The last Mommy Reads visit to the women’s prison was in March 2020, just before the first Covid outbreak began. We recently contacted the prison administration to determine if changes could be made so that our volunteers could safely return to work in this program that was beloved by our volunteers and incarcerated women alike. The top priority was to find out if the prison would allow us to require the masking of all volunteers and incarcerated women. Failing that, we hoped that they would allow us to bring high-quality masks and request that the program participants wear them. Given the popularity of the Mommy Reads program, we thought that we would have a high rate of voluntary compliance with masking. 

Sadly neither option is acceptable to the prison system. While there is little credible data regarding vaccination rates at the prison, what information we have indicates that vaccination rates are low among both prison staff and incarcerated women. The present leadership team of Mommy Reads is unwilling to resume the program without some guarantee of near-universal masking. 

There will be a seminar at 10:30 on February 19 to discuss the future of the Mommy Reads program. If there are others who see the risks differently and would like to resume the program, we would be delighted to assist in the transition. If new leadership does not emerge, then we will probably form a committee to focus on how to find appropriate homes for the assets of the Mommy Reads program which include children’s books, about 200 MP3 players, some writing supplies, and some funds. 

All are welcome to attend this seminar to discuss the future of Mommy Reads. For more information, contact Karen Johnson, kjredstart@yahoo.com