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Ever heard of a book club in a prison?

March 15th, 2012 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on Ever heard of a book club in a prison?)

Organizer and Anglican priest Rev. Carol Finlay is pioneering the Canadian version of a successful U.K.-based model

In 2009 Carol Finlay visited a medium security penitentiary in Kingston, Ontario, and told a small gathering of inmates that she had an idea: she wanted to start a monthly book club there. To her surprise, the men indicated that they would like to start immediately.

Since that time, a number of similar clubs have sprung up, mostly across Ontario. The book clubs promote literacy, self-awareness, and confidence.

We will hear from Carol Finlay, the executive director of Book Clubs for Inmates, and with Kevin Pinto, who was starting his life again outside of prison, in a rebroadcast from March 2012.

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Daniel Griffin explores the troubled family

February 24th, 2012 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on Daniel Griffin explores the troubled family)

Stories about artists, lovers, brothers and strangers probe love, loss, and the family ties that bind people

Daniel Griffin’s debut collection of short stories, “Stopping for Strangers”, covers birth, death and all the big moments in between. Dark and yet uplifting, his stories take us to the heart of what matters in the tangled lives of people on the edge of crisis. The stories are about family and family relationships—topics Daniel loves to write about. “They’re the closest people to us in the world,” he told the Victoria Times Colonist. (more…)

Matt Dunae on how hip hop saved him

February 16th, 2012 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on Matt Dunae on how hip hop saved him)

Dedicated, passionate hip-hop artist learned to conquer his demons of addiction and poverty and shine through with music

Hip-hop artist Matt Dunae—who performs as SirReal—has credited his involvement with music for helping him to overcome the demons of addiction and poverty. He has also shared his experiences with loss (his older brother, Nick, died by suicide in 2007) through music and by performing at the Soles Remembering Souls event in Nanaimo. Sirreal boldly laces his lyrics with the “die-hard truths of reality and its consequences”, whether they be positive or negative. And he exemplifies strength and resilience with his devotion to family and community in both his actions and his lyrics. (more…)

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Dream analysis for the everyday dreamer

January 26th, 2012 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on Dream analysis for the everyday dreamer)

C.G. Jung viewed dreams as offering a snapshot of our current mental condition, alerting us to problem areas

Carl Gustav Jung was a psychiatrist and the founder of analytical psychology. He is considered the first modern psychiatrist to view the human psyche as “by nature religious” and to make it the focus of exploration. Jung emphasized the individuation of a person. The process might be described as being all that we can be by uncovering the hidden parts of our personality through dreams, active imagination and self-observation.

A Nanaimo group interested in Jung’s approach to dream interpretation will hold a public lecture on the evening of Saturday February 4, 2012. (more…)

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Bible school child abuse alleged

November 24th, 2011 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on Bible school child abuse alleged)

Linda Fossen says that she, and over eighty other children, suffered extreme abuse at Canada’s oldest Bible school

Linda Fossen, a former student at the Prairie Bible Institute near Three Hills, Alberta, has alleged that she and dozens of other children were abused by PBI staff from the 1950s to as recently as five years ago. The explosive claim made headlines in Canada and abroad.

Linda first wrote about her experiences of abuse and recovery in a book called “Out of the Miry Clay” in 2008 and she shares her past and present experiences online. She reports that the victims of the abuses are too terrified to speak out about them. Linda also writes that some of the people who support the Bible college have lashed out against her, praying against her as a so-called “enemy of God”. Linda has established an on-line petition related to the allegations. (more…)

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Stories from the frontlines

November 10th, 2011 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on Stories from the frontlines)

Michael Christie’s powerful debut collection is inspired by his experiences working with people on the DTES

The Beggar’s Garden, Michael Christie’s debut collection of nine linked stories, is dazzling, writes reviewer Candace Fertile in The Quill and Quire.

“Drawing on his experience working in a homeless shelter in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, Christie explores the intense humanity of people living on the margins of society. His characters include addicts, homeless people, hospital patients, and those who interact with the city’s outcasts.” (more…)

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