In Spring of 2004 I got a call from a member of the Provincial Team in Cork. She asked me if I would be interested in working with the Irish Council for Prisoners Overseas (ICPO) based in Maynooth, Co Kildare, for a few months. Sr. Maria, a member of the staff was taking time off to focus on another project for the congregation. I accepted the invitation and was briefed on my role by Maria before she left. In those early days we were a very small team in the office and I did a bit of everything, case work, family support, managed the penfriend scheme and kept financial records. When Maria returned three months later, she asked me to stay on and share the work with her. Sometime later she was recalled to Cork and I replaced her on a permanent basis. Seventeen years later I’m privileged to still be part of the ICPO team.
The ICPO was established by the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference in 1985 in response to serious concerns regarding the number of Irish men and women in UK prisons. These deeply held concerns related to their trials and subsequent imprisonment.
In recent years ICPO has been in a position to take on additional caseworkers, this enables ICPO to offer a more comprehensive service to prisoners and to their families. ICPO has contact with almost 1,200 Irish people in prisons in more than twenty-eight countries, the majority of whom are in the UK, with many more detained throughout the USA, Australia, Africa, Europe, South and Central America and Asia.
The people in prison face significant difficulties, including dealing with an unfamiliar legal system, discrimination and language barriers. Some prisoners experience extreme hardship, with limited access to basic necessities.
My role and responsibilities have changed over the years and currently I take care of the penfriend scheme. This entails recruiting volunteers and monitoring requests for penfriends. ICPO provides guidelines to both prisoners and volunteers to ensure that the penfriend scheme operates according to the highest standards. All letters from people in prison are sent via ICPO, we do not disclose the personal addresses of the volunteers. I forward letters to the volunteers and respond to questions they may have about issues that arise in their correspondence.
The scheme dates back to the beginning of ICPO. During that time many hundreds of Irish people imprisoned all over the world have participated. Letters are especially beneficial to people in prison who have little family contact and many have commented how it has helped to alleviate their sense of loneliness and for others their literacy improved. Some particularly vulnerable clients correspond with more than one volunteer. It can very often be the only contact that some prisoners have with the outside world.
In their letters the volunteers encourage, befriend and support the person in prison. It requires time, patience and persistence. The penfriend volunteers come from all walks of life and many of them are Mercy Sisters, some of whom have been involved in the scheme since its inception.
Indeed, I am proud to say the Mercy Sisters have been supporting ICPO’s work with vulnerable Irish prisoners overseas and their families through grants or personnel resources for decades.
Here are some quotes from people in prison who have penfriends:
“All your help and support has been outstanding. Having a penfriend has been a fantastic help – it’s great to receive a letter and to be able to write to somebody.”
“I don’t think I would be here today if it wasn’t for my penfriend.”
“It means so much to get a letter especially from someone back home in Ireland bringing words of kindness and moral support.”
“There are times when things look bleak and we feel lonely and then a simple post comes and it can make an enormous impact on our days.”
“When I get a letter from (name of penfriend) I’m smiling all day long.”
ICPO is indebted to all who volunteer their time to correspond with people in prison. I am inspired by their kindness and compassion and I am committed to supporting them in their efforts.
Anne Sheehy rsm
South Central Province
