Ask yourself these questions:

• Do I have a strong desire and willingness to care and pray for those who have been found guilty of harming innocent people?
• Can I honestly accept prisoners and other people who are different from myself in background and culture?
• If I have prejudices against prisoners, am I willing to put them aside and continue to visit if I believe prisoners are being helped?
• Am I willing to continue to visit, even in the face of rejection, if I believe prisoners are being helped?
• Do I truly believe the inner direction of a person’s life can change - even a habitual criminal or drug addict?
• Am I on an ego trip seeking self-satisfaction or the praise of people, or are my efforts dedicated to the betterment of the prisoners?
• Am I ready to commit myself for a year or more to a two to four-hour weekly visit and/or other requirements of my time?

Prisoners need to know someone cares. All too often, families of prisoners ignore or forsake them when they are incarcerated, perhaps paving the way for a basically good person who made some wrong choices to become a hardened criminal. And even hardened criminals may respond positively to genuine concern and caring. Relatively few people become involved in prison ministry; thus, an extremely critical need is unfulfilled.

Non-judgmental love and compassion can break through barriers nothing else can touch. However, for the safety of society, incarceration is necessary. Can I identify with someone suffering from - rejection or abuse by parents… lack of education… a miserable childhood…previous time in jail?

The very compassion and love that compel one to visit prisoners makes an objective response difficult at times. Responses need to be considered thoughtfully and made objectively for the benefit of the prisoner.

Talk with others involved in prison visitation. Contact the chaplain or religious coordinator at your local jail or prison for opportunities and guidance. Attend prison seminars and enroll in courses dealing with “people skills” and interpersonal communications.

Information on current seminars may be available at your local library or public information office. You may contact us for a current list of references. Community colleges and night schools offer helpful courses. The easiest way to get started is to work with an experienced person as a member of a team.

Be natural. Introduce yourself as a friend - avoid titles and a patronizing manner. Recognize the value of a positive rather than a negative approach, especially to prisoners already saturated with negatives. Look for areas of common interest. You may feel uneasy at first. Focus on your purpose in being there- look beyond the visible for good in each person.

Many will respond positively when approached with understanding and genuine concern. Trust is established after consistent demonstration that your life and concern match your words. Even then, many may talk very little. Some will even curse you and want nothing to do with you at all. The volunteer needs to observe the prisoner over a period of time and move on to others if no positive responses are evident in his or her life.

Juvenile detention halls and reformatories, correctional camps, and work release centers and farms vary considerably in the level of security, and often offer more opportunities for religious volunteers and for more types of programs.

Prisoners are often filled with self-hatred and feel they are junk. Understanding, acceptance of self worth, value and dignity may be learned from a Christian volunteer who sees Christ in each individual.

Keep in mind at all times that by going to a penal institution you are in “somebody else’s” house. It is imperative to quickly learn and adhere strictly to all rules. Security is crucial. Confer with the staff before doing anything, and do nothing without approval. Inflexible rules include: take nothing in or out of the facility, not even a letter or stamp, without the institution’s express approval. Do not assume anything, however insignificant it may seem.

The staff and others in authority can give little personal attention to prisoners. The volunteer is another person from the outside with whom the prisoner may talk, form a friendship and to whom he/she may look as a role model. Almost every person in prison has family members who are seriously affected. When permitted, the volunteer can be a great help and comfort. He/she can also help the prison administrator by aiding released prisoners in adjusting to life out in the world again. A volunteer can be a channel of information and encourage others to volunteer.

The staff is the leader and the volunteer is the follower. The staff is responsible for all activities in the prison or jail and is held responsible if something goes wrong. Independence and arrogance are not pleasing for anyone, and totally unacceptable for a volunteer in prison work. Submission to authority is imperative.

Many organizations exist that present a positive image to young people, such as Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Boy and Girl Scouts, community groups, church groups…Acquaint yourself with these resources and other positive groups so you may readily encourage participation.

Organizations exist to respond to prisoners’ needs for friendship and caring such as: Prison Fellowship, Friend’s Outside, M-2, Kairos. At times, circumstances do not permit contact with prisoners’ families and, when permitted, prison volunteers can bring comfort and hope to families of prisoners, as well as suggesting helpful agencies to assist in their particular needs.

Men, women and children are in the various types of institutions. Over 1,500,000 may be confined in the U.S. at any one time and several million pass through jails in the course of a year. Most are in prison for robbery, burglary, murder and drug offenses. Many children are abused or rejected by parents and on the streets; they are often put in detention centers because no other place is found for them, even many who have committed no crime. For large numbers of people in trouble, few alternatives to imprisonment exist in our nation, which has the highest ratio of inmates to total citizens of any democratic country.

Prison inmates have been tried and convicted of crimes; those in jail may be awaiting trial. Jail population is transient and few jails have facilities for counseling or rehabilitation. A prison is under the jurisdiction of either federal or state, while the jail holds people accused under federal, state, county and/or city laws. A jail holds inmates from two days to a year. Jails usually offer less services than prisons, with more crowding, virtually no privacy, blaring noise and enforced boredom- a prison/jail volunteer must be flexible and adjust to all situations and conditions.

Many prisons and most jails have few, if any, volunteers to visit prisoners. The need exceeds what is currently being done.

There is less risk inside a prison or jail, designed for security, than in the drive across town to get there! By following the rules and leadership of the staff, potential problems are reduced and often eliminated.

After careful consideration of the foregoing questions, only you can decide. May God grant you guidance and direction.