A Mother’s Day gift to turn a life around
“I think it’s because of that card!”
Seventeen-year-old David was overjoyed as he spoke to the prison chaplain. Having not heard from his mum in two years, he decided to reach out to her through Angel Tree Mother’s Day. Wonderfully, he received a card back from his mum, asking if she could come and visit him in his Young Offender’s Institute (YOI).
It was in hope of moments like this that we expanded Angel Tree to include a Mother’s Day initiative in 2011. Children and young adults in custody are offered the chance to send their mum or other significant maternal figure a Mother’s Day card and a £5 gift voucher.
In 2019, we sent 646 gifts to mothers on behalf of young offenders. After Mother’s Day last year, one chaplain wrote,
“The lads cannot understand why someone who doesn’t even know them would do this for them. Many do not feel they deserve it. All are extremely grateful.”
For David at least, it was the catalyst for a new beginning for him and his mother. That simple card and gift has the potential to turn a life around — to change the ending to his story forever.
Would you help a family separated by a prison sentence stay connected? We passionately believe God loves each and every troubled young man or woman in custody, and we want to show this love through our presence and service in those institutions.
Whatever you can afford, it could help put smiles on mums’ faces this Mother’s Day and, we hope, reignite family relationships — just as it did with David and his mum.