June 13, 2024 will be a day eight men and their families will remember forever…graduation day! After four challenging years (the first year was under complete lockdown due to COVID), these men crossed the stage to become the third graduating class of the Wisconsin Prison Initiative. The ceremony included speakers from TIU, the Wisconsin Department of Corrections, and our student speaker. The gymnasium was filled with excited family members, staff from Fox Lake Correctional Institution, current students, many of our local partners, and representatives from TIU! After the ceremony, graduates and guests enjoyed a delicious catered lunch and visiting time.
As we reflect on our recent graduates and what God has in store for them, we are also in the midst of preparing to welcome our newest cohort (number seven!) beginning August 19th. Plans are underway for the orientation day meeting and the beginning of the 2024-2025 school season. School continues to be a hub of activity and a place for academic growth and comradery between classmates.
Robin Knoll is continuing his roles as Interim Program Director and Dean of Students. Robin will begin visiting graduates once again when the fall term starts August 19th. Since assuming the role of Interim Program Director in January, Robin had to temporarily suspend his visits. He is looking forward to getting back into the routine of visiting the men and hearing how God has been working in their lives.
Speaking of Robin, he recently received a poem from a student of the program:
Robin of the Knoll
The purpose for my arrival to Fox Lake was for the purpose of Trinity
Rounding the corner on a grassy knoll,
I encountered a Robin singing one of the most
Beautiful songs I have ever heard
“The reason you’re here may not be the reason you are here”
Thanks for the grassy knoll and the site of the most
Beautiful Robin I’ve ever seen
I acknowledge that your love and care helped heal my wounds
For that I am most grateful
May God richly bless the call on your life
Thanks Pastor Robin Knoll
Upon receiving the poem, Robin remarked, “I am often asked: ‘Help me understand why, at your age, you get up at 4 a.m., five days a week, 40 weeks out of the year, and drive one hour and 20 minutes (one way), which equals 28k miles per year?’ Over my seven years as Dean of Students and now interim Program Director, I have had a variety of responses. The ‘why’ became crystal clear after I received this note.
Our prayer initiative is a response to God’s leading to draw near to Fox Lake Correctional and cover the prison with 365 days of prayer for 2024.
We have asked local churches, organizations, and groups to each take 7 consecutive days to pray over our program and the prison as a whole. The method by which each group approaches this is completely flexible depending on the congregation’s already established rhythms of prayer. If your church or group would like to join us in prayer by taking a week in 2024 to pray, please contact Andrew Murphy HERE so we can get you on the schedule and share any requests that might assist your group in prayer.
Thank you to the churches and groups that have signed up already to pray for Fox Lake and our students.
JOIN US IN PRAYER
Specific prayer requests for 2024:
- A well-earned rest for staff and students alike during the summer break
- The new cohort as they start their four-year journey with God and each other
- The current students that they continue strong, and remember the excitement of graduation day as they prepare for their own graduation
- That God continues to bless us with professors that share their hearts with the men