Change Starts From the Inside
What happens when someone discovers a new way to connect with themselves, their families, and the world around them?
At Realness Project, we believe meaningful human connection has the power to transform lives.
Through experiential programs inside Colorado correctional facilities, we equip incarcerated individuals with practical tools to build healthier relationships, navigate conflict, communicate with empathy, and take ownership of their actions and impact on others.
These skills extend beyond prison walls, shaping how people connect with their children, families, and communities.
When we change how we relate to ourselves and others, we create the possibility of breaking cycles of harm and building healthier connections for generations to come.
Our Impact
Our Reach:
The Impact in Numbers:
Based on self-reported improvements from available participant surveys collected over multiple years of Realness Project programming.
In Their Own Words
Discovering Self-Worth
“By stepping out of my comfort zone and digging deep into myself I found dignity, confidence, and compassion. That I can now apply in honoring the relationships in my life... and [I have] found more value in myself than ever before.”
— Irish, Realness Project participant
Strengthening Family Connections
"I see myself for who I am now. A father who has a lot of love, care, and life experience to give to my boys."
— Ivan, Realness Project participant
Choosing a Different Path
"I've always turned to violence. My motto was 'Violence fixes everything.' This course taught me there's another way. Thank you."
— Daisy, Realness Project participant
Help Us Build What's Next!✨
Your support helps us:
From Our Graduates, With Gratitude 🫶
"Thank you for supporting this work. It has changed my life and other peoples lives too. My life is more clear and I have grown and can share this new wisdom with my children."
— Crystal, Realness Project graduate
Every donation helps bring these transformational tools and opportunities for connection to more people.
Together, we can strengthen relationships, interrupt harmful cycles, and build safer, healthier communities inside prison walls and beyond!
Thank you for being part of the ripple effect!!
Our Mission
Transforming the culture of incarceration by empowering human connection.
We believe that meaningful human connection is a catalyst for lasting change. By cultivating self-awareness, empathy, accountability, and authentic relationships, we empower individuals to break cycles of harm and create new possibilities for themselves, their families, and their communities.
Our Vision
A justice system rebuilt upon the foundation of human dignity.
We envision a world where every person is seen as more than their past, where connection replaces isolation, and where people have the opportunity to grow, heal, and contribute to healthier, more compassionate communities.
How Realness Project Began
In 2017, Laurie Lazar began co-facilitating a Victim Impact class at the Boulder County Jail. While participants were engaged in the discussions, Laurie found herself wondering: What would it take to create meaningful, lasting transformation in their lives?
With a background in education and training in Authentic Relating (AR), Laurie began imagining what might be possible if incarcerated individuals were given practical tools to navigate conflict, communicate with empathy, and build healthier relationships. What if connection, rather than disconnection, could become a pathway toward lasting change?
Around that time, Laurie connected with her friend and colleague, Ryel Kestano, who was already incorporating Authentic Relating practices into his mentorship work at the same jail. Together, they brought the first Authentic Relating workshop to the Boulder County Jail in January 2018.
The response was powerful. Participants, many of whom had attended Laurie's Victim Impact class, demonstrated a new level of engagement, openness, and enthusiasm. They shared how different the experience felt from other programs they had participated in, expressing that there was nothing like this program offered in the correctional system and how vital it would be to expand into the Department of Corrections regionally and nationally.
That weekend became a turning point.
Inspired by what she witnessed, Laurie began reaching out to correctional facilities across Colorado. Getting a new program inside prison walls wasn't easy, but she persisted until Centennial Correctional Facility in Cañon City opened its doors.
There, Laurie and her team brought The ART of Being Human to a group of incarcerated men with diverse backgrounds and experiences. Despite initial uncertainty about how the program would be received, participants began opening up, engaging with one another, and practicing new ways of relating.
What began as a question about the possibility of transformation was becoming something much bigger.
As the workshops expanded into additional correctional facilities, Realness Project was born from a simple but powerful belief: When people are given the opportunity to experience authentic human connection, new possibilities for change emerge.
Today, Realness Project continues to build on those beginnings, bringing relational leadership programs into correctional facilities and expanding opportunities for connection, growth, and community beyond prison walls.
Organization name
Realness Project
2018
Tax id (EIN)
83-1629445
Category
Community Improvement & Capacity Building, Civil Rights, Social Action & Advocacy, Crime & Legal-Related, Human Services, Social Science, Mental Health & Crisis Intervention
Organization Size
Medium Organization
Address
1750 30TH ST PMB 204CO, US