Welcome back to this person I met! My name is Kayla, and this is the second part of Johnny Walker's story. As you may remember from the last episode, Johnny served 46 years and 13 days in jail for armed robbery, and a second charge, murder. Now, as the reentry specialist for A Brighter Way, he helps former inmates, who just like he did, struggle to find their place in the world after incarceration. In this episode, Johnny will share his struggles readjusting to a quickly progressing society and his search for human connection and humanity in our technology driven world.

Johnny’s episode, for me, was truly eye opening. Hearing how long his sentencing was, longer than my parents have been alive, is something that I can’t even fathom. Still, I can’t imagine the time that incarceration took from him, time he cannot get back and he can only heal from.

And yet, Johnny has one piece of advice for this young generation.

Welcome back to this person I met. My name is Kayla, and the voice you just heard is Johnny walker. He's the community engagement specialist from A Brighter Way, an organization serving formerly incarcerated people, assisting them in the tedious process of reentering society. Johnny and I sat down in the downtown library on a cold february afternoon, where he generously shared his story and new life after not mere years, but decades of incarceration.

Johnny, like many of us, grew up surrounded by a large community of family and friends, the most important to him being his mother. Despite her passing, her love still stays with him, a reminder that love knows no bounds even in death.

In this episode, Johnny shares his battle with trauma and his emergence on the other side. Taking it one day at a time, Johnny says, is the most important step to healing and finding yourself again, no matter how impossible it may feel.

Welcome back to this person I met! You might notice something new in this episode, or someone new. As you all may know, Maya, the host of this podcast, is off to college. And that means someone new has to take over. My name is Kayla, and I, coincidentally, am her younger sister! For the next few years, I will be the new podcast host, and I am beyond excited to share my experiences with you all.

The voice you just heard was Jennifer St. John, the social media manager and trauma informed peer led reentry navigator of a Brighter Way. From previous episodes, you may remember a Brighter Way as a nonprofit dedicated to helping those previously incarcerated build a better, stable life. In this episode, Jennifer shares her journey battling her trauma and finding herself again through all of it.