Prison ministry seeks Christmas cards for inmates

In the company of ever-growing activism among celebrities reaching out to alleviate the HIV/AIDS epidemic, Southern Baptists are finding a similar platform. Baptist churches in Alabama and across the nation are striving to help people with HIV/AIDS, individuals considered a “lost cause” by some.
    
Scarlett Dunnam, known to many as “The Card Lady,” is one Alabama Baptist who is trying to make a difference. A member of Eastview Baptist Church, Tuscaloosa, Dunnam lost her son to AIDS in 1994. She said her son’s HIV diagnosis and subsequent death from AIDS gave her and other Eastview Baptist members a new perspective about people with AIDS. 
    
In the early 1990s, Dunnam launched a major research effort to learn as much as she could about HIV/AIDS. She attended seminars and workshops and collected news articles on the topic, including coverage by The Alabama Baptist. It was in The Alabama Baptist that Dunnam discovered an HIV-diagnosed inmate population at Limestone Correctional Facility in Capshaw. She was moved to launch pen-pal relationships and from there, a Christmas card ministry.
    
It started small but has grown to include Baptists from across the state with more than 1,000 inmates receiving Christmas cards in 2004, Dunnam said.
    
“I know Baptists care,” she said. “Cards are such an inexpensive way to show love.”
    
Elana Parker, a social worker for the Alabama Department of Public Health in Montgomery, delivers the Christmas cards each year. She said the cards improve the quality of life for the inmates.
    
“When they see that the community has compassion on them, they want to give back to those around them,” Parker explained. “When transitioning to prison life back to home life, they have a new appreciation and want to share love with others because of this kindness shown to them.”
    
Dunnam plans to expand the ministry to a quarterly project, but now she needs Christmas cards for this year’s project.
    
Mail unsealed, signed Christmas cards by Dec. 1 to 4030 Sixth St. E., Tuscaloosa, AL 35404. For more information call 205-553-1592.