Returning Hearts Celebration To Reunite 1,000
Kids With Dads At Largest U.S. Maximum-Security Prison
March 28 Angola, Louisiana Event
Will Be Biggest Of Its Kind In Country
STREAMWOOD, Illinios, March 5, 2009 – Once
deemed the most violent prison in America, the Louisiana
State Penitentiary in Angola will host the nation’s
largest gathering of children and their inmate fathers
on Saturday, March 28. Returning Hearts Celebration
is expected to reunite more than 1,000 kids with their
incarcerated dads for a special day of activities and
bonding that promote reconciliation and healing within
families.
A total of 730 children participated in last year’s
Returning Hearts Celebration at Angola. Over 1,000
are registered this year. The event, which will run
from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. CST, is a joint effort
between the penitentiary and Chicago-based Awana, an
international youth and children’s ministry.
Returning Hearts uses a festive day of games, food,
crafts and pony rides to begin transforming relationships
between kids and dads, The celebration enables fathers
who may not have seen their sons or daughters in years
to seek forgiveness and build connections in an effort
to break the cycle of familial crime. Children of an
incarcerated parent are seven times more likely than
their peers to land in prison themselves.
“Returning Hearts is a time when the walls
come down between kids and their fathers,” said
Lyndon Azcuna, Awana director of cross-cultural ministries. “This
special day gives children an opportunity to be with
their fathers physically and to hear them say, ‘I’m
sorry’ and ‘I love you.’ It’s
also a place for children to experience God’s
love through the changed hearts of their fathers.”
“These fathers do not want their children
to end up in prison,” added Awana President/CEO
Jack Eggar. “So they are intentional in encouraging
and teaching their children to pursue a life of character
and faith.”
Returning Hearts Celebration is part of the Awana
Lifeline prison ministry. Lifeline began in 2003 when
Warden Burl Cain of Louisiana State Penitentiary, the
largest maximum-security prison in the U.S., invited
Jack Eggar and Awana Co-Founder Art Rorheim to speak
to the prison’s fellowship of Christian inmates.
Rorheim and Eggar were surprised to discover that the
prisoners wanted a program established to help their
children grow spiritually and morally.
Because of the expertise Awana has in working with
children, parents and churches, Cain invited the ministry
to help meet this need. Soon, Awana Lifeline was founded.
Awana Lifeline is a four-part initiative. Besides
Returning Hearts Celebration, Awana Lifeline features:
- Malachi Dads, which offers spiritual, parental,
vocational and educational training for inmates
- The Awana Lifeline Church Program, which provides
urban churches with training to start Awana programs
for the children of inmates in their area
- The Lifeline Handbook Program, which creates a
close long-distance bond between dads and their kids
as they work in tandem through Awana curriculum.
Lifeline’s hope is that restored relationships
between children and their fathers today will mean
better choices for the children tomorrow. To that end,
Lifeline and Returning Hearts are seeing heartening
results. Several months after the 2007 Returning Hearts
Celebration, Awana surveyed the children’s guardians.
Sixty-eight percent said their children’s behavior
had improved at home and at school.
Because of Returning Hearts’ success at Angola,
Awana recently announced plans to expand Lifeline to
seven more U.S. prisons, including San Quentin.
In addition to programming, Awana also is responsible
for coordinating hundreds of volunteers for Returning
Hearts. Volunteers will assist with chaperoning, transportation,
games, food service and other tasks. Last year Returning
Hearts volunteers came from 21 states, including Alaska.
Awana is an international ministry that helps churches
and parents raise children and youth to know, love
and serve Christ. Each week, more than one million
kids take part in Awana through more than 17,000 churches
in the U.S. and around the world. Awana is the only
organization with fully integrated, Bible-based programs
for ages 2 to 18 that actively involve parents, church
leaders and mentors.
# # #
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
For more information about Awana Lifeline, visit www.awana.org/lifeline.
http://www.awana.org/lifeline/ Awana
Lifeline Video
http://www.awana.org/lifeline/docs/rhc-generic-flier-08.pdf Lifeline
Flyer
http://www.corrections.state.la.us/lsp/mission_statement.htm Louisiana
State Penitentiary
March 28 Angola, Louisiana Event Will Be Biggest Of Its Kind In Country
STREAMWOOD, Illinios, March 5, 2009 – Once deemed the most violent prison in America, the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola will host the nation’s largest gathering of children and their inmate fathers on Saturday, March 28. Returning Hearts Celebration is expected to reunite more than 1,000 kids with their incarcerated dads for a special day of activities and bonding that promote reconciliation and healing within families.
A total of 730 children participated in last year’s Returning Hearts Celebration at Angola. Over 1,000 are registered this year. The event, which will run from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. CST, is a joint effort between the penitentiary and Chicago-based Awana, an international youth and children’s ministry.
Returning Hearts uses a festive day of games, food, crafts and pony rides to begin transforming relationships between kids and dads, The celebration enables fathers who may not have seen their sons or daughters in years to seek forgiveness and build connections in an effort to break the cycle of familial crime. Children of an incarcerated parent are seven times more likely than their peers to land in prison themselves.
“Returning Hearts is a time when the walls come down between kids and their fathers,” said Lyndon Azcuna, Awana director of cross-cultural ministries. “This special day gives children an opportunity to be with their fathers physically and to hear them say, ‘I’m sorry’ and ‘I love you.’ It’s also a place for children to experience God’s love through the changed hearts of their fathers.”
“These fathers do not want their children to end up in prison,” added Awana President/CEO Jack Eggar. “So they are intentional in encouraging and teaching their children to pursue a life of character and faith.”
Returning Hearts Celebration is part of the Awana Lifeline prison ministry. Lifeline began in 2003 when Warden Burl Cain of Louisiana State Penitentiary, the largest maximum-security prison in the U.S., invited Jack Eggar and Awana Co-Founder Art Rorheim to speak to the prison’s fellowship of Christian inmates. Rorheim and Eggar were surprised to discover that the prisoners wanted a program established to help their children grow spiritually and morally.
Because of the expertise Awana has in working with children, parents and churches, Cain invited the ministry to help meet this need. Soon, Awana Lifeline was founded.
Awana Lifeline is a four-part initiative. Besides Returning Hearts Celebration, Awana Lifeline features:
- Malachi Dads, which offers spiritual, parental, vocational and educational training for inmates
- The Awana Lifeline Church Program, which provides urban churches with training to start Awana programs for the children of inmates in their area
- The Lifeline Handbook Program, which creates a close long-distance bond between dads and their kids as they work in tandem through Awana curriculum.
Lifeline’s hope is that restored relationships between children and their fathers today will mean better choices for the children tomorrow. To that end, Lifeline and Returning Hearts are seeing heartening results. Several months after the 2007 Returning Hearts Celebration, Awana surveyed the children’s guardians. Sixty-eight percent said their children’s behavior had improved at home and at school.
Because of Returning Hearts’ success at Angola, Awana recently announced plans to expand Lifeline to seven more U.S. prisons, including San Quentin.
In addition to programming, Awana also is responsible for coordinating hundreds of volunteers for Returning Hearts. Volunteers will assist with chaperoning, transportation, games, food service and other tasks. Last year Returning Hearts volunteers came from 21 states, including Alaska.
Awana is an international ministry that helps churches and parents raise children and youth to know, love and serve Christ. Each week, more than one million kids take part in Awana through more than 17,000 churches in the U.S. and around the world. Awana is the only organization with fully integrated, Bible-based programs for ages 2 to 18 that actively involve parents, church leaders and mentors.
# # #
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
For more information about Awana Lifeline, visit www.awana.org/lifeline.
http://www.awana.org/lifeline/ Awana Lifeline Video
http://www.awana.org/lifeline/docs/rhc-generic-flier-08.pdf Lifeline Flyer
http://www.corrections.state.la.us/lsp/mission_statement.htm Louisiana State Penitentiary