In this episode, the girls of Sending Messages talk about lessons that they have learned. Experiences that have been tough to deal with but ones that have undoubtedly taught them something. Stories, poems, and songs by Nickle Walnut, Bonnie, Freddy, and Sage. This episode was hosted by Freddy.

In this episode, Ghetti, Barbie, and Bonnie are joined by their staff member Jorge to discuss how communication, boundaries, race, friendships, trauma, and keeping the peace can get mixed up when you live side by side with people you don't get along with.

In this episode, Freddy, Ghetti, and Diamond answer questions about their families, the frustrations of being incarcerated, mistakes they have made, and their hopes for the future.

Fear and Nightmares impact incarcerated youth differently than it does other young people. You wake up in the middle of the night to find out you have just entered a new bad dream of lock up. You relive the same mistakes and regrets over and over. In this episode, stories, poetry, and conversations about nightmares are written, performed, and produ…

This year the students in Sending Messages tried to make a holiday podcast, but didn't really get too far. Instead, enjoy poetry and letters about loss, lockup, and love from AktivE, Tina, Static, Scar, and C-Dot, as well as conversations featuring Virtuosity, AktivE, Static, Phoenix, C-Dot, G-Man, and Ruthless. This episode was mixed and hosted by…

Join us on this house tour. Walk through the halls, peek in the rooms, and climb the stairs. This isn't just any house. This is a house made of memories. Bricks carved out of trauma, doors cracked by anger and floors worn by fear. But all of the locks are open, and the stories these walls are ready to tell are desperate to be heard. So come in. Poe…

What has been stolen? Who has been lost? Are there times they are the same things? This episode the Sending Messages girls discuss the things that have been taken away in their lives. Both tangible items, identities, time, and sometimes, people. Stories and interviews by Tina Posole, Star, Icarus, Skarr, and Ghetti. Thanks for listening.…

This episode, Bhetti, Skarr and Tina Posole talk with their producer Adam about what perfection is like as a young girl in Secure Care, with everyone watching. this episode also features poetry by Star and Icarus, as well as a flashback piece by Alias. Thanks for listening.

Happy Halloween! This episode, the youth from Decker Lake bring you stories, poetry, interviews and music all themed all about monsters, nightmares, and fear. Virtuosity, Dawn Breaker, Rambollo, K-One, and Liu Kang share their insights on both the fun of the holiday, as well as their own experiences growing up celebrating Halloween and thinking abo…

This episode is a compilation for a research project about how the true stories and recollections by incarcerated youth can change attitudes about their situations to the public at large. While this episode is used for this purpose with a particular audience, we also wanted to share it with our larger podcasting audience as it represents some of th…

The mischeif we get into as kids has a way of spinning out of control. The same behaviors that once seemed innocent now echo very real consequences. Freeway DK, N. and P sit down and discuss everything from playing with legos to the first time their parents caught them with a gun. Featuring music by Liu Kang and Sosa, Goofy and BabyKing. Thanks for…

When have you felt trapped? What did you do to overcome it? How did you escape? In this episode, our host Dawn Breaker shares stories from his peers about moments of weakness, feeling stuck and backed up against a wall, and what tools they used to find a way out. Poetry, prose and interviews from Stuck Soul, Saskia, Twitch, Answer, Dawn Breaker, Tr…

What does it mean to hear someone's story? To understand what they were going through or to compare their story with your story? It could lead to greater understanding, but that’s up to the listener. In this episode, our host Lobster shares stories from his peers about struggles, despair, the paths that we travel and the journeys that we take. Poet…

Defeat is like loss, in that you end up missing something. But unlike loss, defeat feels like your own fault. Eight pieces about the being stuck in cycles, escaping through the wrong doorways, and searching for meaning in the dark. Original pieces from Kemi, Yung Skrrrt, Phoenix, D., A., Q-Bee, Peter Quill, and Starr. Hosted by Sending Messages con…

In celebration of Valentine's Day, Sending Messages contributors share stories of the ups and downs of love and relationships. Original pieces from Silent, Yung Skrrrt, Sapphire, Betty, S.L.S, Little Pineapple and Quinn. Hosted by Yung Skrrrt. Thanks for listening! *LATE RELEASE*

The new year is a time when people plan for the future, make resolutions, and prepare for change. Pieces from Sapphire, Four Eyes, Yung Sponge, Cue, and Silent. Hosted by Sending Messages contributor Lil Pineapple. Thanks for listening!

Utah’s juvenile justice system has gone through a lot of change in the past couple of years. As part of an effort to implement restorative justice practices, our state is trying to lessen the amount of kids in the system by placing those of us struggling with violence, addiction, and mental health issues into treatment instead of incarceration. In …

Sending Messages contributors make individual pieces in a process of self reflection, often speaking on their own lives and experiences. Heard together, however, these pieces can paint a broader picture of what young people in the juvenile justice system are going through in general. Today on the podcast, young women housed in facilities and treatm…

Utah is a unique actor in the movement toward restorative justice. While being a conservative hub, we've been working toward reform in ways that inspire efforts around the country. Nonetheless, many of the young people who contribute to Sending Messages have been in and out of the system for much of their lives. On this episode of Sending Messages,…

Living is a series of transitions. Today on the episode we bring you seven stories about changes in scenery, loss of loved ones, new perspectives and broadened horizons. Pieces from Y.T. Swizz, Harles, Bucks, Fozzy, P.City, Kode Ice, and Cash. Hosted by Sending Messages contributor BG. Thanks for listening!…

Money makes the world go 'round. But when you're left out of rotation, what are you willing to do to get in on the goods? On this episode of Sending Messages, five pieces from Y.T. Swizz, Shotsky, B.G., P. City, and Bucks sharing about how the pursuit of money has made them do their worst and influenced them to work for the better. Hosted by B.G. T…

One of the exercises that begins every session of Sending Messages is the challenge for participants to bust out a short piece of original media; a poem, a stream of consciousness, a simple response to an open-ended prompt, a letter they could never send. Today on Sending Messages, a collection of the first short pieces created by residents in Utah…

Angels and demons; the battle between good and evil, the choice between the good and the bad. Today on Sending Messages teens at Decker Lake Youth Center share stories of their saviors and explore the causes of their sorrows. Pieces from Junior, Smasher, Kash Money Kellz, Sebas and G. Money. Hosted by Junior. Thanks for listening!…

Every year, Dignity in Schools runs a campaign to raise awareness around school push out, educational disenfranchisement that disproportionately impacts youth of color, the endemically poor, and youth living with physical and developmental challenges. On this episode, five young men from Wasatch Youth Center share their experiences in the education…