Palani Emeliano’s brother has been in prison 13 years. The Hilo woman gets to talk with him just once a month — at Thy Word Ministries Faith Center in Hilo, which facilitates a state-funded video feed the fourth Saturday of each month that connects incarcerated men with their children, siblings, parents, nieces and nephews.
Another church helps on a separate Saturday rotation.
The program is intended to allow family members, including keiki, to talk to their incarcerated loved ones. The goal is to help kids stay connected, build and strengthen relationships and help their dads, grandfathers and uncles prepare for one day returning to the world outside of prison.
Emeliano takes along her daughter, Arianna Wilson, to the visits.
“It’s good to know there’s a program that offers this, so I can see my uncle,” Wilson said Saturday.
Wilson and Emeliano, along with other families and volunteers, were treated to a catered lunch.
Associate Pastor Howard Nash said families struggle financially, with just one breadwinner at home. That’s why the church tries to offer a filling meal for the monthly get-together. On Saturday, keiki also were given a gift, provided by the Queen Lili‘uokalani Trust, and were treated to music, dancing and the chance to visit with Santa.
Children of incarcerated family members are at increased risk for getting involved in drugs, crime and other self-destructive behaviors, said Mitch Roth, Hawaii County prosecuting attorney, who attended Saturday’s pre-Christmas video visit.
He said the prosecutor’s office can be seen in an adversarial way before prison. But, once a man gets sentenced, “we have a mutual goal of keeping their kids on a positive life path.”
Inmates do not want their kids to end up in prison, he said. That’s why it’s important for keiki to have positive role models outside of prison and the chance to talk — live — with their dad while he is in prison.
The men are housed at Saguaro Correctional Center, a privately operated, for-profit prison in Eloy, Ariz., that was built solely to house Hawaii prisoners.
Approximately 70 children from 25 families were able to talk to their incarcerated fathers and uncles Saturday via the program.
The mother of two boys, ages 3 and 11, said her husband “took on a lot; when he left it was a huge responsibility that I had to take on myself.”
Her boys got to talk with their dad and he played with his youngest through the video screen, offering encouraging words with laughter and reassurance.
“The kids are so happy to see their dad. The 15 minutes is the most precious 15 minutes that they have,” said Donna Nobriga, who volunteers to cook for the gatherings.
The Arizona prison says online “visitation is an important part of an inmate’s successful rehabilitation.” That’s because “maintaining positive family and friend relationships can help an inmate become motivated to change behavior patterns and to think positively while incarcerated.”
The inmate video conference doesn’t last long. But it’s important.
“It’s not like a letter,” Emeliano said. “You get to see them smile and see how they look.”
The time goes by “super fast,” she said.
“Our parting words are ‘I love you. See you next month,’” she said. That gives her brother something to look forward to, which helps break the monotony of prison life.
Similar to Emeliano, Christopher Estrella of Hilo has a brother incarcerated in Arizona. He used to visit in person when his brother was at the Maui correctional center. But after his brother’s transfer to the Arizona prison, the men started connecting through the video feed instead.
“It actually makes him feel good,” Estrella said. “He tells me it brings his morale up.”
Estrella brought along his spouse, Johnele, and children, Kimani, 2, and Zion, 3, to sit in on the conversation. He said his brother likes to see the kids and “they get to see their uncle, too.”
It “makes me feel good that we can actually talk to him, see how he’s doing,” Estrella said.
The prison ministry is not well-known, Nash said, “although I’ve been doing this for 24 years.”
“It means a lot because the holiday season is all about family and being together,” Emeliano said.
Families try to share the month’s highlights during the short sessions, she said. Her daughter making the softball team was their favorite piece of news to share.
“His face just lit up like, ‘What’s your position?’” Emeliano said.
If you have a loved one from the Hawaii prison system incarcerated in Arizona and would like to arrange a family video visit, call the church at 935-7004.
Email Jeff Hansel at jhansel@hawaiitribune-herald.com.