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JEWISH PRISONER
SERVICES INTERNATIONAL (JPSI) |
JPSI is an outreach/advocacy agency for
Jewish prisoners and their families that consists of a small group of highly
dedicated volunteers focused on the belief that just because someone has made a
mistake he/she should not be forgotten and written off by society. JPSI believes
the ancient sage who wrote: "helping the imprisoned is the loftiest of a
charitable acts, superseding all other forms . . ." (Maimondies 1135-1204 C.E.)
Initially launched under the sponsorship of
B'nai B'rith and now an independent entity, JPSI is an international volunteer
group whose members include businessmen, correctional facility employees,
educators, lawyers, professionals, rabbis, and judges.
JPSI offers a Marriage Enrichment Seminar, a
professional two-day program for Jewish prisoners and their wives. Other
services offered for Jewish prisoners include a pen pal program and a Jewish
greeting cards program. JSPI also supplies prisoners with books of Judaic
interest and maintains a free Jewish video-lending library. Another program is a
volunteer visitation program. Volunteers visit prisoners to observe Shabbat, the
High Holy Days, Pesach and other rabbinical and scriptural holidays. JPSI is
forming a Jewish post-release facility to offer more support for the families of
Jewish incarcerates, expanding its free video-lending library, pen pal program,
and Judaic distribution center.
JPSI seeks help in their programs:
Pen Pal Programs (you can writ to a lonely Jewish inmate; there are
more than 650 Jewish inmates currently on a national pen pal waiting list);
Religious Materials/Judaic
(new or used Torahs, prayer books and other Jewish religious, education and
secular materials are always needed); Visits (individually or
with others, you can visit imprisoned Jews in your area on a regular or
occasional basis); Families (in person or anonymously, you can
assist a Jewish inmate's family while their loved one is incarcerated);
Mentors (you can help to guide a Jewish man or woman through the
difficult post-release period toward a successful transition into the
community); and Ideas (no one in the corrections field has all
the answers, and your idea might lead to a successful new program).
Jewish Prisoner Services International
