OK Messages Project Connects Incarcerated Parents To Their Children

Families want to spend the holidays together. For parents in prison, that is not an option. An Oklahoma non-profit delivers a message from these parents to their children. 

“People who have had generational trauma, life is different,” Shenita Jefferson, who serves on the board of the OK Messages Project. 

A book’s cover only shows its name. Stories live inside books and people. Jefferson felt brave enough to tell her story. “I’ve experienced and seen a lot of things as a child that children aren’t supposed to see,” said Jefferson, describing her childhood in South Sacramento California. “I’m a very strong person; a very strong mom. The first time I have seen someone get killed, I was eleven.” 

Her story is tough – not easy to tell. “It was hard,” Jefferson said. It’s why she serves on the board of the OK Messages Project. “This program is special because I love kids,” Jefferson said. 

OK Messages works with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections to record incarcerated parents reading to their children. “Their reading levels increase, and their depression level goes down,” said Ali Plum, OK Messages assistant director. 

Plum describes these videos with two words. “Home and connection,” Plum said.  The videos and the messages parents send home to their children provide some comfort. “Connect with mom or dad so that baby knows that mom or dad are okay,” Jefferson said. 

According to the Prison Policy Initiative about half of people in state prisons are parents – that’s 1.2 million children nationwide who won’t have their parents at home this holiday season. Jefferson was one of those parents. “I got caught with some drugs,” Jefferson said. “I was facing seven years.” 

Jefferson received help through the ReMerge Oklahoma program and was able to serve less time for her nonviolent offense and get the help she needed. “By the grace of God I had my parents who were supporting my kids at the time,” Jefferson said. OK Messages delivered her love to her children. “This is a beautiful way to kinda respect love,” Jefferson said. Prison bars don’t stop the bond between a parent and their child. “The biggest pieces of my life are my kids,” Jefferson said.

Children are Plum’s reason she cares so much. “That’s the ‘why,’” Plum said. For her, these parents – these children -- remain loved. “I never want them to feel alone or unseen or like they don’t have a voice,” Plum said. 

The criminal justice system wasn’t the end of Jefferson’s story. “I went to college I got my college degree,” Jefferson said. It was her family’s new beginning. 

“I hope they got that message,” Jefferson said.