Sonny is the sunny one!

Sonny writes to HUMANITY FOR PRISONERS from behind bars: 

I’m writing to let you know that I appreciate your help. I’ve been dealing with this situation for over two decades and I’m glad that you exist. I have lost a lot of family, friends and loved ones over the years, and their support. HFP is that ray of sunshine when one feels hopeless! It will not be forgotten or underappreciated! 

Sonny then goes on to give us the name of an incarcerated friend, asking if we can shine a little sunshine on him, as well. 

Sonny doesn’t realize that we’re on a two-way street. 

It’s true that we love spreading sunshine. With 50 to 100 calls and messages coming in everyday, all dealing with prison problems and issues, members of our team will do their very best to help brighten someone’s day. 

BUT, it’s also important for us to let Sonny and his friends know that the reverse is also true: they shed heavenly light on our dreary days! Those 50 to 100 calls weigh on our hearts and minds, so a kind message to HFP means a lot, as well. 

Sonny’s message is not uncommon. Yet we cherish every one of them! 

And we feel the sunshine in other ways. 

Two incarcerated persons sent donations to HFP last week!

One person behind bars sent a reservation to the HFP Unball!

Residents of an Ionia facility sent a $500 gift from their Prisoner Benefit Fund! 

So, to you and your friends Sonny, thanks for brightening our day! 

“Let there always be a bright spot in your heart for the people around you. They might need a bit of sunshine.”

― Ron Baratono

 

 

 

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Half-a-race!

The HFP Drag-Racing Fund-Raiser had the potential of being extremely successful, and could have raised several thousand dollars. Let's just say it was partly successful. For background purposes I'll explain that I was racing a 1963 supercharged Studebaker Lark that has a reputation of being one of the fastest stock Studebakers in drag racing today. The engine was built by one of the finest Studebaker engine mechanics in the country, and the car many times has achieved quarter-mile runs in less than 14 seconds! We promised to make at least ten passes in the Pure Stock Muscle Car Drags at Mid-Michigan Motorplex in Stanton, Michigan, this past weekend, and we asked for pledges ONLY ON THOSE RUNS REACHED IN LESS THAN 14 SECONDS. On Friday, here's how we fared: Run #1 13.936 @ 101.24 mph Run #2 14.027 @ 101.30 mph Run #3 14.091 @ 100.88 mph Run #4 13.805 @ 102.84 mph Run #5 14.058 @ 101.26 mph By the 5th run we discovered that ...
Read more

Gregory John McCormick: 1964-2008

Itchy is dead. The lifeless body of this talented rock musician, whose band Shock Therapy was a popular group especially in Europe, was found in a field in Detroit last Wednesday, November 5. The Wayne County Coroner's office informed father Glenn McCormick that the body of his son Gregory, better known to all of us as Itchy, bore no signs of trauma. Glenn said that Itchy, who had been living at his father's dental lab in Detroit, had been drinking to excess for some time. While the toxicology report has not been released yet, the general consensus seems to be that he drank himself to death. Our agency, while still named INNOCENT, first got involved with Itchy in 2005. The Detroit native, who called Germany his home, got involved in some unfortunate activity that placed him in the Michigan State prison system on a charge of arson of a dwelling. It was really just a bonfire in an alley, but an alleged parole violation placed him in prison for 1-20 years. I personally sat w...
Read more

Three lives, connected by a divine thread

My kids say it should be a book! The Doug, Pat and Mark story is a doozie!   About 25 years ago, while fighting to free Maurice Carter from prison, I read a newspaper column written by Pat Shellenbarger of the Grand Rapids Press on the topic of eyewitness identification. I contacted Pat re that story. That led to a friendship between Doug and Pat that continues to this day.   In subsequent months, Pat would go on to assist me in an investigation into the Maurice Carter case that eventually led to solving the crime.  That particular episode became a chapter in my book about the Carter case, SWEET FREEDOM, published in 2006.   Fast forward to 2009, A New York businessman claims wrongful conviction, and while serving time in a Michigan prison is handed a copy of my book. Mark Hartman, who was also convicted in Berrien County, was amazed at the similarity of these two stories and tried to reach out to me. His letters bounced.   Persisting in his efforts to c...
Read more