Note: this link was mistakenly included in a recent newsletter in lieu of the governor’s National Corrections Workers Week proclamation. You can find that proclamation here.
Community religious volunteers serve as a vital bridge between the outside world and youth at MacLaren. While chaplain Sean Page coordinates religious services broadly, religious ministry is delivered by an array of faithful volunteers. Youth approach religious services with everything from curiosity to devotion, and volunteers meet them where they are.
Community volunteers support a MacLaren youth as he undergoes confirmation.
Yet their religious service only tells part of the picture. These individuals provide guidance, perspective, and counsel that ground youth as they navigate a difficult chapter in their lives.
To this task, volunteers dedicate significant time and financial resources. In 2025, 34 volunteers provided over 800 hours of mentorship and religious group support. That momentum has continued into 2026, with 27 volunteers already contributing 351 hours in the year’s first quarter. These individuals also donate thousands of dollars in in-kind contributions: food and drink, worship materials, gas mileage, and more.
Despite theological differences, volunteers share a fundamental desire to support people in need. Buddhist Jonathan Crighton reflected that all people – not just MacLaren youth – seek out religion when they have “a need that is looking to be filled.” Cybele Ceres, an ordained pagan minister, counted MacLaren youth among those in “most need of encouragement” due to the “detrimental experiences” many have in their pasts. Mark Gross, a Catholic volunteer, relishes “the opportunity to do what Jesus asks explicitly” in Matthew 25:31-36.
Volunteering with incarcerated youth requires meeting youth where they are on any given day. Mark Gross “tr[ies] to avoid being in charge of anything,” instead “wait[ing] for [youth] to ask questions”: “It needs to be about them.” While some youth attend groups to deepen their faith or learn something new, others simply seek a mental break or a change of scenery. Buddhist Jonathan Crighton says he’s “not there to talk about Buddhisty things,” but rather to “share in whatever the youth are there for.”
Youth often steer conversations toward universal questions about their past and future. For the faithful, conversations with volunteers may help youth prepare for religious milestones such as Buddhist precepts, baptism, or confirmation. More often, though, discussions move beyond doctrine into practical advice, and youth use their interactions with religious volunteers to test new perspectives and navigate their own identities. “My goal is always to encourage them and to increase their confidence,” Cybele Ceres says.
At a recent volunteer lunch, volunteers stand if they have volunteered at MacLaren longer than five years.
This is possible because volunteers create space for genuine connection. Cybele Ceres models “shar[ing] from the heart” as an entry-point “connecting with them on a human level.” Religious group, she emphasizes, should be “a space of togetherness that feels comfortable,” and she turns to small gestures like pizza and treats to establish a welcoming atmosphere. Similarly, tea and cookies follow Buddhist services, and discussion accompanies these refreshments. Since services mix youth from multiple living units, Jonathan Crighton always makes sure “there are introductions” and youth have an opportunity “to share why we’re there.” “And you know,” he adds, “You showed up. You get points just for that.”
Through these interactions, volunteers become invested in youths’ success. Cybele Ceres finds the youth to be “really a joy to work with,” and Jonathan Crighton draws encouragement and inspiration from his interactions. In partial contrast, Mark Gross expressed a range of emotions about his time with youth. While he “really enjoy[s] the time,” it’s “heartbreaking to witness” youth get themselves into trouble, return after being released, or have their incarceration extended by “bureaucracy issues.” Between the high highs and low lows, Mark feels his time at MacLaren is “extremely spiritually moving.”
Volunteers certainly enable OYA to meet its legal and moral obligation to provide access to an array of religious options for youth, but their impact is so much more. Volunteers bridge the gap to the outside world, reminding youth of a critical reality: they are worth someone’s time, and someone is interested in their future.