The fluorescent lights in the rec room are off. Twenty women lie on thin blue mats under the warm light from the floor lamps yoga instructor Laura Cassidy brought in.
Every Monday, Cassidy guides inmates through poses that help ground them and get in touch with what they may be feeling - body and mind. It’s part of “Mindful Mondays,” a component of the Franklin County Regional Jail’s SOAR program, which provides active recovery support and education intended to prevent relapse and recidivism.
Franklin County Jailer Tracy Hopper says, while there are men’s SOAR programs in Marion, Grant, and Fulton counties, this one is the first to serve women. Participants take classes and work jobs designed to give them skills they can take beyond the walls of the jail.
“The girls in the purple t-shirts, they can go out in the community and work or work in the grounds here,” said Hopper.
To qualify for SOAR, participants must first take a sixteen-week substance abuse program, (SAP). Hopper implemented the SAP and SOAR programs at the FCRJ last year, only a few months after being elected as jailer.
“It’s a revolving door back there,” said Hopper. “If we start now with recovery, then we start that detox process when they come through the door, get them hooked up with programs inside here, and they can get trauma [therapy], they can get parenting classes. We have to make sure that this happens inside.”
Hopper said it was Cassidy who approached her with the idea of offering yoga for the inmates. Cassidy says she was inspired by initiatives like the Prison Yoga Project and wanted to create something that people in detention can use to manage stress and discomfort, both within the jail and outside of it.
“For some people, it's spiritual, said Cassidy. “For other people, it's a great stretch. For other people, it's slowing down your breathing. The awesome thing about yoga is it can be anything for anyone.”
One woman taking the yoga class said having it on Monday helped prepare her for the rest of the week. Another, wearing a brace on her leg, said the practice helps her get in tune with her body, and helps her explore where she may need to stretch or whether she’s feeling tension or pain.
“It’s made a huge difference in my mindset and getting myself up and going,” she said. “It's been great. You're able to listen to yourself and know where your limits are.”
Participants in the SAP and SOAR programs are in class for seven hours a day.
“This is the most useful class that we have,” said a participant. “We're constantly on the go. We're always doing classes and writing papers, but this is time to just let go and find ourselves.”
As the class wound down, Cassidy guided the group through stretches. The women reach “to the ends of the earth,” then make themselves small again, bringing their awareness back to the boundaries of their bodies.
“I always think about the context of the room and the humans that I'm with,” said Cassidy. “To observe the difference between feeling confined and small to taking up space and feeling like you have a right to take up space is important.”
Attendance in Cassidy’s yoga class has dropped from last week - but that’s a good thing. The students who left have graduated the SOAR program and are back in their communities.
“I see these women and I see myself,” said Cassidy. “I see my mom. I see my daughter. I see all of us. There's something about coming on the mat where you let go of yesterday, you let go of what's coming tomorrow, and you're just you. You're just human in that moment.”
“We’re all in this together,” agreed Tracy. “We have to be. This is our community. This is where we live. This is where I raised my children and now my grandchildren. We always want to put something out better than what came through that back door.”
Cassidy offers yoga classes at Undisputed Fitness in Frankfort Wednesday evenings at 7. Graduates of the jail’s SOAR program are invited to attend for free.