Then last year, Wilger's husband was diagnosed with cancer.

"We've received fantastic support from our African-American friends we met through the Dayton Dialogue," Wilger said. "This is a community that hardly knew Jim and me, and they continuously ask how he's doing and say how much they're praying for him."

Without the Dialogue, it's unlikely these two women would have met.

"Ann and I feel for each other, understand each other and support each other," said Norman-Turner, program manager for the Dayton Dialogue. "That's the personal, spiritual part. You just can't measure that."

The Dayton Dialogue on Race Relations is a community initiative that uses honest conversation, understanding and action to bring people of different races together through conversations held in living rooms, churches, schools and workplaces throughout the Miami Valley. In a typical Dialogue, a dozen men and women – balanced by race and led by a facilitator – meet several times, 12 hours total. They talk about community, ethnicity, discrimination, diversity, division, history, privilege, social structures, separation, forgiveness, repentance, reconciliation, hope and action.

"Participating in the dialogues was a very comfortable experience," said Marilyn Shannon, a senior program officer of The Dayton Foundation. "People listened without interrupting. It's so enlightening to hear everyone's stories. It really increased my awareness about what has happened to people of a different race."

To support the program, The Dayton Foundation awarded a $25,000 grant in 2000 and another in 2002. These grants have helped 1,200 individuals connect through more than 80 inter-racial dialogues. "You're changed, not from the outside in, but from the inside out," said Norman-Turner. "That's how you end the negatives."

According to a 2002 report evaluating the Dayton Dialogue, more than 93 percent of participants responding said the sessions met their expectations, and more than two-thirds called their sessions very positive.

"It allowed me to vocalize the things I wanted to vocalize," said African-American par-ticipant David T. Dewberry. "Before the Dialogue, I was apathetic, busy with my own life. But you can be part of the problem or part of the solution. Going to a Dialogue lets you be part of the solution."

Participant John Fraser, who is white, said he learned things about himself that had been hidden. "Feelings are revealed," he said. "The one-on-one conversations let us chip away at racism at the grassroots level."

Chief U.S. District Judge Walter H. Rice and former Judge Adele M. Riley co-chair the program. "To say we are going to solve racial problems is naive," Riley said. "But we hope to make a sizable dent."

Already Riley has seen changes. "As participants go through the process, you begin to see an illumination from people of both races," she said. "That tells you there has been an internal change."

But the dialogues are more than just talk. Groups devise action plans to further racial reconciliation. "Many participants have continued to meet," Riley said. "They're getting together socially, attending picnics and parties, and going to the theater, movies and church together." One Dialogue group recognized 35 African-American World War II veterans during a Day of Honor ceremony in May 2001. "It was such an emotionally charged event," Norman-Turner said. "Some of the veterans were crying. One gentleman said, 'This is the first time I've been honored like this.'" Norman-Turner believes the ultimate outcome from a Dialogue is personal change. "Someone who might have used a derogatory term to refer to another race may no longer do so after participating in a Dialogue, or may tell someone else to stop referring to people that way," she said. "Little by little, one by one, we can change individuals."

The Dayton Dialogue parallels a Dayton Foundation leadership initiative to mobilize people and resources to promote multicultural diversity and harmony as a regional strength. Judge Rice said the Dialogue attempts to create harmonious environments where people of all races feel comfortable, appreciated and valued. He hopes Dialogue participants spread the word about their experiences, so there's a ripple effect in the community.

"We'd like to see those who have gone through a Dialogue reach out to the fence-sitters," Rice said, "and say, 'This actually works. I feel good about what I went through, and you ought to do it too.'"

If you would like to participate in an upcoming Dialogue, please contact Audrey Norman-Turner at (937) 228-7277 or at alnt46@aol.com.

"The Dayton Dialogue is a process that moves you from head and heart into action."
– Audrey Norman-Turner, program manager, Dayton Dialogue

"The dialogues give all of us a chance to speak up, to say how we feel. There's an agreement that we will listen to each other with respect."
– Ann Wilger, Dialogue participant and facilitator

"We talked about our backgrounds, what we've done, where we've lived, our religion and our churches, our family and our family legacies. We listened. It opened up clear lines of communication."
– David T. Dewberry, Dialogue participant

"We shared stories. Through the dialogues, we heard what has happened to people as individuals, and we experienced that with them."
– John Fraser, Dialogue participant

"The dialogues have made me more careful about what I say. I'm really listening and thinking a lot more before I speak."
– Ann Wilger, Dialogue participant and facilitator

"For me, the dialogues were a reawakening. You have to open yourself up to learn more, to experience more. Now I'm more open to the different viewpoints of different cultures."
– David T. Dewberry, Dialogue participant

"Because of the dialogues, I've done a lot of reading about slavery and civil rights. The dialogues have broadened my perspective, and made me more aware of white privilege."
– Ann Wilger, Dialogue participant and facilitator

"The dialogues taught me that if you want a difference, you have to be the difference. To be the difference, you have to be involved."
– David T. Dewberry, Dialogue participant

"The dialogues are life-changing."
– Audrey Norman-Turner, program manager, Dayton Dialogue

"The Dialogue makes it OK to talk about race and discrimination in a way that's not OK at any other time."
– John Fraser, Dialogue participant

"I heard the perspectives from both the majority and minority participants, and there was a lot of common ground. When you're talking about things like families and values, there weren't a whole lot of differences."
– David T. Dewberry, Dialogue participant

"To make progress on the issue of racism, we've got to get to know each other as people. That's the crux of the Dayton Dialogue."
– Ann Wilger, Dialogue participant and facilitator

"A few hours of shared stories goes a long way toward breaking down the unconscious training we get from society."
– John Fraser, Dialogue participant

"As long as we are still talking, there is always hope, no matter what the disagreement. Just talking about our differences is a change."
– Ann Wilger, Dialogue participant and facilitator

"Because the dialogues make us more aware of how we think and feel about people of other races, we're in a better position to manage any conflicts that might result from our differences."
– Audrey Norman-Turner, program manager, Dayton Dialogue

"The dialogues are building a network of people who know how to talk and relate to one another. As a result, we have the infrastructure to deal with potentially divisive community incidents. Other cities don't have that."
– Chief U.S. District Judge Walter H. Rice, co-chair, Dayton Dialogue on Race Relations