TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) — One in 28 American children has a parent in jail. What if those kids had the opportunity to play and interact with their incarcerated parents beyond the prison walls?
That's exactly what's happening in Kansas thanks to a program operated by the Kansas Children's Discovery Center and the Kansas Department of Corrections. The program, called Play Free, began in Topeka but has now spread to corrections facilities statewide.
A documentary about Play Free will be screened at the Lawrence Arts Center at 7 pm Thursday. Free tickets are available at the Arts Center. A question and answer session will follow with director Steve Lerner and Dené Mosier, CEO of the Kansas Children's Discovery Center and founder of the Play Free program.
The film follows incarcerated mothers as they reunite with their children for a day of uninterrupted play at the Kansas Children's Discovery Center — away from prison walls, guards, and the barriers that separate families affected by incarceration. The entire film was shot on one day.
The Kansas Children's Discovery Center is gaining national attention for its program. Play Free is now being seen as a model that other states may try to emulate.
KPR's J. Schafer recently spoke with Dené Mosier, the president and CEO of the Discovery Center and with Stephen Lerner, the director of the Play Free documentary. (Click on the blue button to listen.)
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