Angel Tree Plants Positive Seeds in LIves of Inmates' Children
by Allie Martin
December 12, 2005
(AgapePress) - - More than half a million children of inmates in America's prisons will receive Christmas gifts, thanks to an international ministry.
For more than 20 years, Prison Fellowship has organized the "Angel Tree" program, which gives prisoners the chance to sign their children up to received Christmas gifts given by Angel Tree volunteers. Those volunteers then contact the children's care-givers to find out their wishes and needs. Literally thousands of churches across the nation have enrolled to participate in the effort to recognize the needs of children whose parents are incarcerated.
Mark Earley, president of Prison Fellowship Ministries, which oversees Angel Tree, says the program has a huge impact. He says that this year, more than 500,000 prisoners' children will be served through about 15,000 local churches.
"The idea is that each child will get from a lay member a gift in the name of their parent --and we'll share the gospel of Jesus Christ with them," Earley adds. "We have found not only is that a tremendous ministry in the lives of those children, but it's one of the greatest ways we can demonstrate the love of Jesus Christ and the gospel of Christ to their mother or father who is prison."
According to Earley, the initiative taken to reach out to prisoners and their families can help break a vicious cycle. He explains that over the last three decades the number of people in American prisons has increase ten-fold, to 2.3 million. He says that increase introduces another increase.
"It has brought with it two-million prisoners' children who are in the U.S.," he explains, "and we know from statistics that these kids are five to six times more likely to end up in prison than their peers. In fact, it is the greatest predictor of whether a child ends up in prison."
The positive impact is obvious, he says. "This program is not only effective in bringing prisoners and their kids to Christ, but quite frankly it's very effective at changing our neighborhoods across the United States."
Since its inception, Angel Tree has provided more than seven-million children of prisoners with gifts nationwide.
Allie Martin, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is a reporter for American Family Radio News, which can be heard online.
