Listen now: The Children’s Center at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility
Photo by Nicole Bengiveno/The New York Times
Last evening, Makeba and I hosted another edition of Family Life Behind Bars radio. I started things off by speaking to Bobby Blanchard, the Director of The Children’s Center at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility. She spoke about the program, how it helps to sustain the relationship between the mother and child, and the obstacles presented by the prison system that both the mothers and their children face.
Next, we brought in Linda Moro, the Teen Director of the center to talk about the type of the issues that teens there face, and how the center goes about addressing them.
Johnathan Santiago, 22 talked about his personal experience with growing up with an incarcerated mother who’s serving a 25 year sentence at Bedford Hills. Hear what he had to say about the center, how he’s been able to sustain a relationship with his mother, and how he refused to succumb to the same circumstances.
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Great Article!!!!
the children center help me alot i was on the nursery and thanks to my experience with the children center i kept in contact with my children and thier care giver I was in and out of prision from 2002-2008 and i have a 9 year old son who i keeped in contact who is in my life now and the relationship is great because of the parenting classes and the help i got in the chilren center in getting to know my child i also gave brith in 2007 from bedford hill and as my child went home to my mother the children center provided me a support like no other i felt sad but i new all the time how he was doing and i went home jan 2008 and now i have 3 children and i am a better parent thank to the children center and i also have a great relationship with my mother there care giver. and proved my self to be a fit mother