One to One

Tearing Down Walls

Prison is all about walls. Most obviously, there’s the real, physical wall. There’s also a psychological wall, the wall that makes inmates "the other," "them," dehumanized and cut off from the community. Being trapped behind that kind of wall makes it very difficult for offenders to succeed at changing their thinking and building a new, productive life when they get out. The AMICUS One to One program is about tearing down that wall.

In the One to One program, inmates visit one to one with trained, same-sex community volunteers in prison visiting rooms. By extending the hand of friendship to an inmate, volunteers help inmates feel cared about, develop trust, and try out new behaviors. Though the gesture is small, it is powerful in helping inmates develop a new lifestyle. Over 8,000 inmates and 4,000 community volunteers have participated in AMICUS programs over the last thirty years. We have seen many offenders leave prison and build new lives: working, supporting families, and even becoming community volunteers.

If you are an inmate who wants to build a new life, we invite you to request an Amicus. If you are a community member who might be willing to become an Amicus (Latin for "friend") volunteer, please contact us. We look forward to hearing from you!

Apply to be a volunteer mentor or a volunteer Amicus in the One to One program by completing the Volunteer Application (Word format) (PDF format) and returning it to the AMICUS office. You will then be contacted by Russel Balenger to arrange for an interview.

Pictures from the Summer Party at the Stillwater Facility visiting room. Volunteers, Staff, Board members, and One to One program participants gathered July 12th 2005 for conversation and refreshments.

AMICUS currently operates 5 distinct programs: One to One, RECONNECT, MEN OF RAFIKI, SISTERS HELPING SISTERS, and RADIUS. AMICUS also participates in other programs held in the correctional facilities, such as TRAC and Stop the Revolving Door. In addition, specially trained AMICUS volunteers visit inmates in segregation and the infirmary at MCF-Oak Park Heights.

For further details about the AMICUS programs, visit our Programs page.

Benefits of having an Amicus friend:

Social contact: just someone to visit you once a month and talk about mutual interests.
Contact with a positive, uplifting, trustworthy person.
Support for the changes you are trying to make in your life.
Someone just to listen to you.
Help as you think through problems, find solutions.
Someone who cares about you, roots for you, and wants you to do well.
More Info

Interested? Follow the following steps:

Call AMICUS to tell us you are interested in One to One.
Talk to AMICUS staff about the program.
Get interviewed by AMICUS staff about your characteristics and interests and what you are looking for in a match.
AMICUS calls with options the fit your criteria, and you choose your match (volunteer and inmate each choose each other.)
Write letters of introduction.
Begin monthly visits at the prison. There is a minimum one-year commitment to the relationship.
More Info

We look forward to hearing from you!

Projects are funded/supported, in part, by the Minnesota Department of Corrections.

"Because of my Amicus I have lost something I held very dear: my cynicism. Because of his wonderful encouragement, I realize that society hasn’t failed me, I failed society . . . . I now believe I can enter society with a good outlook, knowing there will always be a friend for me."

"Prison teaches you not to trust or rely on others, but my Amicus teaches me that there are people who can be relied on and trusted."

"I’ve been incarcerated for 13 years and had begun to lose touch with people of society. This only tends to make a person hard on the inside. My Amicus has changed all that. In him, I see the good I thought no longer existed. Thank you for making me feel like a person again."