Participation requires patience and persistence, as many things can interfere with your attempt to exchange letters with your match. Letter writers (“LWs”) who are not incarcerated can become busy with work, family, and other personal concerns. Incarcerated LWs don’t always have access to paper, pens, envelopes and stamps (and often aren’t allowed to receive these from “outside”); they can be transferred with no notice; their personal property can be trashed or ‘lost’ while they’re out of their cells/dorms; problems in their prison can cause delays in the processing of mail.

We ask our LWs to exchange letters about once a month, and there’s no requirement to wait for a response. If you have more to say than your match, you can write again before you receive a reply. If your match writes more often than you care to, you can reply to several letters with one of yours. In time, each match will find its own pace. It’s a good idea to start every letter by giving the date(s) of the letter(s) you’ve received since you last wrote, and the date(s) of any letter(s) that you’ve sent IF you’re not sure your match received them. If you write and don’t hear back, then write again! If you send two letters with no reply in over two months, notify the CLF staff.

In response to concerns among “free-world” applicants about unsolicited contacts from inmates, it is CLF’s practice to give/use only the first name of our free-world LWs. Incarcerated LWs will address their letters as shown below:

Prison Ministry – Attn: FirstName
Church of the Larger Fellowship
24 Farnsworth Street
Boston, MA 02210-1409

CLF staff will relay their unopened letters to their free-world match. Addressing in this way allows CLF to watch for address changes, and to see which matches are still active and which are faltering. It is also a regular reminder that both LW’s are participating in a ministry sponsored by CLF, and that CLF’s Prison Ministry Director remains available to both letter writers for advice/support and to help address problems, concerns, etc.

CLF’s only expectation from participants in this program is an exchange of friendly letters on topics of mutual interest. We hope you will exchange letters for at least six months (and you may continue longer if both LW’s wish), but we can also assist in ending a match. If you come to some difficulty or ‘discomfort’ in your match, or just feel that you don’t wish to continue, please contact CLF’s Prison Ministry staff so we can help address any problems that may have arisen and/or help bring your match to a ‘caring conclusion’. We’d rather avoid matches that end with participants wondering why they never heard back from their match, or feeling bad that they just ‘quit writing’ with no explanation.

All applicants must agree to abide by these Guidelines in order to participate:

• It is the goal of CLF’s Letter Writing Ministry to match incarcerated members of the CLF with free-world Unitarian Universalists for the exchange of friendly letters between fellow UUs. CLF’s letter writing matches are not made for romantic, financial/gift or legal-aid interactions. Requests for such interactions could be grounds for terminating the match and/or barring future participation in the program.
• Letter-writers (“LWs”) must respect the confidentiality of their match’s name and contact info, and not share this with any other person. LWs should not communicate with any other person through their CLF match. “Free-world” LW’s may not help locate or give contact info for any other person or relay info/items to any other person. LWs may not request or send items considered contraband by the staff of the prisoner’s facility.
• Participants should plan to exchange letters for at least six months (longer is OK). Incarcerated LWs must mail their letters to their match c/o CLF’s address, and CLF will relay them (un-opened) to their match. See the “Extra Notes” below for more information.
• LWs may decline to write about—and may ask their match to avoid—uncomfortable topics, and may decline to share personal information at their discretion. LWs should respect these personal choices; not doing so could become grounds for terminating the match. LWs may confer with CLF staff to ask advice or discuss concerns, and either LW may request that the match be terminated. Requests by either LW to break or ‘bend’ these Guidelines could be grounds for ending the match or participation in the program.

Please also read the “Notes for All Participants” section above.

It’s important to address your envelopes to your prisoner using their full “official” name and prisoner-ID number. Your prisoner-penpal will be given only your first name. If you mail your letters to them directly, they’ll be able to tell your city and state from your letters’ postmarks (if you’d prefer, the CLF can forward your letters to your prisoner). Use the following address as your return address, in the upper-left corner, and remember to use enough first-class postage:

Prison Ministry – Attn: FirstName
Church of the Larger Fellowship
24 Farnsworth Street
Boston, MA 02210-1409

Prisons vary widely in what prisoners may/may not receive. When in doubt, Keep It Simple: Send Only Paper! Avoid any metal (no paperclips, no metal clasps on envelopes, no foil on cards/envelope liners; even avoid unnecessary staples). Our only expectation is that you’ll send letters; if you want to send anything else, check with your prisoner or their facility to find out if it would be allowed. Things that can’t be read or that could have con­traband inside or between-layers might be returned (CDs/DVDs, Polaroid photos, even stickers/labels can be a problem). If something is returned, just live and learn. Don’t ask your prisoner to explain it or protest it: it’s harder on them than on you.

Again, CLF has no expectation that you’ll send anything other than letters. Note that if you fill out any form provided by the prisoner or the prison (and include your full name, address, SS#, etc.), a copy could be given to the prisoner. If you order a book, a magazine subscription, or any other gift, your name and mailing address could appear on the packing slip or recipient paperwork that goes to the prisoner. And before you start a magazine subscription, think how it will feel to your match if/when you decline to renew.

Everything you write in your letters can also be read by prison staff and any other prisoner who might have access to your match’s personal possessions. Please honor your prisoner’s need for discretion in their letters and in yours (even if your match has shared delicate personal info with you, it might be good to use indirect wording in your replies).

Think twice before suggesting or agreeing to a photo-exchange. Many prisoners don’t have easy access to photos of themselves, and the few personal/family photos they have may be precious to them. It’s also not uncommon for prisoners to associate a photo-exchange with a more ‘romantic’ relationship than you may have intended. We suggest you don’t send photos of children/youth, as these could end up where you didn’t intend them.

Prisoners vary widely in their sense of appropriate behaviors and boundaries, and it may fall to you to remind your match about the guidelines and the need to stick to them. You can ignore questions/comments you don’t care to respond to, or tell your match outright if they suggest topics you don’t want to write about or be asked about. If you ever have questions, problems, or concerns, do not hesitate to contact the CLF Prison Ministry. We’re here to offer advice and support to our letter-writers!

If you meet the above requirements for the letter writing ministry, you may apply online.

You will be asked for a personal reference (someone who has known you for at least a year) and to write a 500-word (or less) essay explaining why being part of this ministry appeals to you. It may be helpful to have prepared this ahead of time to copy and paste into the application.

It takes about 10 minutes to complete (if you have prepared the essay in advance).

Apply Now!