FOND DU LAC COUNTY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – A group of mothers currently serving time at Taycheedah Correctional Institution were reunited with their children last week, thanks to a new first of its kind program in Wisconsin.
The week-long summer camp is run by Camp Hometown Heroes, a national not-for-profit organization that usually provides trauma-informed care for children of fallen soldiers, but recently the group expanded its focus.
Neil Willenson, the Co-Founder of Camp Reunite. tells Fox 11….
“For a child with an incarcerated parent, there’s often a lot of trauma. When we were looking at a new group to serve, a deserving group that could benefit from this mixture of recreation and therapy we thought about children of incarcerated moms.”
For incarcerated mothers like Keana, she tells FOX 11 sending her kids to this camp was a once in a lifetime experience.
“I’ve been here for 6 months. It’s kind of hard being away from my kids every day because I’m used to being with them every day and taking care of them full time. It was really exciting, I was excited to see them and they were happy. This is their first time ever at a summer camp and I always wanted to send them to a summer camp but it was too expensive. I am grateful to give them this opportunity.”
During the day the children spend time at a campsite about 30 miles from Taycheedah, where children like Keana’s son Kavon have the chance to try new activities and meet new friends before being bused to the prison to visit their mom.
“It gives them an opportunity to meet other friends that are in the same situation as them and they can speak their feelings and not just keep a secret from the kids at school.”
For Ali, another mother serving time at Taycheedah, the time spent with her kids is a rare occasion.
“This Camp Reunite has been awesome for our visits because I think I’ve only seen them about five times in the last three years. Seeing them having fun really hit the heart.”
Those who made the camp possible believe the time these mothers spent with their children will be beneficial in the long run.
“People that are incarcerated in our system are still human and certainly their children have never done anything to be punished. So our job within the system is to provide them with every opportunity possible to improve upon themselves so they can be successful, ” said Sarah Cooper the Warden at Taycheedah Correctional Institution.
