Summer's Story

In episode 5 of Hiding in Plain Sight: The Neighbors You Never Hear From, Host Tia Ryans speaks with Summer Sprofera, who disclosed just how difficult her reentry journey was and still is because of the trauma of incarceration. She also delved into her experience of prior drug addiction and the lack of time she had to acclimate while taking care of a parent diagnosed with a terminal illness. Summer is a graduate of Rutgers University where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Environmental Planning and Design and currently works at Branch Brook Park in Newark, NJ as the Director of Landscape Management.

Show Notes

In episode 5 of Hiding in Plain Sight: The Neighbors You Never Hear From, Host Tia Ryans speaks with Summer Sprofera,  who disclosed just how difficult her reentry journey was and still is because of the trauma of incarceration.

Summer was incarcerated for approximately 9 years at Edna Mahan Correctional facility. She has learned how to grow through a terrible situation and be empathetic to those still struggling. Summer Sprofera is a graduate of Rutgers University where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Environmental Planning and Design. Summer is the recipient of the American Society of Landscape Architects’ Merit Award for a memorial she co-designed for Martin Luther King. She was also awarded a grant through Princeton University’s Molecular Biophysics Program to conduct a plant comparison at Liberty State Park. Summer currently works at Branch Brook Park in Newark, NJ as the Director of Landscape Management.

Summer's Book Recommendations

The Body Keeps the Score, By Bessel van der Kolk

Anxious for Nothing: Finding Calm in a Chaotic World, by Max Lucado, Lucian Samosata

Forest Bathing Retreat: Finding Wholeness in the Company of Trees, by Hannah Fries

The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom. Perseverance, and the Art of Loving, by Ryan Holiday, Stephen Hanselman

To support the continued work of NJ F.O.R.T.E House and learn more about the organization, visit: njfortehouse.org
Get involved: All of us or None-Northern NJ

Hiding In Plain Sight: The Neighbors You Never Hear From is produced by Tia Ryans, Brit Harley, and Dionysus Augus.

Theme music provided by Vacation Collective, Bright Ideas Music from Uppbeat (free for Creators!) || https://uppbeat.io/t/fe77a/vacation-collective || License code: 4HIKHJVTF3RTDLGW


This series is part of the Newark News, and Story Collaborative made possible with funding support from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation and the Victoria Foundation. The Newark News and Story Collaborative is committed to elevating community-driven storytelling to fill information gaps in local and national media. The Collaborative trains community members in storytelling, media-making, and other creative art forms to share and amplify their experiences. It’s laying the groundwork for a collaborative network that will address longstanding information inequities in Newark, New Jersey. For more information and to hear local stories, visit newarkstories.com.

What is Hiding in Plain Sight: The Neighbors You Never Hear From?

"Hiding In Plain Sight: The Neighbors You Never Hear From" is an audio series that will take you on the reentry journey through the first-hand experiences of 6 people and where they are today. The series is hosted by Tia Ryans, Founding Executive Director of NJ F.O.R.T.E House. NJ F.O.R.T.E House provides access to a healthy and transparent living environment and assists with academic readiness for formerly incarcerated students transitioning through post-secondary education. The organization takes meaningful steps to promote inclusiveness, autonomy, accountability, and economic self-sufficiency for our participants. Devising and implementing a supportive housing strategy upon reentry and maintaining strategic partnerships with community institutions to maintain retention and minimize felon disenfranchisement. Support the work of NJ F.O.R.T.E House by visiting www.njfortehouse.org.

The series is part of the Newark News & Story Collaborative made possible with funding support from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation and the Victoria Foundation. The Newark News and Story Collaborative trains community members in storytelling, media-making, and other creative art forms to share and amplify their experiences. It’s laying the groundwork for a collaborative network that will address longstanding information inequities in Newark, New Jersey. For more information and stories, visit newarkstories.com.