Seattle Now is a weekday podcast produced by public radio station KUOW. Beginning at six minutes, board member Andy Chan describes how we adapted to quarantine. Volunteers from Real Change and The Museum of Flight are interviewed as well. This 15-minute program begins with a round-up of efforts to protest and prevent deaths of people … Continue reading How the pandemic changed the volunteer experience at Books to Prisoners
2012 Letter Total
For the first time since records have been kept, BTP has received fewer letters than the year before. BTP received 13,566 letters in 2012 compared to 14,914 in 2011. For BTP it is a welcome breather as it has been incredibly difficult to keep up with the constantly growing numbers of requests. One thing that … Continue reading 2012 Letter Total
BTP wins 'Light a Fire' Award
Books to Prisoners is one of 12 Seattle nonprofits recognized for the Seattle Foundation's "Light a Fire" awards.
Reading through a Whole Sentence
Why does sending books to prisoners matter? Find out in "Reading through a Whole Sentence," a two part July article about Books to Prisoners in the University of Washington Daily.
The U.S.’s growing for-profit detention system
In a new study, the investigative journalism group ProPublica reports on the shocking growth of the private detention industry. More than half of Louisiana’s 40,000 inmates are housed in prisons run by sheriffs or private companies as part of a broader financial incentive scheme. The detention business goes beyond just criminal prisoners. Nearly half of … Continue reading The U.S.’s growing for-profit detention system
No lunch for Texas prisoners
Last week I saw the Hollywood film "Bernie." It's based on a true story of a Texas man who kills his companion and is convicted and remains incarcerated in an East Texas prison. Overall, I enjoyed the movie, as it does a good job of depicting what life is like in a small East Texas … Continue reading No lunch for Texas prisoners
Redemptive Reading
Just read a fascinating article on a novel approach (pun intended) to prisoner rehabilitation in Brazil involving reading. Check it out: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=10816317
BTP wins okay to send used books to Washington women’s prison
BTP is working hard to get used books into WA prisons. In 2009 the Olympia BTP branch talked with the head of the state Department of Corrections, and persuaded him to allow us to send used books into low security prisons in WA. In 2010 we were allowed to send used books into the minimum-maximum … Continue reading BTP wins okay to send used books to Washington women’s prison
Hieroglyphics turn prisoner away from a life of crime
"The extent of this guy's self-taught scholarship is mind-boggling," said the review's editor, Hershel Shanks, adding that his staff had grown "quite fond" of Fenstermacher. "I wonder how a man could come from such difficulty and achieve such heights of scholarship." Read the entire article »
Read Now: Hitting The Books
“You open up these letters and read, ‘I’m in solitary confinement 23 hours a day; I like these kinds of books.' When you get these letters, you can really sense the kind of isolation they feel.”