Held at six week intervals, the Marathons are group counselling sessions offered to prisoners as a non-institutional program.  Marathons are a place where volunteers and prisoners can meet to share concerns, support each other, and grow personally.

Dr. Taylor was primarily a group-centred leader with a focus on the inner potential of group members. He saw, and encouraged others to see, “ordinary people as behaviour change agents" and to understand our shared task of mobilizing the growth-eliciting capacities of each other.  In a Marathon gathering, "ordinary people are found to have potent resources for feedback, insight, criticism, forgiveness, care and affection.”

Marathons continue to be offered at Springhill Institution and have recently begun to be offered at Nova Institution for Women in Truro, NS.  Leaders for each of the groups emerged from existing volunteers. 

Originally, the Marathons took place over twenty-six continuous hours, but a security breach at the prison during a Marathon at Springhill Institution necessitated restructuring. The program now spans two days of eight to ten hours each.

“Continuous involvement without interruption is felt to be of prime importance leading to consequences different from intermittent routine sessions. The powerful impact of an experience which emphasizes intimacy and face-to-face encounter rather than emphasizing either the exploration or explanation of pathology leads to unexpected possibilities for growth and change.”

The prison chapel is the setting for the Marathon event. It is a building apart from the other institutional structures within the perimeter fence of the prison, and so there is a sense of privacy and separation from the institution system. Soft lighting and carpeted floor help create a comfortable, quiet setting. Drapes are closed and the outer door locked to prevent unwanted distractions and interruptions. Chairs placed in a circle allow each person to see others in the circle during interactions. Coffee, tea, juice are on a back table, and baked goods, which have been brought in by the outside volunteers, are available throughout the two days.

All participants attend voluntarily.  Some prisoners may be recommended for the program as a step towards parole, but participation is always voluntary.  The group is “self-generating in that participants who experience benefit from the group encourage their friends to request to have their names put on the waiting list.” The prison chaplains keep a waiting list of prisoners asking to attend, and as prisoners who have been attending are released from prison or granted parole, the openings created are filled from this list.

Volunteers from outside the prison usually have been invited to the Marathons by someone who has been attending regularly. They include chaplains, university students, clergy, and others who are interested in personal growth.

Over the years, the norms of the group have solidified into a covenant which outlines the commitment and responsibilities of each group member. Each Marathon begins with the covenant read in unison, followed by the Marathon prayer.