Living Into Love: Rev. Becca Stevens Talks About Second Chances

This past Tuesday, April 26, Rev. Becca Stevens gave a Common Hour talk entitled "Living Into Love: Helping Women Recover from Abuse, Prostitution, and Addiction." Rev. Stevens, the aunt of Carly Westman ‘11, is the founder of Magdalene, a residential community for recovering women, and Thistle Farms, a social enterprise that employs the women. In a very short period of time, Stevens has created a program that drastically improves the lives of survivors of abuse, prostitution, and addiction who have made the decision to come off the streets of Tennessee. 

Stevens, who has been voted Tennessean of the Year and Nashvillian of the year, began the talk by explaining her path to Magdalene. She studied math in college and it was not until she spent time protesting in Washington, D.C. that Stevens realized she wanted to change people's lives. She attended divinity school and her work as a reverend inspired her to open her first home for women in 1997. In order to be eligible to live in one of the homes, a woman must have been living on the streets for 10 years and additionally have at least 100 arrests on her record. The concept behind the homes is to provide women with the freedom they did not have on the streets. In exchange for staying clean, the women have everything, including medical care, provided for them. Even Stevens does not possess a key to the houses, representing her belief that the women should have the opportunity to live on their own.

One of the successful graduates of Magdalene, Gwen, joined Stevens at the event. She gave an extremely poignant talk about her path away from drugs towards a brighter and happier future with her family and the other Magdalene women. Growing up in a family of drug abusers, Gwen saw no problem starting to use at an early age. At 26, she began using harder drugs, launching her into a cycle of despair for 12 years. After losing her kids and the support of her family, as well as experiencing countless stints in jail, Gwen finally decided to make a change for the better. When presented with the opportunity to live at Magdalene, Gwen jumped at the chance to be provided with all of the tools she needed to improve her life.

At Magdalene, the women engage in a two year program that focuses not only on getting clean and struggling to deal with their pasts, but also on how to become successful members of society upon graduation. The women take classes on computer use and business in order to have a chance at finding future employment. Recognizing that the women did not have any work experience to list on their resumés, Stevens created Thistle Farms to employ the women in a steady job.

Referred to by Gwen as a work college, Thistle Farms produces bath and body products made from thistle flowers. These flowers, which are the only ones to survive the harsh weather and lack of care on the streets of Nashville, are representative of the women's struggle for success. The toughness of the flowers, in combination with their ability to make lovely smelling products, makes them the perfect symbol of recovery for the women. The project has grown immensely and the women now bring in $400,000 per year to put towards Magdalene and Thistle Farms. The remainder of the $1.2 million budget must be made up by grants from the government and donations.

Steven's notion of "Living in Love" is exceptionally evident in all of her projects. While her programs continue to expand, Stevens remains grounded in the spirit of the project. She has college students come down to Magdalene for alternative spring breaks and she travels to jails all over the country to inspire hope for struggling women. During Gwen's talk, she emotionally stated,  "every choice you make dictates your future," a sentiment which encapsulated so much of Steven's project. She discovered an opportunity to make a large impact by helping a few people at a time, and the rewards have clearly been enormous. 

"Living in Love" was sponsored by WGRAC, the Human Rights Department, the Chapel, the Political Science Department, the Theater and Dance Department, the Religion Department, the Office of Multicultural Affairs, the Health Center, and the Fred. The wide range of support from Trinity organizations and departments, as well as the close to 100 students and faculty who attended the talk, speaks to the importance of Steven's project and the value of using love to heal.

Visit thistlefarms.org to learn more about the project and purchase the wonderful products created by the women of Thistle Farms.