DAILY NEWS PEOPLE : JOYCE RIDE.Byline: - Kathleen Cole Her business card reads ``Ms. Joyce Ride, Mother: First Woman Astronaut.'' Below the title, she includes two telephone numbers - home and jail. On May 31, Friends Outside in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County (FOLAC) will establish the Joyce Ride Hope, Assistance and Rehabilitation Project (HARP), dedicated to better health care for pregnant women in jail, keeping women in touch with their children, alternative sentencing and better access to rehabilitation programs. In 1977, Ride initiated FOLAC's jail visitation program at the Sybil Brand Institute The Sybil Brand Institute (in full, the Sybil Brand Institute For Women) was a famous county jail in Los Angeles County, California. The facility was named after Sybil Brand (May 8, 1899-February 17, 2004), a noted local philanthropist and civic leader. for Women. Since then she has had more than 2,500 conversations with women in jail and prison. She advocates for services and suitable alternatives to jail for women with minor children, women addicted to drugs or alcohol, who are nonviolent, or who are mentally ill. AGE: 74 RESIDENCE: Encino BORN AND RAISED IN: Born in Minnesota's Detroit Lakes area. Her family moved to Santa Monica Santa Monica (săn`tə mŏn`ĭkə), city (1990 pop. 86,905), Los Angeles co., S Calif., on Santa Monica Bay; inc. 1886. Tourism and retailing are important, and the city has motion-picture, biotechnology, and software industries. when she was 18. She has lived in her home in Encino since 1961. OCCUPATION: Full-time volunteer. MARITAL STATUS marital status, n the legal standing of a person in regard to his or her marriage state. : Widowed in 1989. CHILDREN: She has two daughters: Sally Ride Sally Kristen Ride (born May 26 1951) is an American former astronaut who in 1983 became the first American woman to reach outer space.[1][2] She was preceded by two Soviet women, Valentina Tereshkova (1963) and Svetlana Savitskaya (1982). of La Jolla La Jolla (lə hoi`yə), on the Pacific Ocean, S Calif., an uninc. district within the confines of San Diego; founded 1869. The beautiful ocean beaches, in particular La Jolla shores and Black's Beach, and sea-washed caves attract visitors and and the Rev. Dr. Karen ``Bear'' Ride of Pasadena. She also has two grandchildren. VOLUNTEERISM: In 1977, Ride began visiting inmates at the Sybil Brand Institute for Women. She switched over to the California Institute for Women in Frontera, near Corona, in 1992. She was a member of FOLAC's Board of Directors for 16 years and now serves on its advisory board. In 1994, because of her work in this field, she was appointed to Sen. David Roberti's Women's Advisory Commission as chair of the Subcommittee on Women in the Justice System. The Los Angeles City Council  The Los Angeles City Council is the governing body of the City of Los Angeles, California, United States. recently named her a ``Woman Pioneer.''
HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED?: ``I innocently invited a Catholic Center nun to speak with our women's group at Encino Presbyterian. She was recruiting for women to visit (women in) jails. I thought she was talking to Noun 1. talking to - a lengthy rebuke; "a good lecture was my father's idea of discipline"; "the teacher gave him a talking to" lecture, speech rebuke, reprehension, reprimand, reproof, reproval - an act or expression of criticism and censure; "he had to me; so I started visiting the jail.'' WHY DO YOU VOLUNTEER?: ``She (the nun) spoke of the overwhelming need. I took her seriously, and when I started doing it (visiting jails) I found it was (an overwhelming need).'' BIGGEST DILEMMA: ``Personal contact. Keeping women in contact with their families.'' MOST DIFFICULT DAILY TASK: Ride's dog, Dyson, is 11 and has kidney problems that require, in layman's terms, a sort of doggie dialysis in the form of daily injections. FAVORITE DAILY TASK: ``I get collect calls from the women's prison; usually fun conversations. It's their only outside contact.'' BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: ``Almost everything (in prison) is geared to humiliate and dehumanize de·hu·man·ize tr.v. de·hu·man·ized, de·hu·man·iz·ing, de·hu·man·iz·es 1. To deprive of human qualities such as individuality, compassion, or civility: women.'' Ride has spent many years attempting to right the injustices she sees without the success she desires. GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT: ``It hasn't happened yet, but I'm working hard to get a woman out of prison. Her name is Gloria Killian, and she has spent 12 years in prison. She was convicted of masterminding a burglary that ended in a murder. It has been proven that she was innocent - well-established.'' GOALS FOR THE FUTURE: ``My chief goal is to contact and educate people who make laws and enforce them. The state Senate has the last word concerning the Department of Corrections. I hope to get them to listen to what alternatives there are for the mentally ill, mentally retarded Noun 1. mentally retarded - people collectively who are mentally retarded; "he started a school for the retarded" developmentally challenged, retarded and drug addicted - crimes that are nonviolent or misdemeanors.'' ROLE MODELS: ``A Catholic sister in Racine, Wis., who has started prison programs in Milwaukee and Detroit. Just a sterling courageous woman.'' CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: Joyce Ride David Sprague/Daily News |
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