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. . . uniting families . . .
Spring 2011
Hats Off to the Kids!
Hadley, one of our littlest Hats Off! guests, models one of her favorite hats. (Photo by OG Photography)
“When I first went to prison I felt so bad about myself that I figured my children were better off without me,
but when they ran to me during an unexpected visit, I realized they still loved me and needed me . . . and I
needed them. I stopped feeling sorry for myself, and began the task of getting back home to my children.”
 Lynn Burke
Lynn’s insightful and inspiring words set the tone for our annual Hats Off to the Kids! Celebration on
November 28. Surrounded by her four children and her granddaughter, Lynn told more than 100 people
about her experience – her choices and circumstances that resulted in prison time, her efforts to parent from
prison and ensure her children’s well-being, and her work to reconnect with them and restart her life once
she was released.
(continued on page 2)
Our Children’s Place
Master of Ceremonies Rose Hoban encouraged
lively bidding on numerous silent auction items,
including Dean Smith and Roy Williams signed
basketballs, a Clyde Jones “critter,” handcrafted
jewelry, and gift certificates.
Kathleen and Todd Shapley-Quinn
Katie Wakeford
Chick and Jim White
Corporate Champions for Children
Blackman & Sloop, CPAs, PA
The Carolina Inn
Yarns, etc…
Guests enjoyed the delicious desserts served by
the Carolina Inn, admired and made donations
for the many items handcrafted by women at the
North Carolina Correctional Institution for
Women and by Annamarie Faust Streilein (one of
the many amazing supporters of Our Children’s
Place), and celebrated the work being done to
create a better life for young children and their
incarcerated mothers.
Silent Auction Donors *
Mary and Mike Andrews
Joyce Baird
The Ballet School of Chapel Hill
Jenn Barr and John Birkholz
The Carolina Inn
Crook’s Corner
db sutton & co.
Dina Porter
Kim Hoke
Clyde Jones
Rena McCall
Janet Place
Annamarie Faust Streilein
Swedish Women’s Educational Association-NC
(SWEA-NC)
The Swell Doll Shop
Pam Swinney
Patti Thorp
Daryl Farrington Walker
Amy Ward
Gail Wood
Planning committee co-chairs Mary Andrews and
Chick White pulled the winning raffle ticket for
two tickets to a UNC men’s basketball game.
We owe a big “thank you” to a number of
individuals and organizations who worked to
make the event a success and a reminder of why
Our Children’s Place is needed in our community.
Circle of Caring Sponsors
Mary and Mike Andrews
Gretchen and Arthur Aylsworth
Karen Chapple and Steve Bower
Dorothy Cilenti in memory of Jim Griffin
Alice Dietz
Shirley Drechsel
Warren Dukes
Jen and John Hovendon
Carolyn and Lynn Ikenberry
Ellie Kinnaird
Ernest and Eunice Kraybill
Beth McAllister
Mary Norris Preyer Oglesby and Patrick Oglesby
Meg Scott Phipps
Rich Rosen and Rebecca Slifkin
Sarah and Rob Shapard
* If you were the silent auction winner of an enamel
earrings jewelry-making session with Pam Swinney
and have not been able to reach her, please call (919843-2670) or e-mail ([email protected]) us
for her contact information.
Special Thanks
Rose Hoban, Master of Ceremonies
Lynn Burke, guest speaker
Olivia Griffin, OG Photography
Vicki Johnson, invitation designer
Ellie Kinnard, long-time supporter
The Carolina Inn
Circle of Compassion Sponsors
Jean and Philip Anoff
Anonymous
Kim and Tim Hoke
Florence Peacock
(2)
Our Children’s Place
Event Planning Committee
Mary Andrews, Co-Chair
Kim Hoke
Melissa Radcliff
Annamarie Faust Streilein
Pam Swinney
Chick White, Co-Chair
Learn more about Kristen in our next newsletter.
Last fall we also welcomed two UNC KenanFlagler Business School Board Fellows (nonvoting Board members), Julie Hocker and Michael
Ives, both first-year Master of Business
Administration (MBA) students. They’ll be with
us through the end of the academic year. The
Board Fellows program provides qualified
students with an opportunity to work with local
non-profit organizations.
Welcome!
Since last summer we’ve welcomed three new
Board members: Warren Dukes, Lester
Laminack, and Kristen Smith.
Before going to business school, Julie was the lead
strategist for the National Mentoring Children of
Prisoners Program, run out of the US Department
of Health and Human Services (HHS) in
Washington, DC. While there she worked
alongside more than 320 non-profits nationwide
that serve children of the incarcerated. This
summer, Julie will complete her business school
internship in investment management with
Vanguard in Charlotte.
Warren is Chair and Assistant Professor in the
Criminal Justice Program at Saint Augustine’s
College in Raleigh. He holds degrees in criminal
justice from North Carolina Central University
and Michigan State University. His research has
focused on Hurricane Katrina case studies,
quality of life factors in corrections officers,
incarceration trends and practices, profiling,
police use of force, and the North Carolina Racial
Justice Act. Warren has worked as a corrections
officer with the North Carolina Department of
Correction and as a research associate with the
North Carolina Justice Academy to study police
use of force practices. He is a member of several
criminal justice associations.
Prior to business school, Michael was a tax
accountant with PricewaterhouseCoopers in
Charlotte, NC. This summer, he will be interning
with the equity research group at Credit Suisse in
New York. He chose Our Children’s Place due in
part to his experience with Summit House in
Charlotte, where he had done volunteer work
through his employer.
Lester is Professor Emeritus in the Department of
Birth-Kindergarten, Elementary and Middle
Grades Education at Western Carolina University
in Cullowhee, NC. Author of numerous academic
publications and books, including five for
children, Lester consults with schools throughout
the US. He is an active member of the National
Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) and
served as co-editor of Primary Voices and editor of
the children’s book review department of
Language Arts, both NCTE journals. He is a former
member of several educational boards, including
the North Carolina Association for the Education
of Young Children, and served as the Basic
Reading Consultant to Literacy Volunteers of
America.
We’re glad to have them as part of our team!
From Mary’s Pen
Every fall Our Children’s Place participates in
numerous alternative holiday markets at churches
and other locations in our community. We take
bins and bins of hats, scarves, baby outfits and,
(3)
Our Children’s Place
blankets that women prisoners at the North
Carolina Correctional Institution for Women
(NCCIW) in Raleigh have made out of donated
yarn. The women have no patterns or instructions
and they use what they have to turn out the most
interesting items. They help each other learn new
crochet and knitting skills and come up with
some fine work that we love to show off.
The recession has hit everywhere and it has had
an impact on us. I’m pleased to write that we are
still moving forward with our vision and continue
to be so thankful for all of your help and support.
Over the years I have set up at several different
sites and have really enjoyed seeing the reactions
that people have with all the different items.
When I talk to people about Our Children’s Place
and the vision that we have for helping
incarcerated women and their children, they get
excited. Children get especially excited and try on
numerous hats before choosing their favorite for
themselves, their best friend or a relative. People
feel a lot of compassion and they want to know
more and they want to know how they can help.
They are always happy to support the program
and get a few hats and other items for their
friends and loved ones.
Sharing Their Time and Talents
Mary Stowe
Chair, Board of Directors
Considering how busy people’s schedules are, we
are always so pleased when someone steps
forward and says, “How can I help?”
We are grateful for a number of volunteers who
helped us this fall:
There is one generous supporter who calls me
every year for hats that she donates to the babies
in the intensive care unit at the UNC Children’s
Hospital and for adult cancer patients.
The work these women prisoners do touches
many lives through our H.A.T.S. (Handcrafted
and Totally Special) program. Most of the women
are mothers and have limited contact with their
children, if at all. According to the Bureau of
Justice Statistics the percentage of mothers in
federal and state prisons increased 122% between
1991 and 2007. The number of children with
mothers in prison more than doubled during that
time. Few things are more devastating to children
than being separated from their mother. While
incarceration is a relatively rare cause of
separation, single mothers are the fastest growing
segment of the US prison population.

The Chapel Hill High School Green Tigers, led
by their teacher, Michael Irwin, and Rachel
Valentine, who sorted hats and tied ribbons
on them one Saturday morning in preparation
for the alternative holiday markets

Christy Smith and Kate Underhill who helped
hand address envelopes for our Hats Off to
the Kids! Celebration

Hannah Friedman who volunteered the day
of our Hats Off! event - helped with set up
and clean up, provided technical assistance
for the DVD and projector, and jumped in
where needed

Rachel Valentine who helped staff our hats
table at the St. Thomas More Christmas
Holiday Shoppe and Craft and Art Show on a
cold and snowy Saturday afternoon.
Recommended Reading
Here are some materials that Board and staff
members have read to learn more about the issue
of young children and their incarcerated mothers.
The children of incarcerated parents are suffering.
Everyone affiliated with Our Children’s Place is
dedicated to making a difference in a child’s life.
(4)
Our Children’s Place
Childhood, Disrupted: Understanding the Features
and Effects of Maternal Incarceration, Volunteers
of America report, http://www.voa.org/
Childhood-Disrupted-Report
Office of Extension, Engagement and Economic
Development. The award celebrates universitycommunity partnerships that demonstrate
excellence in collaborative democratic strategies.
Our Children’s Place received a “gold star”
plaque in recognition of its participation in this
innovative project.
Children of Incarcerated Parents - A Handbook for
Researchers and Practitioners edited by J. Mark
Eddy and Julie Poehlmann
Children on the Outside: Voicing the Pain and Human
Costs of Parental Incarceration, Patricia Allard and
Judith Green; http://www.justicestrategies.org/
sites/default/files/publications/JS-COIP-1-1311.pdf
The Season of Hats
Life on the Outside: The Prison Odyssey of Elaine
Bartlett by Jennifer Gonnerman
We enjoyed another successful hats “season” with
opportunities to display hats and other handcrafted materials and information about Our
Children’s Place at various locations throughout
the fall and into the winter.
Offending Women: Power, Punishment, and the
Regulation of Desire by Lynne A. Haney
Thank you to the following faith communities for
hosting us at their alternative holiday markets:
Women Behind Bars: The Crisis of Women in the U.S.
Prison System – by Silja J.A. Talvi
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Our Children’s Place Earns a Gold Star!
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Chapel of the Cross, Chapel Hill
First Presbyterian Church, Durham
Immaculate Conception Advent Alternative
Gift Fair, Durham
St. James Episcopal Church’s Gifts of Hope
alternative give fair, Hendersonville
St. Thomas More Christmas Holiday Shoppe
and Craft and Art Show, Chapel Hill
United Church Alternative Gift Market,
Chapel Hill
Thank you also to our community supporters:
As some of you may remember, in 2007 Our
Children’s Place partnered with the Home
Environments Design Initiative (HEDI) at the NC
State University School of Architecture to develop
a 3-D model of Deerfield Cottage, the building in
Butner, NC, once intended to be our future home.
The project provided Our Children’s Place with a
handsome model, used for frequent awareness
and fundraising events, and the young designers
benefited from the opportunity to learn more
about the workings and needs of non-profits such
as Our Children’s Place. The work of HEDI and
all its community partners recently received the
2010 Opal Mann Green Award from the NC State

Carrboro Massage Therapy for hosting us at
their holiday craft event

Dee Dee Lavinder, owner of The Red Hen
(Carrboro), and Melissa Russell, owner of
Glee Kids (Chapel Hill) for letting us set up
hat displays for their customers.
If you know of other places where we could
display the hats, please call us at (919) 843-2670.
(5)
Our Children’s Place
A big “THANK YOU!” goes out to the following individuals and organization for their support
donated from July 1, 2010 through December 31, 2010. *
Hats Off to the Kids!
Celebration
Charles Anderson and Nancy
Easterling
Sarah Andrews
Mary and Mike Andrews
Gretchen and Art Aylsworth
Joyce Baird and Jack
Middleton
The Ballet School of Chapel
Hill
Jenn Barr and John Birkholz
Patricia Barron
Ginny and Don Berg
Rita Berman and Jessica
Berman Booker
Michael and Melissa Bishop
Georgia Bizios
Mark and Natalie Breakfield
Irene and Robert Briggaman
Richard Brown and Mary
Wakeford
Lynn Burke
Mary Bushnell
Joan Caffrey
Carol Candler and Andy
Dobelstein
The Carolina Inn
Pam Chance
Karen Chapple and Steve
Bower
Dorothy Cilenti in memory of
Jim Griffin
Barbara Cilenti
Randolph Cloud
Rose and Joseph Colagiovanni
Kay Cooper
Marguerite and Francis Coyle
Crook’s Corner
Asta Crowe
Janet Csarny
Deb Cunningham
d.b. sutton & co.
Channing Der and Kathy
Yasui-Der
Pat DeTitta
Leah Devlin
Alice Dietz
Dina Porter
Donna Dolan
Shirley Drechsel
Warren Dukes
Connie Eble
Rosmarie and Lucien Faust
Annamarie Faust Streilein
Betsy Fenhagen
Al and Bets Field
Jill and Stephen Friedman
Christine Gellings
Hazel Gibbs
Olivia Griffin
Nancy and Norman
Gustaveson
Rebecca High
Debbie Hill
Rose Hoban
Kim and Tim Hoke
Trevor and Christine Hoke
Beverly Holt
Mark Hollins and Eleanor
Leung-Hollins
Jennifer and John Hovendon
Rosemary Hutchinson
Carolyn and Lynn Ikenberry
Verla Insko
Ronnie and George Jackson
Fatimah Jackson
Valerie Ann Johnson
Clyde Jones
Zachary Kelleher
Betty Kenan
Ellie Kinnaird
Paul Kinnaird
Eunice and Ernest Kraybill
Caroline and Paul Lindsay
Rita Anita Linger
(6)
Ashley Lucas
Livy and Dick Ludington
Julia Mack
Beth McAllister
David McCall and Rena
Norwood
Marilyn and Charles
McNamara
Alexa Mckerrow
Erin and Matt Miller
Mary Norris Pryer Oglesby
and Patrick Oglesby
Maura O’Donoghue
Mary Paterson
Florence and James Peacock
Kathryn Peck
Stanley Peele
Ruth Petersen and Beat Steiner
Jalean and Jessie Petricka
Jean and Robert Phay
Meg Scott Phipps and Robert
Phipps
Janet Place
Dan Pollitt and Linda Weisel
Jennifer Potts
Peg and Theodore Pratt
Mary Putman
Leslie Quick
Diane and William Race
Nancy and Randall Raskin
Geri and Ed Rayford
Waltraud and Robert Reeber
Rosalind Rodman
Rich Rosen and Rebecca
Slifkin
Schoenstadt Family
Foundation
Gita Schonfield and Marvin
Schwartz
Sarah and Rob Shapard
Kathleen and Todd ShapleyQuinn
Lotta Sjoelin
Our Children’s Place
Cassie Smith
Dorothy and David Smith
Kristen Smith
Sarah Stewart
Anne and Harry Stowe
Mary Stowe
Swedish Women’s Educational
Association (SWEA-NC)
The Swell Doll Shop
Pam and John Swinney
Anne Wall Thomas
Patti and Holden Thorp
Elizabeth Tucker
Tracy Turner
Carolyn Van Sant
Katie Wakeford and Gregg
Cusick
Paul Wakeford
Daryl Walker
Amy Ward
Yasmine and James White
Chick and Jim White
Phyllis and Donald Williams
Gail Wood
Yarns Etc. . .
Pam and John Zornick
Alternative Markets
and H.A.T.S.
Daniel Amoni and Vinci Daro
Rosemarie and Dean Baker
Terry Banfich
Virginia and George Brendlen
Benjamin Buehrer and Tracey
Moore
Dorothy Cilenti
Ellen and Russell Cole
Deborah and Brian Collins
Barbara Day
Emma Dempsey
Martha and David Dill
Kirstin and Rob Frescholn
Ashley Frost and Tioga
Honigmann
Rebecca and Paul Haley
Linda Kuty
Louanne Long
Robert Long and Anne
Mandeville-Long
Dawn and Troy Phillips
Anna and Christopher Prall
Carol Prokop and Woodrow
Setzer
Joann and Tom Quigley
Margaret Rhee
Kas and Rob Sielken
Amy Leigh Rochester
Robert Russell and Rachel
Tanksley-Russell
Mary Stowe
Shelley Summerlin-Long
Ann and David Thomas
Melissa Whitmire
Janice and Stafford Wing
Yarns Etc. . .
Annual Appeal
Amelia and Michael Collins
Al Deitch and Alice Scher
Bobette Eckland and Richard
Kamens
Sherry and David Heuser
Jane Hewitt in honor of Kim
Hoke
Kristine O’Keefe
Mama Dip’s Properties
James McEntire
Laura Moore
Connie and Steve Mullinix
Jill and John Paul
Robert Pryor and Lucy Scott
Pryor in honor of Kathleen
and Todd Shapley-Quinn
Margaret and Philip Rees
Audrey Evarts
GoodSearch
Mary G. and John Hammond
IBM Employee Charitable
Contributions
Ellen Johnson
George Lensing
Kathryne Lockhart
Renee Lord
Anne Mwangi
Ann and William F. Powers
Kathleen and Todd ShapleyQuinn in honor of Mary
Stowe
Alexandra Forter Sirota and
the North Carolina Justice
Center in honor of Dr.
Stephen Jackson
Sarah Stewart in honor of Geri
Rayford
Ann Wall Thomas
Tracy Turner
Inkind Donations
(yarn, hats, knitting and
crocheting supplies)
Joanne Chabot
Rose Colagiovanni
Brigette Davis
Shirley Drechsel
Cathy Elmore
Linda Jordan
Rose Medina
United Methodist Women at
Grace United Methodist
Church, Wilmington
Individuals and
Organizations
The Ballet School of Chapel
Hill
Jeffrey Chambers
The Chapel of the Cross
Church of Reconciliation
Laura and Jeffrey Clark
Amelia and Michael Collins
Julia and Robert Dermody
(7)
* We’ve worked hard to create
accurate lists and apologize in
advance for any errors. Please
contact us at (919) 843-2670 with
corrections.
Our Children’s Place
Warren Dukes, MS
Kim Hoke, MEd., Past Chair/President
Jen Hovendon, MD
Valerie Johnson, Ph.D.
Lester Laminack, Ed. D.
Meg Scott Phipps, JD, LLM
Kristen C. Smith
Mary Stowe, Chair/President
Katie Wakeford, M.Arch., Secretary
Sister Helen Prejean, CSJ, Honorary Board Member
Board Member Tapped for State Service
Congratulations to Board member Valerie Ann
Johnson who was appointed to the North
Carolina Council for Women in the fall of 2010 for
a two-year term. The Council was created by
statute under the Department of Administration;
its purpose is to advise the Governor, state
departments, and the legislature concerning the
education and employment of women in North
Carolina. It also oversees the administration of the
Displaced Homemakers assistance program.
Advisory Board
Jean Anoff
Dwain Coleman
Leah Devlin
Shirley Drechsel
Sid Eagles
Jaki Shelton Green
Joseph Jordan
Some Easy Ways to Support OCP
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Facebook Causes Birthday Wish.
http://birthdays.causes.com/?bws=causes_header
GoodSearch - http://www.goodsearch.com/
www.justgive.org
Prue Meehan
Florence Peacock
Linda Perry
Herbert (Bert) B. Peterson
George Reed
James (Jim) K. Roberson
Patti Thorp
How to Reach Us
Going Green
www.ourchildrensplace.com
P.O. Box 1086, Chapel Hill, NC 27514
(919) 843-2670 – Telephone
(919) 962-3725 - Fax (please call first)
Facebook - http://apps.facebook.com/causes/
182305?m=a9753488
If you received this newsletter in the mail and
would like to receive it via e-mail instead, please
let us know ([email protected]). We
also post our newsletters on our website,
www.ourchildrenplace.com. Thank you for
helping us take a little green step!
And speaking of “green” . . . please consider
donating your used printer toner cartridges to us.
We will recycle them at Staples and earn points
for future purchases. If you’re interested, please
call us at (919) 843-2670 or send us an e-mail
([email protected]).
Melissa Radcliff, Executive Director
[email protected]
Carolynn Crowder, LCAS, P-LCSW
Program Director, [email protected]
Jenn Barr, Administrative Coordinator
[email protected]
Board of Directors
Our Children’s Place (OCP) is creating a residential facility which will
allow North Carolina infants and preschoolers to live with their mothers
while the women serve out their sentences for non-violent offenses. OCP is
designed to break the intergenerational cycle of crime, poverty, substance
abuse, and family violence. It will empower the children with the help of
their mothers to enhance their cognitive, social, physical, and emotional
development.
(3/15/11)
Mary Andrews, MEd.
Mark Breakfield, CPA, Treasurer
Karen Chapple, MA, CCJP
Dorothy Cilenti, DrPH, MSW, Vice Chair/Chair-Elect
(8)