From even the first day of my internship, my boss Kiki Dunston told me that taking time to do small things with and for the people Hudson Link helps is critical. Hudson Link alumni are better off than most formerly incarcerated people by virtue of having access to Hudson Link’s services, which could provide them free higher education, housing, and job connections. However, they are still a vulnerable group: discrimination against justice involved people, in addition to the traumatic conditions of jails and prisons, make formerly incarcerated people more susceptible to poverty and mental health issues. I knew Kiki’s advice was sound after my first week. She had tasked me with calling all the Hudson Link alumni living in Long Island to remind them of an upcoming event. I spoke to many people on the phone who I later met at the event as I gathered everyone’s contact information to update our database. I could tell that the conversations I had with people at the event were as meaningful to them as to me: people opened up about their transition from prison to the outside, what their work or religion meant to them in the context of reformation, and how their relationships to society had changed. I was shocked at how earnestly people opened up to me, a stranger, but then I remembered my boss’s advice: taking time for every single person is important. Being present and engaged in those conversations gave the person I was talking to a couple minutes of catharsis, and gave me a stronger sense of purpose as I connected with the people we were helping. Kiki’s advice has stuck with me past my internship, and I truly feel the value of taking a bit of time for every person that crosses my path.