In February 2020, at the age of 37 I was arrested by the Federal Marshals after I had completed my house arrest for a State Charge, and was then informed I had been indicted. As i say in County Jail, my lawyer and I prepared for trial. After a long 11 months we backed out of trial and after 13 months, I was sentenced to 300 months in Federal Prison with 6 years probation. That very day at 11:30 A.M. after sentencing, I looked at my kids in the court room and promised them I would go to prison with the right attitude, to take full advantage of everything they had to offer, to better myself, and come out a better person, mother, daughter, sister, and aunt. I was transferred to another county jail for a month and arrived at FCI Waseca, April 2021. Since being here I have had a positive attitude, focused and determined to do my best, I have remained incident report free, and have worked at Unicor for 2 years. I’ve worked my way up to a Material Handler, but started a sewer, then became the Trainer, and was given my own line in the factory. We are currently waiting for the Apprenticeship programs to start again and i plan to be in the 2 year Material Handler Apprenticeship. I have taken 13 Independent Study Ace Classes, 8 in class Ace Classes, a Drug Education Class, and the CQIA class, and The Healthier Me in the BOP class. I am currently in Women’s Relationships, Preparing for Success After Prison, and Academic Success. I am on the waiting list for all the classes my Unit Team Manager and I set goals for me to meet my needs. I was a “high” 56 pattern score upon arrival here, and have dropped to a 46, which is a “medium.” My next team meeting, I will be a “low.” Thanks to this class inspiring me, I have been persistent to get into the MSU Program offered here, to further my college education. I am on the waiting list and am in the required class to get in, and am waiting to see if I will be picked. If not, I will keep trying until I get selected for the college program. With the amount of time I’ve got to serve, I am told “you have to wait until closer to your out date to get into this or that.” Although it gets discouraging, I don’t give up. I keep trying to get into them, and continue to do everything I can to keep my promise, reach my goals, and not waste this time. I want to make something more of myself, so I can be successful and enjoy my family and freedom when that day comes.
