As the COVID crisis continues and restrictions are slowly released at Camp there is a continued need to increase book donations, weekly magazine mailings and daily Corrlinks correspondence to those suffering boredom/anxiety/lethargy at Camp.

6/1/2020  Sent two new special request books to a White Collar Advice client at Greenville Camp.  Book donations don’t only help the recipient in filling their days with activities but also the many men and women that share in the experience as books are redistributed/shared across Camps.

6/6/2020  Sent two new special request books to a woman at FMC Lexington Camp.

6/6/2020  Sent four new books to a woman at Greenville Camp for a book club she started to pass the time while in lockdown due to the protests/riots.

6/13/2020  Sent ten new dictionaries to Appalachian Prison Book Project from their wish list.  Now that some Book Programs are re-opening they are accepting books again.

“By mailing books, facilitating prison book clubs, and offering college courses in prison, APBP celebrates creative expression and defends the liberties that make it possible; champions the freedom to read and write, recognizes the power of literature to transform individuals and societies; and supports educational, vocational, and personal development for people who are locked up.” – appalachianprisonbookproject.org

6/16/2020  Sent two new books on weight loss to a woman at FMC Lexington Camp to assist in her weight loss journey.  Encouraging people to take control of their health while at Camp is a way not only to pass the time constructively but to help people leave Camp healthier to re-calibrate their lives.

6/16/2020  Sent ten new dictionaries to Chicago Books to Women in Prison.  Book Library Programs have been slow to open due to regional COVID restrictions and don’t have the facilities to hold books.  In this case Chicago BWP has partnered with a locally owned bookstore (Women and Children First in Chicago, IL) to hold items that are purchased from their wish list.

“Chicago Books to Women in Prison is an all-volunteer group that distributes paperback books free of charge to incarcerated people nationwide, focusing on all women and trans/non-binary people. We are dedicated to offering the opportunity for self-empowerment, education and entertainment that reading provides.

Currently we send books to state prisons in Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi and Ohio, as well as all federal prisons. We do not send books to jails and other short-term facilities outside Chicago.” – chicagobwp.org

6/24/2020   Sent three new special request books to the Greenville Book Club at Greenville Camp to the ladies that formed this group during lockdown.

Continue to assist recently released women with employment opportunities as well as addressing the mental anxiety associated with returning to society.  Post Camp life is more stressful than Camp life and requires just as much (if not more) attention and support.

“A failure is not always a mistake. It may simply be the best one can do under the circumstances. The real mistake is to stop trying.”  – B. F. Skinner