Everywhere Yvonne and I go we let folks know who we are and what we do. I love to talk about Jesus, and use His massive amount of advice in trying to help others. Yvonne, who was raised as a Christian, has always been a great help. How many times did she say, �Let me show you�� Every answer to every problem is in God�s Word. I am very fond of the book of James and the advice found there.

What will get me into Heaven? Nothing but the blood of Jesus! There is a principle which is a bar against all information, which is proof against all argument, and which cannot fail to keep man in everlasting ignorance. That principle is condemnation before investigation.

Yvonne, Ronna and I need you, you and you. With conditions in this country getting worse and worse prisons are filling up. The workers are few. Thanks to Roger and Betty we have put ads in seven Christian magazines starting next month.

We�ve mentioned before that we are going to add a new phase to our Pen Friend Program in order to get folks to join us, which is allowing Pen Friends to email their inmates.

Let me share how Paul does it. He has seven Pen Friends. Using his computer he writes one base letter for all. Personalizing each one, he emails their letters to us. He saves that letter until it�s answered. When we receive his email we cut off his email address line and �snail mail� it from here to the inmate. When the inmate answers we scan it (by the way, we need a new scanner), and then email it to Paul. This is all extra work, but if it gets us more folks to write and cover the massive amount of requests for pen friends, then it�s worth it.

We are looking for folks in every state to start a Someone Cares Group. I was told that not many folks are working full time at my age of 81. Jesus is older and working still. I truly believe that my health was given by Jesus so that I could continue to work for and with Him.

Ronna had her second knee surgery and is headed for a hip replacement, but she is still working. Yvonne is having some health issues. Pray for us, please.

About twenty years ago you, Don, stopped by my cell in C-Section at San Quentin. You told me Jesus sent you and you accepted me. Over the next six months you and Yvonne came to my cell in Administration in �the hole.� I had stabbed another inmate. You arranged a Bible Study and got me a Pen Friend. I sure found out what being a Christian really was and am glad I did, as I got out shortly after you guys went to Kentucky.

Yesterday me and my wife and child went to Church. The speaker told some stories about you guys and I got your phone number. You asked for a letter, and here it is. I spent a lot of time in prison, mostly locked down. Don and Yvonne are the only ones who came to my cell. They shared because they cared. Yvonne always said Jesus sent me. Like many, when Yvonne walked the yard without escort we watched out for her but never had to worry, Jesus was watching also. I watched them minister and share their love for Jesus with many. Don�s sermons made us look through the Bible. Yvonne was asked by an inmate � said his Church did not follow the Old Testament since it was nailed to the cross. Yvonne took him apart with the Old Testament, especially those ten steps to eternal life written by the finger of God. Looking forward to seeing you again here or there.
From, George

My name is Jim Stockman, the manager of a bank. Don and Yvonne applied for a home loan at my bank. In filling out the application, their answer to �Employer� was �God.� Under �Occupation� they wrote �Salvation.� They were told their credit was good, and when asked, �Who pays you?� their answer was, �God!�

They were and are a faith based Ministry. They do all this out of their home. They are non-profit, so your donations are tax deductible. I visited them shortly after they moved in. The two and a half car garage was full of used but neat clothing for their free clothes to released inmates program, and along the walls were books and Bibles they provided to inmates. I had no reason to grant a loan, nor a reason to turn it down. They were never late on a payment.

If we change our jury systems many things MIGHT be different. The death penalty costs the State tons of money, much more than life incarceration. Too many folks have been executed who were not guilty. A recent case was told of an inmate on his death bed who said he had lied about an inmate that had already died because of his lie. The system is broken and needs fixing.

Both at San Quentin and Eddyville in Kentucky we were able to share God�s Word. Our education in school needs to be upgraded. Politics and those involved in it are paid good money, but they work the hours they feel like. We are going to try to speak in schools about the things that should be taught in Church. Many churches seem to have the �don�t talk about it and it will go away� attitude, but this is not so. Who do kids in Christian schools talk to when the teachers have no training? Pastors, unless they do it on their own, do not go to A.A. or N.A. meetings.

I learned as a kid that if you want to beat the enemy you must know him. I have twice been asked to speak at or hold non-smoking clinics. I said sure, as long as we include drugs and alcoholic. Both Pastors and their Boards said we don�t want those kinds of people in our church. (But make no mistake, THEY are there!)

We plan to start sharing these with you soon in future newsletters. If you or your inmate have any poems and/ or stories that we can share, please send them to us.

We have one inmate who sends us $1.00 a month, and another one who sends $5.00 a month. That is a bunch, and we do thank them, as well as all the rest of you who help support this Ministry, through either your time or money.

Every now and then we miss a letter, or sometimes we can�t get to reading all the inmates� letters because there is too much mail. Once in awhile we send a letter to the wrong person. If we send you one that�s not yours, please give us a call. You can either mail the letter back to us, or if it�s not too much trouble you can help save much time by getting the proper address from us and mailing it directly to the right person.

If you have written and not gotten an answer from your inmate, call or email us and we will take care of it and/or rematch you with another. Thanks everyone for your understanding.
GodBless you always!

We got the bad news that Yvonne has to have another back surgery. It is never good timing for something like this, but it�s especially bad timing since Ronna is still recuperating from her second knee replacement.

But, as hard as Satan tries, we are moving up into a different gear. We are so blessed with all that is going on and we can see bright things for the future. My eye sight is still bad, but we have a driver. God is good, and it is great being a Child of the King!

We had quit asking other churches if they could help with our Pen Friend Program, but now they are starting to ask us if they can be involved! God is so good. One pastor asked me how many we had that they might match. I told him 1,000. Ask in His name and you will receive.

I was shocked when I went to visit the McClures. Like I�m sure many of you may have thought, I thought they had a big office and large staff (Don, Yvonne, Ronna and Jake). They had a neat home jammed with the Ministry stuff. They keep the doors to Jesus open in so many ways. I drove to the post office with Don to pick up mail � a large tub of it. I think everything they do is done reading or forwarding mail. How do you all do it?

Don showed me a large stack of mail that was hung up. Mainly because the inmates had written to Someone Cares without name or Pen Name. They said they will get it done.

(In answer to the above question, �How do you all do it?� � we make mistakes but we try and correct them as best we can. We use our time and funding well and keep our promises. All but one � Michelle is next. We can�t travel as much as we used to. At one time Don preached three sermons a week.)

Everything we do is done in the name of Jesus. However, please remember that we are first Pen Friends. Try to establish a friendship with your inmate first and Jesus will get in there soon enough. Religion in prison is a mess. Doctrines are being shared instead of the Word of God.

Sometimes a new Pen Friend is not comfortable if matched with someone of a different race, or the opposite gender. If this is the case with you, let us know right away. You can return the inmate�s information and we will rematch you. If you have any questions at all, please give us a call.