

Mackay went on to recruit more mentors and eventually added the women’s program, which is now coordinated by Lisa Darcy. “Our group works in a steadfast manner to stay focused on building healthier community members who are entitled to another chance at recovery,” she said.

There are currently eight men and five women on Ka Ipu Ha‘a’s volunteer roster. They come from different backgrounds, but all have prior experience as group facilitators. In addition to undergoing comprehensive training through Ka Ipu Ha‘a, the mentors must complete an orientation program administered by the state Department of Public Safety. The mentors debrief after every group session at MCCC and meet monthly to share their experiences.

The weekly sessions are capped at 20 participants; participation is voluntary. Every Wednesday, mentors team up to co-facilitate one women’s group and two men’s groups for inmates in different levels of security. To accommodate the growing need, Ka Ipu Ha‘a plans to establish more weekly groups in the months to come.

“They’re really hungry for it,” Mackay said. “It gives them a safe space to be vulnerable.” Both he and Darcy say some newcomers will sit silently for the first few sessions. But soon they begin to open up.

And that’s when something extraordinary happens. “The things that come out of their mouths are phenomenal,” Darcy said. “They demonstrate a high level of self-awareness.”

Among other things, participants practice mindfulness, learn how to effectively manage difficult emotions and identify triggers — such substance abuse or impulsive behaviors — that may have led to their incarceration. They receive signed certificates of completion every eight weeks, and an electronic copy is added to their file at MCCC.

“I am grateful for the efforts of the volunteers for Mental Health America (of Hawaii) who take time out of their busy lives and schedules to offer mentoring groups to the male and female inmates of MCCC,” said MCCC Corrections Supervisor Liane Endo. “These groups allow the inmates to safely and privately present pressing issues that they may be dealing with at the time, to help gain support from their peers and facilitators, to validate their feelings and work their way through their frustrations.”

The insights and skills the inmates develop during these sessions carry over into their everyday lives — during incarceration and after they are released. The overarching goal, Mackay said, “is to break the cycle of recidivism.”

Recently, an inmate told Mackay he signed up for the program because he’d heard it was transformative, and he wanted to transform his life. Mackay says that’s why Ka Ipu Ha‘a is working to expand the program: to give more inmates a better chance of success when they return to their communities.

For more information about Ka Ipu Ha‘a or to learn more about becoming a volunteer mentor, visit kaipuhaa.com or email kaipuhaa@gmail.com.

Sarah Ruppenthal is a Maui-based freelance writer. Contact her at miss ruppenthal@gmail.com.