The Exiled Voice

Shawn McWeeney served a 25-year sentence for his role in a robbery when he was 18 years old. Released from prison in 2020, Shawn entered the University of Oregon Prevention Science Program. He is on track to graduate with a Masters of Education in the Spring of 2021. Shawn is passionate about trauma informed advocacy and mentorship of underserved youth.

Joe Cheadle was in prison for more than 23 years. Being incarcerated as a juvenile He received a life sentence with a minimum of 30 years. While incarcerated he participated in every program available to him and eventually earned a parole date. Now he reside in Oregon and and continues to support prison & sentencing reform. Especially for juvenile offenders.

Ben Stiller is a Portland native, born and raised. He spent a better part of his life living in a busted mobile home with his single father and his older brother. Literally, there was a hole in the kitchen floor that went straight outside. He got in a lot fights as a child and had to move to a private school where he was picked on for being poor, until he got to high school. This is when he did a...

Cody has been a resident of the pacific northwest for 20 years, absolutely loving the mountains, trees, and beautiful waterfalls. He is adventurous, with a passion for entrepreneurship, art, local activism, and yoga! He enjoys building positive friendships within his community, in order to strengthen and protect the people within it.

Juan Parra served 11 months at Columbia River Correctional Institution where Juan worked as a tutor with the Prison’s GED program. Juan currently works in Interpreting Services and enjoys spending time with his dog Atlas.