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OCPM’s Storybook Connections™ is a powerful program that keeps families strained by incarceration connected through the power of children’s books.
More than 1.4 million children in the US have a parent who is incarcerated.
Storybook Connections™ enables volunteers to enter a jail to record incarcerated parents reading a storybook for their child. The recording along with the book is then sent to the child, who now has a tangible connection to his or her parent.
Are you willing to coordinate a small team of volunteers?
If Storybook Connections™ is already active at a facility close to you, fill out the sign up form and we will put you in touch with the local coordinator.
If the program is not already active or you don’t know, don’t worry! We’ll work together to get it set up.
Gather a few interested friends from your church or group and fill out the Sign Up Form.
Our staff will contact you to get the ball rolling and work with a jail in your area to set the program up.
OCPM will train your group on how to run Storybook Connections™.
We will teach you how to minister and interact with the people you serve.
We will also teach you basic information about how jails and prisons work and safety protocols so that this ministry is meaningful for everyone.
Typically, you will also need to go through a training or volunteer screening and orientation at the facility you are volunteering at. Don’t worry! Our staff will help you arrange this.
Your church ministry team, the JAIL staff, and OCPM will coordinate to find a time you can consistently visit parents in the jail.
OCPM will provide your team with a list of recommended children’s books and audio equipment, and you will get to record these parents yourselves–a truly moving experience.
OCPM produces a password-protected digital recording of each parent’s reading, and your parish will send the book and the link to the recording to his or her family at home.
For possibly the first time, these children will hear their own parents reading to them, and you can imagine how powerful of a gift this is.
Sam and Jonathan Springer were surprised to receive a storybook in the mail for their two-year-old daughter. Inside the package was a letter explaining the book was sent on behalf of Sam’s mother, Christy, who was currently in jail. Even more surprising, the book came with a link to an audio recording of Christy reading the book.