Dr. Renaya Furtick Wheelan spearheads one of the few women-led and started re-entry groups for women in Philadelphia.
Growing up in South Philadelphia, Dr. Renaya Furtick Wheelan said she could have easily gone to jail during her youth. Adopted as a teen and thrust into an environment where she became literate, and explored her creative and intellectual curiosities, she went on to become a psychologist. When she discovered that programs for women were few and far between, she cultivated, I’M FREE. But she designed this program because several of her family members, including her sister, had to face reintegrating back into their communities after incarceration.
During our conversation, she gives an honest journey of her life and what guided her to I’m Free. Plus, she details the needs for women coming home, and the nurturing that is often absent. Here’s her story.
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