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A Simple Burglary
Last modified 2007-02-09 15:11
It looked like a tornado had hit, but what really happened felt much worse. Greet didn’t recognize her own home. Drawers were turned upside down, papers lay all over the floor and the shelves and tables that once held her most prized possessions were now bare. Her favourite jewellery, which held deep sentimental value and had been passed down from generations, were gone.
Greet’s home where she once felt warm and safe, was now a chilling
reminder of her vulnerability. Her grief over the loss of her
belongings and her sense of security soon turned to anger and
bitterness toward the burglars who had trespassed in her home. But
eventually, after asking for God’s help, she was able to forgive the
unseen intruders. So, when PF the Netherlands asked Greet to take part
in their first victim/offender encounter programme, PF’s Sycamore Tree
Project®, she readily agreed and soon found herself speaking
face-to-face with prisoners who had burglarized other victim’s homes.
Greet told them how even now, long after the burglary, she still feels unsafe in her own home and fears that it will happen again. The participating prisoners were so moved by her story that they all signed a card for her at the conclusion of the 8-week course. “I was not aware that a simple burglary could have so much impact,” said one of the participants, “I now know how a victim must feel.”
The experience made a “deep impression on Greet,” says Esther Klaassen, PF the Netherlands Project Coordinator. Greet said she was thankful for the experience and was pleased that she could “help them [the prisoners] think about the effect of crime.”
In addition to launching the Sycamore Tree Project®, known in the Netherlands as Spreken over Cshuld (S0S) meaning “Speaking about Guilt, Community and Victims, PF has also begun a similar project for short-term prisoners that is offered weekly. Though this programme does not involve victims, participants talk about guilt, responsibility, forgiveness and choices. All sessions use a tested curriculum and are led by trained facilitators.
January 2007
This article originally appeared in Prison Fellowship International’s Global Link Journal in December 2006.
Greet told them how even now, long after the burglary, she still feels unsafe in her own home and fears that it will happen again. The participating prisoners were so moved by her story that they all signed a card for her at the conclusion of the 8-week course. “I was not aware that a simple burglary could have so much impact,” said one of the participants, “I now know how a victim must feel.”
The experience made a “deep impression on Greet,” says Esther Klaassen, PF the Netherlands Project Coordinator. Greet said she was thankful for the experience and was pleased that she could “help them [the prisoners] think about the effect of crime.”
In addition to launching the Sycamore Tree Project®, known in the Netherlands as Spreken over Cshuld (S0S) meaning “Speaking about Guilt, Community and Victims, PF has also begun a similar project for short-term prisoners that is offered weekly. Though this programme does not involve victims, participants talk about guilt, responsibility, forgiveness and choices. All sessions use a tested curriculum and are led by trained facilitators.
January 2007
This article originally appeared in Prison Fellowship International’s Global Link Journal in December 2006.