The Winona County DAC has started a Pen Pal letter writing effort to assist people in building relationships and meeting others from another community. Participants at the DAC were asked if they wanted to participate. There are currently 12 adults from the Winona County DAC and 13 adults from the Wabasha County DAC who write letters back and forth to each other once every one to two weeks. To put a personal touch in this effort, the pen pals consented to having their pictures taken so the pen pals could see what each other looked like. Some individuals write their own letters, others need support and assistance from DAC staff in putting their thoughts and words down on paper.

The pen pals were able to meet each other as the individuals from the Wabasha DAC visited the Winona DAC pen pals. The pen pals went to the lake together, visited with each other, and fed the ducks together. This was an exciting event for the pen pals. The plan is to have the individuals from the Winona DAC travel to Wabasha and do an activity together. Kathy hopes to continue the visits on a regular basis.

Kathy reports that individuals who have participated in the pen pal effort have opened up more and look forward to sending mail and getting mail from their pen pals. The pen pals really enjoyed getting together and meeting each other in person. Some pen pals have shown an interest in visiting their pen pal on their own with support and planning activities with their pen pals.