We're a friendly bunch here at Convina, but even after more than a year at our current location- we still hadn't met all of our neighbors. This week we finally ventured outside of our comfort zone to go across the street and get acquainted with our neighbors to the South.

After months of requests, a whole lot of paperwork, and background checks on all of our employees-- we were finally able to secure a tour of the Utah State Prison.

What started as a curious field trip turned out to be an astonishing, once-in-a-lifetime experience for everyone who attended. Not only were we able to accompany Corrections Officers into the halls of the prison itself, but we were also able to interact directly with inmates as part of the program. The program included a stomp (choreographed and performed by a group of inmates), reports about prison life presented by inmates, and open discussion between the tour group and a panel of six inmates. 

The convicts that we spoke with were serving time for various levels of crimes ranging from drug dealing to attempted murder. These inmates were part of a division of the system set apart for prisoners who have a desire to change their life by correcting their "thinking errors" and putting an end to their cycle of criminal behavior. Our discussion allowed us to catch of glimpse of many shocking realities about the life of a criminal before, during, and after prison. While we could not all agree as to how sincere we thought they were, all of the inmates admitted openly to their crimes and indicated that they believe that the punishments they had received were deserved for what they had done.

While no two of us (at Convina) interpreted what we learned in the exact same way, we all agreed that it was a worthwhile opportunity and an eye-opening experience.