PARSOL board members John Dawe, Lisa Perry, David Garlock, and Lisa Kessler-Peters traveled to Atlanta on June 20-23 for the 16th Annual NARSOL Conference. The conference allowed us to spend time with our colleagues from across the country working on rational reform.
Meghan Mitchell’s opening presentation on the effectiveness—or rather lack thereof—of criminal registries set the bar at excellent, a level that was continued throughout, both in plenary and break-out presentations.
MacKensie Leclaire made us cry as she told us about life after sexual harm and gave us hope with her discussion of restorative justice alternatives. The Florida Action Committee’s SHINE program made us feel the indignities that women on the registry live with. Attorney Kimberly Buddin of the ACLU made us laugh—if you can imagine such a thing—in her presentation of the history of the registry. Janice Bellucci of ACSOL, Brenda Jones of NARSOL, and Amber Vlangas of the Restorative Action Alliance encouraged us as they not only talked about but demonstrated the value of coalitions, and PARSOL’s managing director John Dawe both presented a workshop on advancing organizational goals using digital strategies and served as a panelist for the Fearless support group program at the request of NARSOL.
Featured speaker Vicki Henry reminded us of her journey into advocacy, the pitfalls, and the triumphs, in her awards dinner speech. Daniel Lambert, from behind bars, told us of his work to expose the conditions where he is in civil commitment at Moose Lake, Minnesota–conditions that are an affront to human rights, safety, and dignity.
PARSOL Board Member Lisa Kessler-Peters and Restore Georgia’s Waleisah Wilson, in their plenary keynote presentations, both showed us the importance of faith and how their journeys into advocacy depended on that and keep them going. There were more, too many more to name here, but all thought-provoking, heart-felt, and encouraging.
The NARSOL awards dinner recognized individuals in various aspects of advocacy for their special and valuable talents, plus their service to NARSOL and to the men and women for whom we advocate.
- Braveheart award: Daniel Wilson in Moose Lake, MN, Civil Commitment Center
- Excellence in service award: Ken Roberts, Mississippi, NARSOL Gatekeeper
- Excellence in leadership: Mary Sue Molnar, Texas Voices for Reason and Justice
- Advocate of the Year: Margaret Hawkins, Delaware Advocates for RSOL (DARSOL)
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Gail Coletta, Florida Action Committee (FAC)
- Hawthorne Award: Kimberly Buddin, attorney
Planning for next year’s conference is already underway. It will be in Grand Rapids, Michigan, June 26-29, 2025. Anyone interested in attending should contact the PARSOL office at contact@parsol.org.
NARSOL Communication Director Sandy Rozek contributed to this article.
