Woman 2 Woman Training

Woman 2 Woman Offering a Training in October!

This fall marks the tenth anniversary of this prison ministry founded at Bedford Presbyterian Church in 2013.

Over the past decade, they have connected more than 150 women in the community surrounding Bedford Hills Correctional Facility with 130 individuals incarcerated there. Lots of deep and meaningful friendships have been formed.

Unfortunately, there are many people inside the prison who have been waiting a long time for a visitor. There are lots of newly incarcerated people who have heard about W2W’s visiting program and are very interested in participating.

Woman 2 Woman has scheduled a Zoom training for Monday, October 16th from 7 – 9 p.m.

Here’s the link: 

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6193223941

Meeting ID: 619 322 3941

Please note that in order to become a Woman 2 Woman visitor, you must attend a training session. Even if you do not live in the Bedford area, or in this country, you may want to learn more about this program to consider emulating it where you live.

Here is a brief outline of their program and contact information:  

Woman 2 Woman

It is healing for a woman in prison to have a relationship that is caring, honest, and trustworthy. Most have had very few, if any, of those.

Who We Are

• Nancy Gernert, co-founder of Woman 2 Woman (W2W)
• Dorothy Muller, co-founder of W2W and former volunteer chaplain at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility (BHCF)
• Carol Parker and Ava Zukowsky, co-founders of W2W’s advocacy efforts
• 150 women in the Bedford community and 130 women incarcerated at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility (BHCF) and Taconic Correctional Facility (TCF)

What We Do

Launched by Bedford Presbyterian Church in the fall of 2013, Woman 2 Woman is a prison ministry program that connects women in our community with women incarcerated at Bedford Hills and Taconic. These women are our neighbors, yet many of them have little to no outside contact. Our visiting program is designed to provide much-needed emotional support, encouragement and friendship. Our goal is also to stretch our own capacity for empathy and understanding by developing a relationship of mutual respect and caring with someone whose history and circumstances is typically very different from our own. W2W is not a faith-based program.

What You Can Do

• Attend a 2-hour training session to discuss the program guidelines and to ask questions. If you choose to become a visitor, you will then be given the name and Department Identification Number (DIN#) of a woman inside.
• Commit to visiting her at least once a month.
• Determine whether you would like an experienced visitor to accompany you on your first visit.
• Attend visitor support groups, which are held three times a year. They provide a forum for sharing both the joys and frustrations of prison visiting and for discussing any questions or concerns you may have.

In the interim, please contact Nancy Gernert (914-763-0750 or 914-980-6431) [email protected]) with any immediate issues.