Some Bowden Institution inmates are starting to read to their children on audiotape in a new initiative designed to strengthen parental bonds and child literacy.
The ChIRP (Children of Inmates Reading Program) was started in November. It’s an off-shoot of Bowden’s Book Clubs for Inmates program, which has been running since 2014.
Participating inmates — a father, or perhaps an uncle or grandfather — will read a donated book for a child into a voice recorder. The audio track is then transferred to a thumb drive that’s mailed, along with the book, to the youngster it’s intended for. The boy or girl can follow the story at home while the track with their parent’s voice plays.
“There’s nothing better than reading to children” said Lorna Watkinson-Zimmer, a volunteer who leads the Bowden book club along with Diane Assinger and Fran Hare. She feels it promotes a close bond between adult and child as well as a life-long love of books and literacy. “It underscores the value of reading and the importance of books.”
For the children of inmates, it helps bridge time and distance.
“Oftentimes (the justice system) tries to place inmates close to families,” said Watkinson-Zimmer, a former Red Deer city councillor and retired local business owner. But there are only certain times when children can visit their incarcerated parent — and then there are security checks to go through, so visiting can be a scary experience, she added.
The ChIRP program offers a way for the kids to feel closer to their non-present parent, and a way for inmates to create a more personal connection with their children while serving out their sentence.
So far, three prisoners at Bowden Institution have signed on to the ChIRP program and three more applications are pending. Watkinson-Zimmer believes it will really catch on once more inmates know it’s available. But the custodial parent must agree to the arrangement in order for the recordings to happen.
Participating inmates get to pick among a selection of donated books for material that’s age-appropriate and geared to their children’s interests. Watkinson-Zimmer said one man was approved to read one book to his older child and another for his younger one.
The inmates are encouraged to preface their readings with a personal greeting and a message to their child, or to write personal notes in the book.
Once they begin reading into the recorder, the dads tend to tune out Watkinson-Zimmer’s presence in the room. “They get right into the story” as if actually reading to their child, she added — often depicting various characters’ voices and building up the drama or humour.
Initial feedback for ChIRP has been wonderful. Watkinson-Zimmer heard one little girl was so taken with her father’s recorded book reading that she listened to it on a loop while going to sleep.
The monthly book club at Bowden is part of the cross-country Book Clubs of Inmates program. At Bowden, it’s routinely full and maxed-out at 15 inmates, with a waiting list.
Participants often get into thoughtful and reflective discussions about the books’ themes, said Watkinson-Zimmer. She noted the institution has a “wonderful” library — which is the most visited place in the prison.
For more information about donating to ChIRP, or the Book Clubs for Inmates program, please visit www.bookclubsforinmates.com.