By Marina Fuhrman

The tattoo program has exciting news! Both apprentices received their temporary licenses and started tattooing real skin! Initially, they will be practicing on themselves and each other, and with more experience will start taking clients.

Some thoughts from our apprentices:

Daniel G.

“I am truly honored to be a part of this great program! I've learned so much in just these few short months than I have in many of the years I have been incarcerated. I've learned to expand my horizons as an artist and strive to always be better then I was. I've learned to look past the barriers between people and be more open to communications and dialogs both on a professional level and on a more personal one. I've learned to respect my own body and the bodies of others by not tattooing outside of a professional area without proper procedures and knowledge because it is dangerous. I've learned that finding one's purpose in life, true purpose for the self, is a key in rehabilitation. I am so thankful to those who helped build and support this program! You all have given me a sense of hope and direction for my future. I am truly excited to give back and contribute with the best of my ability both in my prison community now and my outside community one day. Lastly my thanks and gratitude go to Justin for his efforts. Its always inspiring to see people actually care".

Courtney O.

“My experience in the Tattoo program has been educational, inspiring and life changing. Over the past few months, I have had the privilege to learn about the history of tattooing, the tattoo industry and becoming a tattoo artist. We have studied topics such as bloodborne pathogens/cross contamination procedures, artistic growth, and professionalism to name a few; But this program has not been just about tattooing. It has also been about integrity, respect, and honesty. Throughout these past few months, this program has given me hope, purpose and a positive outlook on life; as well as positively effecting my mental health. I hope to one day be able to have an impact on people through a program such as this one and change someone's life for the better. Thanks to Justin (my mentor) I have also learned the importance of having true passion and dedication for the things you want to achieve in life. No matter how small or how big the challenge is, if you start it FINISH IT. Because there is always something to learn when facing a challenge. Overall, I want to thank Justin for believing in me and giving me this unreal opportunity to be involved with the program. I also want to thank every single person that had a hand in creating this program and entrusting us (inmates) to make it successful".

By Lieutenant Cory Felda

I need to give a shout out and acknowledge the amazing work being done by WOOC Sgt. Bhattacharyya and WOOC Sgt. Scheuerman in the Monahan unit at MCF-Shakopee.

This is the first time as a WOOC Sergeant for both of them, and they took over the 2nd and 3rd Watch Sergeants spots in the biggest unit in the facility. This unit is no easy task to manage; their leadership skills, work ethic, and professional integrity has really been brought to the surface with this assignment, and I am so proud of them for taking this on and succeeding.

I have received numerous emails from both security and non-security staff regarding how well they're running the unit, and I couldn't agree with them more. You both rock!!

By Kevin Ormsby

During first watch, which can be particularly demanding, our team at Stillwater has consistently demonstrated a strong commitment to providing essential services to our facility. This includes delivering bottled water to inmates, assisting with feeding units, and fulfilling various other requests from the facility.

Despite limited staff and challenging circumstances, first watch officers have efficiently handled these tasks without hesitation, ensuring the well-being of our population.

By Melissa Varner

We’d like to give a Shout Out to Karen Hagen for taking time to schedule and facilitate “meet and greets” with the Lino Lakes Leader Dogs, IPs in the Youthful Offender Program and various IP Leader Dog handlers.

From the outside this may simply look like a time that is allowing a YO to meet, pet, hang out with a dog - when in reality there is so much more happening. As staff we get to hear conversations between IP handlers and YOs on life lessons, “doing time”, life experiences, values, goals and much more.

This is something Karen does outside of her CPT 3 duties and the YO committee at Lino Lakes wants to give her a loud shout out and many thanks!

By Ryan Simar

Tovo is an amazing staple of MCF-SCL. He is an upstanding pillar to the DOC, he aids and helps trainees, plus his unique training methods help new people learn and retain knowledge.

By Jo Ann M. Erickson, MCF-Stillwater Facility Education Director

We are pleased to announce an upcoming opportunity for all DOC staff and members of the public to view and purchase art from the Stillwater Art Program.

When:

• Wednesday, March 20 ~ 11:00 am to 3:00 pm
• Thursday, March 21 ~ 7:00 am to 3:30 pm

Where:

• MCF-Stillwater's Warden's House
• 970 Pickett Ave N, Bayport, MN 55003

We encourage everyone to stop in to see the amazing work that our art students have created. If you know of others in the community that would be interested in this event, please let them know that the public is welcome.

All art show items will also be for sale. Check or cash only. Items will be available to the buyer at the time of purchase.

By Jake McLellan

I am pleased to announce Dale Arnold has accepted the Moorhead District Supervisor position.

Dale is coming to us from Tri-County Community Corrections where he has been the Deputy Chief Probation Agent for the past 5 ½ years. Dale started his career with Grand Forks Correctional Center in 2007 as a Correctional Officer and was later accepted at Tri-County Corrections as an Associate Agent in 2008. Dale rose through the ranks as an agent, senior agent and then promoted to Deputy Chief in 2018.

Dale was instrumental in development of the Intensive supervision unit for Tri-County, MITI Coder and trainer for Motivational Interviewing, Carey Guides, Thinking for a Change, and an active Decision Points facilitator. Dale has a strong background implementing new initiatives and has been a leader throughout Minnesota with the State-Wide Training Academy and Evidence Based Practices.

Dale will officially start March 27, 2024. Please help me welcome Dale to the Moorhead District and DOC!!

Dale Arnold

By Tyler Becker

First watch SGT Richard Cap is a outstanding leader and mentor and goes above and beyond to help out the new staff and senior staff with all their questions and concerns.

By Warden William Bolin

Denise has worked in the MN DOC for over 27 years. She began her career as an OAS-I in January 1996. Denise promoted to the OAS-S of Operations in April 2017. She will begin her Exec 2 position effective Wednesday, March 13, 2024. Congratulations Denise!

By Anonymous

Officer Reno started his career in 2019 at MCF-SCL. Officer Reno started his career as a young adult, and it has been great to see Officer Reno develop though the years not only as a person but as an Officer.

Officer Reno works third watch, and you can find him working any post on the watch without any complaints. Officer Reno understands the needs of the facility, and how those needs may demand us to change assignments with little notice. In the times of short notice, Officer Reno has demonstrated the ability to adapt, help, and provide a can-do attitude amongst staff he works with. This demonstration provides a great example for newer security staff to learn flexibility as well as how positive attitude may span to others.

What continues to amaze me is one of the many abilities Officer Reno possesses, the ability to continue learning new things and taking lessons from senior staff. Over the years, it appears that Officer Renos passion for being more knowledgeable and wiser has only grown. And this characteristic that Officer Reno displays is seen by security staff with varying years of service. Officer Reno motivates me to combat complacency, inspires others to challenge themselves and encourages staff to reach out for help.