Why writing letters is so important

My friend Cindy heard the HFP pitch for Project Window, our pen pal program involving prisoners, and hesitantly agreed to give it a try. We provided the name of a female inmate who had indicated an interest in receiving a letter. Cindy was disappointed that, after she finally made up her mind to take this big step, she didn't receive a reply.

She stopped me in church this morning. "My lady finally wrote back to me," she said. She was so pleased, and said that she received a very nice letter.

Why had it taken to long?

The inmate confessed to Cindy that she was nervous about writing. While it took an amount of courage on Cindy's part to write a letter to a prisoner, turns out it also took an amount of courage on the prisoner's part to respond.

In her letter to Cindy the woman explained that she has no contact with the outside world any more.

We see that often. Many prisoners agree that after about ten years, contacts with family members and friends start to die off. For many prisoners, it drops off to nothing. No contacts. No word from family or friends. Can you imagine it? Think about your activities today. The people you talk to. Your communication in person, on the phone, on the computer...all of your conversation with people you know. What if it were to stop? Completely!

That's exactly why our Project Window is so very important. Cindy didn't realize it when she finally decided to take the plunge...she may be the only contact for this prisoner in the outside world. She may be the only friend of that inmate. What a privilege. What a responsibility.

God bless Cindy for daring to take this step.

God bless all who agree to befriend a prisoner, even if the effort isn't returned.

Jesus was pretty firm in his words. He wants us to do it.

We'll help to get you started.

Comments

Unknown said…
Long before 1300 numbers and communication gadgets are made, pen palling have already been an important tool for socialization and long distance communication.
October 15, 2013 at 9:54 PM
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