Over 200 San Quentin Rehabilitation Center residents packed Chapel B for expressive arts night, one of the many events in efforts to raise awareness during mental health week.

SQRC Mental Health faculty greeted residents as they handed out toothbrushes, beef jerky, stress balls, and sticky labels with positive messages.

Resident and Master of Ceremony Henok Rufael spoke to the audience about the importance of addressing and dealing with mental health issues. 

Rufael said mental health issues don’t just affect residents, it affects correctional staff as well, and they both face the same problems.

According to UC Berkeley’s research 31% of Correctional Officers have contemplated suicide, compared to 3% of the rest of the public. Prison staff has high rates of suicide, depression and substance abuse due to job related stress.

Resident Carlo Huertas arrived at SQRC less than a year ago; this is his first time in prison. 

He said that substance abuse and poor mental health led him to make bad decisions, which eventually landed him in prison. He feels very lucky to be at San Quentin because of all the self-help groups and support available.

Huertas has an ambition of the positive influence of his peers, which enable him to keep an open mind. 

“I like to be surrounded by positive people and make new friends,” Huertas said. “Being here helps me avoid my anxiety and mental problems.”

The Bureau of Justice statistics reported that 43% of incarcerated people suffer from mental illness. 

In the process of raising awareness about mental health, residents brought musical art forms to the event.

The talent ranged from a variety of performances such as poetry, punk rock, and country. 

Resident Stiue Tolvao regularly performs reggae music but today he performed a country song that made everyone in the room hoot and holler.  

The rock band 115’s, brought the house down with their original song titled “How much is the cost?” 

What does mental illness really cost? According to the National Library of Medicine people with mental illness are twice as likely to be unemployed, 35.1%, compared to 17.1% for adults without mental illness.

The effects of losing a family member while incarcerated can have a devastating impact.

Resident and musician Patrick Piceno said his mother was his “rock” (Biggest supporter), she passed away on December 12, 2024, and her death brought him so much pain he couldn’t perform or compose music.

He added that his mental state enabled him to engage in self destructive behavior. Months passed, and then one night Piceno had a dream that unlocked something inside of him. 

Piceno wrote his first song titled “Elizabeth in December” about losing his mother, which he performed in her memory.

Piceno had some advice for SQ residents who have lost a loved one during their incarceration.

“The hole in your heart will always be there, try to remember the things about them that make you laugh and smile,” he said.