Meet Cindy, Featured Volunteer for August 2026

What got you interested in BTP to begin with, or what made you start volunteering? Does it tie in to the rest of your life in any meaningful way?

I signed up after reading an article about BTP in our neighborhood blog. The article said that BTP had moved to a permanent location and was up to 5 months behind in shipping books to incarcerated individuals. At the time, I was reading a book, “So Am I: What Teaching In A Prison Taught Me.” It is an inspiring book written by a woman who taught in a maximum security prison. Her book highlights the desire by so many inmates to read and improve their skills while they are behind bars. I figured the least I could do was to help get books into their hands more quickly!

Is there anything you especially like about volunteering with us? What are your favorite parts of the process?

I love the analog aspect of reading handwritten letters, and knowing you are reaching a specific person with your efforts. Soon after getting trained, I started wrapping (also known as “quality control”). In this role, I review what a volunteer selected as books and can add or switch out books if I know of a better match. I quickly became curious about where our books were coming from and signed up to get trained to sort and shelve our book donations. From there, I have worked to expand our sources of quality paperback books, particularly through partnerships with the Friends of Seattle Public Library and other library support groups. In June 2026, I joined the BTP Board. 

Everybody starts off by responding to letters, even if they eventually move on to wrapping or other tasks. Some of the letters can be memorable. Are there any requests that surprised you, or that you remember standing out in any way?

There are so many memorable letters! One of my favorites was one written by a Native American inmate who had beautiful handwriting and requested dozens of specific titles and authors, using red ink for the authors and black ink for the titles. At the time, we didn’t have many of the titles he requested. Thankfully, we have expanded our Native American history section since that time.

In the time that you’ve been here, do you think that your views on the prison system, or what it’s like to be incarcerated, have changed? Please feel free to talk about those views if you would like.

Through the letters, I’ve discovered that prison libraries often don’t exist or have very limited collections. I remember one inmate saying the prison books didn’t match their interests (skill building). They said the collection was mostly romance and westerns and set before computers and cell phones were invented. I’ve kept that inmate’s letter in mind as I’ve expanded our inventory of more recently published books.

Do you have any book recommendations for us? Is there anything you especially like to read in your spare time?

Yes! I have read several books to help me understand problems with our justice and carceral systems, including:

• Picking Cotton: Our Memoir of Injustice and Redemption

• The Tragedy of True Crime: Four Guilty Men and the Stories That Define Us

• The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row

• So Am I: What Teaching In A Prison Taught Me

• Just Mercy 

Are there any other parting words that you’d like to share with whoever is reading this?

I believe there is goodness in each of us, and too often we focus our attention on the worst thing a person did and then define the individual by that.