Letter from the Prison Ministry

Saturday, December 18, 2021

Merry Christmas Holy Family,

Thank you all for the thoughts, prayers, and beautiful cards. All of you made my year. 

On behalf of all of the men at the prison, I would like to thank all of the members of the Nashville Catholic Dioceses for the socks. I don’t have the words to express how much the men love receiving them. Something as simple as a good pair of socks means the world in here.

Some of you have written to me throughout the pandemic with words of encouragement and thoughtful cards. Thank you Kay Baker, Anna Panier, and Candy for taking the time to send them. A very special thanks to the young person who took the time to draw me a picture of candy canes. I enjoyed it very much and several of the other men who received cards from the Holy Family School have commented that the homemade cards and letters were their favorites.

A few of the cards I received had questions about what it is like in prison this time of year and how we spend our time. I work a full time job transcribing textbooks into braille for children with vision impairments. News Five was here a couple weeks ago and did a report on the program. I am one of the five who have earned the advanced certification in braille.

I am also a full time college student enrolled with both NSCC and Lipscomb University. I have completed 3 semesters of college with NSCC and maintain a 4.0 average. Life for me starts at 6 am and goes until 11 pm. Braille and college courses require hours of study. I am very grateful for the opportunity to learn, give back and be productive. I look forward to using the skills that I am being afforded the opportunity to learn. I am scheduled to be released at the end of 2024. 

Christmas in prison is a slow time. There are few decorations and most of the programming stops so that volunteers and staff can spend time with their families. The highlight, of course, is the care packages supplied by the Churches of Nashville.

It truly is a blessing to know that even though I am in prison I am being thought of and prayed for. I know that all of the men here greatly appreciate the thoughtfulness. 

Peace be with you all.

Vic