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| More Prison Chapels to be Built This Year |
| By The Shreveport Times |
| Published: 01/30/2006 |
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From her narrow bed, just about anything is accessible in Annie Mamon's small dormitory room at Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women in St. Gabriel. But her Bible is close by. The Ruston woman often sits on her bed -- its thin blue bedspread neatly tucked at the corners, mimicking the tidiness of the room she shares with other inmates -- to read daily Scriptures. "Even in prison, we can serve the Lord." In the 10 years of her of a life sentence for second-degree murder she has served, Mamon has witnessed a transformation among fellow inmates as the effects of a still new faith-based program take hold of the lifestyle behind the prison walls. Her only complaint would be the lack of adequate space for the entire prison family to worship together. That's soon to change. A groundbreaking last week signaled the beginning of a years-old dream to build a large chapel that will accommodate most of the approximately 1,000 female inmates. Construction of the 700-seat, $400,000 chapel should begin soon and will take about six to eight months to complete. Male inmates from other state prisons will do most of the work. Equally exciting to corrections officials and members of the Louisiana Prison Chapel Foundation are plans for two or, possibly, three more prison chapel groundbreakings this year. Ceremonies are tentatively set for Feb. 28 at Winn Correctional Center in Winnfield and in late March at Dixon Correctional Institute in Jackson. Assistant Warden Anthony Batson hopes to see ground broken for the chapel at Forcht Wade Correctional Center in Keithville by spring. "This is exciting. Louisiana is an example to show the nation how we are dealing in a positive and spiritual way with our inmates," said Richard Johnson III of Houston, head of the chapel foundation. "The nation, America, needs to share in this." Johnson has an upcoming meeting with Texas Gov. Rick Perry to talk about setting up the first church on prison grounds in Texas. "We're going to take this moral rehabilitation movement nationwide." Fundraising for the first four prison chapels in Louisiana happened more quickly than recent efforts, which appear to have been stalled by hurricanes Katrina and Rita, said foundation board member Sara Simmonds, of Alexandria. She has been heavily involved in raising money for the Winn Correctional chapel, which is about $100,000 to $150,000 short of its goal. |
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