“A Piece of Life”

MacLaren Youth Correctional Facility, March, 2002

5/13/02

Eliza Roaring Springs

Executive Director

Encore Theatre

PO Box 50816

Eugene, OR 97405

Dear Eliza and Encore Players:

What can I say except: THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for the five-day residency you and Encore did at MacLaren Youth Correctional Facility. Grover Cottage may never be the same after having all of you with us in March 2002. I certainly will not be the same; the experience for me was a dream come true. I wanted very much to have Encore come perform for youthful offenders at MacLaren. When Encore came to MacLaren in March of 2001 and performed I knew you were a group of very special people. I only hoped to have you back to perform again. When I found out it was possible to have Encore do a week residency that would culminate into a performance in which elders and youth would invite families and friends to come and see was almost more than I could logically hope for.

It was a week of magic from start to finish. Watching young men who have never experienced theatre and art now being a part of theatre troupe opening up to the idea of creating something for their families was an amazing journey. From day one the youth could sense that they were being respected for who they were rather than discounted for what they did. Each of these young men found out that senior citizens were wonderful and loving human beings with incredible reserves of energy. This journey was five days of learning about and living with one another. Three practices, two meals and eight hours a day was what helped bring this all together. Young men took risks sharing personal stories about who they were and who they wanted to be. The elders shared their own life experiences in hopes it would strengthen and empower the youth to continue to change and grow into the people they hope to become. The elders offered hope of change to thirteen young men.

“A Piece of Life” was a performance of a lifetime for us all. Seeing family members cry, applaud and hold a standing ovation to show their gratitude for what they saw in their sons was a journey none of us will ever forget. There is no amount of money that could buy what we all experienced. Encore Theatre is much more than performance and performers, it is life statements of change and hope. Encore Theatre's director is the visionary and Eliza; you are how and why this all happens. The world is a better place because you and Encore Theatre exist.

Thank you is such a small statement, but there is no other way to say what I feel. I am hoping that we can come together the same time next year and create another life changing show for thirteen more young men and their families.

Sincerely,

Tanya Snider

Alcohol and Drug Treatment Coordinator