BECOME A PENPAL WITH SOMEONE WHO IS INCARCERATED - USPS ONLY Option - PERMITS THE USE OF AN ALIAS

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BECOME A PENPAL WITH SOMEONE WHO IS INCARCERATED - USPS ONLY Option; PERMITS USING AN "ALIAS"

Food for Children, Inc. has established a program to provide PenPals to those who are in prison. Our mission is to share normal conversation, stories, and true friendship with those who are incarcerated; and to give them a connection to society beyond prison walls. To volunteer, you must be at least 18 years old. We also work to provide food, clothing, education and other assistance to the poor especially in developing nations.

WHAT IS NEEDED AND WHY: This is a PenPal correspondence opportunity using the regular USPS hard-copy mail option ONLY. Volunteer as a PenPal Correspondent with someone who is incarcerated. Make a huge difference in his/her life. You will enrich your life as well. This USPS hard-copy mail-only option permits you to use an ALIAS.

HISTORYOF THE PENPAL PROGRAM - Jeff’s Second Family PenPal Ministry was co-founded by Harold Jeff Morrison, an inmate of the Texas Correctional System, in partnership with Delilah Finkley Acquaah and Richard Holley, and with the assistance of Food For Children Inc. (a not-for-profit hunger relief organization located in New York City). Jeff’s Second Family PenPal Ministry is open to all prisoners and welcomes PenPal volunteers from every walk of life who want to make a difference. Please consider devoting a few minutes, whenever possible, to correspond with someone who is in prison. Prisoners lose hope because their connections with family and friends are often broken. Jeff’s Second Family PenPal Ministry is a community of caring people who believe in second chances.

WHERE: Volunteering is done from the comfort of your own home at your own pace.

METHOD: To use the USPS-ONLY mail option, you can select an Inmate, write a hard-copy letter and send it on to the Inmate at his prison via the US Postal Service. USING THIS USPS ONLY METHOD, YOU CAN ALSO CHOOSE TO USE AN ALIAS, instead of using your real name, if this option is more comfortable for you. Please let the Ministry know what ALIAS you select, and provide your email address to us, so that once a letter comes in to the Ministry for you, we can scan it and forward it on to you via email and using your name or ALIAS.

RETURN ADDRESS: On your hand-written letter to the Inmate, AS YOUR RETURN ADDRESS THAT YOU INCLUDE AT THE TOP OF EACH LETTER TO THE INMATE, PLEASE USE:

Jeff’s Second Family PenPal Ministry
c/o Food For Children, Inc.
70-22 165th Street
Flushing, NY 11365
ATTN: (Place Your First Name or ALIAS Here)

Once I receive the Inmate’s reply to your hand-written letter sent in to the Ministry address, I will open it, scan it, and forward it to you via your email address. The same process will repeat going forward.

IMPORTANT: Should you decide to correspond with one or more of these Inmate(s), please let me know so that I may update my spreadsheet. This helps me keep track of those Inmates who are still without a PenPal Volunteer. Thank you.

REQUIREMENTS:

• To volunteer, you must be at least 18 years old.
• Our MISSION is to share normal conversation, stories, and true friendship with those who are incarcerated; to give them a connection to society beyond prison walls.
• When writing letters to an Inmate, please include our return address at the top of your letter: Jeff’s Second Family PenPal Ministry, c/o Food For Children, Inc. 70-22 165th Street, Flushing, NY 11365, ATTN: YOUR NAME or ALIAS.
• If interested in volunteering, please email Richard Holley at rholley58@aol.com to begin. In the email Subject Line, please include: Jeff’s Second Family PenPal Ministry - USPS ONLY OPTION.
• Once you decide to volunteer, we will scan and email you one or more letters from Inmates requesting a PenPal via UPSP-ONLY. If you accept one of these Inmates as your PenPal, we will provide you with the Inmate’s information necessary to begin your correspondence.
• When you write your first e-messaging letter to your Inmate PenPal, it could be just a quick "hello" and perhaps respond to something mentioned in their INTRO letter.
• Never include your personal email address, phone number, or physical mailing address when sending letters to the Inmate. Use the Ministry's Return Mailing Address described above.
• Your relationship with your Inmate PenPal should be based upon mutual respectfulness and will evolve naturally over time as you become more comfortable with each other. The main goal is for your Inmate PenPal to know that he or she is not forgotten by all society beyond their prison walls.
• YOU CAN MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE IN SOMEONE’S LIFE.

THANK YOU!!