WHITBY FREE PRESS, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 30, 1981, PAGE 5 CanDecide help with decisions i jail By MICHAEL KNELL Free Press Staff Most people make an uncountable number of decisions each day. In fact, the ability to make decisions is something that most of us take for granted. Most of us even assume that others have the ability to make deci- sions, and in most cases, the assumption is correct. But what happens if a wrong decision is made? For some, it means spending time behind bars. Experts say that the ability to make deci- sions is a learned res- ponse and for inmates at the Whitby Jail there is an opportunity for then to learn how they make decisions and to recog- nize the decision- making process. A group of volunteers from the community have formed an organi- zation and developed a program called Can- Decide for those men and women incarcerat- ed at the local lock-up. According to Can- Decide's co-ordinator, Winston Ceeney, the purpose of the program is to help inmates strengthen and improve their decision-making abilities. "We teach inmates a whole variety of things, but the heart of it is to increase their decision making abilities," he says. "It is an exploration of the mind," he con- tinues adding that those who volunteer to enter the eight-week program examine such concepts as stereotyping, self- image, self-respect and the role that they can play in the community. The program was originally started in Parish Prison, New Orleans, some 20 years ago by an inmate named Milton Burlglas who went on to become a medical doctor, a clergyman, to earn a Master of Science de- gree and an appoint- ment as a full professor at the prestigious Har- vard University. Ceeney says Burlglas started the program when he witnessed the murder of a 17-year-old boy while behind bars. The Whitby Jail is the only penal institu- tion in Canada known to have such a program and has existed there since 1979. CanDecide, which joyful. For one inmate the writer spoke to, Can- Decide has made a positive impact on his outlook and his life. "The course has taught me to accept reality," Clint (we can't use his surname) says. "It has taught me to get things figures out when I thought there was no answer to them." . Clint is 29-years-old He has been reman- ded for the past 10 mon- ths and has been sent to the Clarke Institute in Toronto for psychologi- cal testing. Clint, who has been labelled a drug addict, is enthusiastic about CanDecide. "It showed me how to stop and look at what the alternatives are in a situation." Another enthusiastic supporter of the pro- Jail is the only institu- tion in the province to have a volunteer co- ordinator as a paid member of staff and is one of the few even to have volunteers.) Gray describes the Victoria Street facility as "a sorting station" for prisoners awaiting trial or transfer to other institutions, namely penitentiary. She says that many of the 120 male and female Louise Stuart (left) and Winston Ceeney (right) of CanDecide are seen here talking to two inmates at the Whitby Jail. The program has been "described as an exploration of the mind" and is designed to help in- mates make decisions about their lives and lifestyles. Provincial law prevents the showing of the inmates' faces in the photograph. has just completed its eighth cycle, meets on the third floor of the facility in a room that can only be described as a cage about 50 feet long and 15 feet wide. Along one wall is a group of five, current- ly unused, cels whose hard bunkbeds and un- private commodes stare out at the unaccustomed visitor. While the room may look depressing with its dirty yellow and black painted bars and gray walls the atmosphere of the evening's session is alive, vibrant and even and is the father of three sons and is currently facing a charge of first degree murder. inmates that the jail averagely holds may get to see a social worker who will classify them for help when they get to a provincial or federal penitentiary. However, many of them may not get the help they need and that is where CanDecide can help. The session, in which the writer wanted to ob- serve but ended up par- ticipating in, starts with everyone introducing themselves. This session, held two weeks ago, dealt with the limitations one faces CONT'D ON PG. 13 gram is Pam Gray, the jail's volunteer co- ordinator. In fact, the Whitby TYPWRTES Renal£ al s & seric 408Dunao. tret* est 294 e.. oth ve ehtyToot 666113 es, 130 e98 e58 BRIAN DEEGAN DENTURE THERAPY CLINIC HARWOOD AVENUE SOUTH AJAX, ONTARIO 683-6074 g M-- mi