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Lucy Leu

It has been my privilege to be invited by those in prison to share the Nonviolent Communication and mindfulness teachings that have transformed my life.  Inspired by the overwhelming response of workshop participants who have benefited in the past three years, I have dedicated my life to this work and to co-creating an organization that will make these trainings available to all those who are touched by our prison system: inmates and families, officers and staff, returnees and the communities to which they are released.

Growing up bi-lingual and bicultural on Taiwan, I took an early interest in languages and the bridging of cultures.  I entered the fields of teaching and counseling.  In 1986, I began practicing Insight Meditation after which my teaching career turned towards peace education.  I am a certified trainer of the international nonprofit Center for Nonviolent Communication (CNVC).  I served on the CNVC board and founded the regional center—Puget Sound Network for Compassionate Communication (PSNCC).  I am married, have two (nearly adult) children, and now have the opportunity to tend to my elders for which I am grateful.

Education and Work Background

BA, French Language and Literature, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, PA. 

MA, Feminist Studies, Goddard-Cambridge Graduate School for Social Change, Cambridge, MA. 

M.Ed, Harvard University School of Education, Cambridge, MA. 
Teaching Experience: International Education Center (Tokyo, Japan), University of Massachusetts (harbor Campus, Boston, MA)

Social Work Experience: Youth services administration and counseling (Somerville, MA)

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Rusty Thomas

I entered prison in 1984.  In 1986, while watching an episode of Oprah exposing the impact of violent crimes on victims and their families, my heart cracked open and I understood for the first time the suffering that my own actions had created in the world.  This began my quest for solutions to violence.  For the next 14 years in prison, I participated in every class or workshop that emphasized the impact of violence on others and on oneself.

In 1994, I attended my first Alternatives to Violence Project (AVP) workshop which emphasized practical skills to resolving conflict and building peaceful community.  After training to become a facilitator, I began leading three-day AVP workshops in 1995.

I attribute the greatest growth in my path of nonviolence to my encounter with Nonviolent Communication.  I had the opportunity to receive training in person from NVC founder, Dr. Marshall B. Rosenberg, in 1998.  Since then, I have attended every NVC event to which I have had access; I served as prison coordinator for the NVC program in two prisons, led NVC practice groups and co facilitated over twenty workshops while incarcerated.

I was introduced to Insight Meditation in 1998, after which I began a daily practice.  I joined an outside meditation community as a member in abstentia, and completed a 12-month taped meditation course.  The combination of Nonviolent Communication and Insight Meditation has had a profound impact on me; my desire is to dedicate my life to peace within myself and peace for the community.

Education and Work Background

Between 1986 and 1994,  I received a GED and an AA degree in General Studies.  I have a two-year degree in drafting and worked as a drafting assistant.

In prison, I assisted with a Drug and Alcohol/Criminal Behavior Change group.  I worked as Chapel Clerk, organized a Vipassana Sangha prison meditation group, and served as coordinator of a Man-to-Man Program as well as of the NVC programs at the Minimum Security Unit and the Twin Rivers Unit of the Monroe Correctional Complex.

Since my release from Prison in November 2001, I have had the opportunity to be involved in a year-long training from an internationally known Nonviolent Communication Trainer, Lucy Leu.  This training has enhanced my ability to stay connected to the heart even under adverse conditions.  Following the year long training, I worked on the Freedom Project Core Team, and conducted many community Nonviolent Communication workshops and facilitated a practice group until 2003.

The years between 2003 and 2005, I was a student at Antioch University in Seattle, Washington.  I now have a Bachelor degree in Liberal Arts with a concentration in psychology and spirituality.  In addition, I worked as a volunteer at the Everett Community Justice Center for six months teaching NVC and Mindfulness to people returning to the community from the penitentiaries.