On May 10, 2001 Sexaholics Anonymous held its inaugural meeting at the Parr Highway Correctional Facility in Adrian, Michigan. A year has come and gone, and SA continues to thrive at our facility. We now have two weekly meetings, one on Thursday evenings and the other on Saturday afternoons.
Dear Editor, I thought this report from Paul H. might be included in the next ESSAY.
The first time I heard about visiting or writing to prisoners was at a SA Conference. It sounded good, but I put off doing anything for the next couple of years because of my fears. Stories about prisoners and what they do to sex offenders fed my fears and led me to procrastinate. Finally, another SA member got an SA meeting started in the Albion State Prison near Erie, PA, where I live.
Sponsor-by-Mail Service Keith S., MI, the coordinator of this service, reports that there are currently 177 inmates from 30 states that are being sponsored by 49 SA members. The number of inmates participating in the service has almost doubled since the end of June 2001.
I want to share a story with you, just to make the point of how a group like this can change or encourage others. One guy started in our prison group at the second meeting, almost six months ago. He came into the group with a huge chip on his shoulder, and he made it clear to all of us that he didn’t care how anyone felt about him. He was just doing this for himself and no one else.
Dear ESSAY, I am one of the twenty-five inmates, here at Adrian, MI, that Keith S. wrote about in your last issue. Thank you, Keith, for so many things.
I recently received a letter from an inmate in Alabama indicating how pleased he was with his Sponsor-By-Mail. He said other inmates were interested in corresponding with outside SA members. He asked that I send request forms for others in prison to request an SA sponsor from the free world.
In June 2000, an inmate from the Adrian Temporary Correctional Facility in Adrian, Michigan, USA wrote requesting help in starting an SA group for convicted sex offenders. The Troy, MI group offered to help. Regular mail contact began with two members of SA. Contact was also made with the program director at the Adrian facility. A four-page constitution was provided as well as the name of a local SA sponsor.
Recently inquiries were sent to all prison inmates who have requested correspondence from SA members. Inquiries were also sent to all SA members who have offered to write inmates. The results of these inquiries are as follows: 25 SA members are actively corresponding with 67 inmates in 20 states.
My name is William R. My sobriety date is June 12, 1993. I live in the state of Washington, USA. Since January 1998, I have served Sexaholics Anonymous as the Correctional Facilities Coordinator.
