STAYING CONNECTED
Staying connected to your
incarcerated loved ones
Staying connected with incarcerated loved ones is easier than ever been thanks to apps
for inmates like Pelipost.
The greatness of a community
is most accurately measured by the
compassionate actions of its members.
Coretta Scott King
Joe Calderon, the co-founder of Pelipost, had to struggle to stay connected while Becky — also a co-founder — was in prison.
You see, Joe Calderon is Becky Calderon's son. When Joe was a freshman in college, Becky was sentenced to three years in prison.
Unfortunately, Becky was transferred to a state prison that was 8 hours away from where Joe went to school. He had to take an entire day every Sunday to drive out for visitation.
As a busy working college student, it was a struggle to find time to send photographs and stay connected.
Because of this struggle, Joe, Becky, and the Pelipost team can offer insight into the different ways to stay connected.
That's why we want to share several ways you can stay connected to your inmate.
Send mail
Sometimes, sending letters in the mail can feel like a chore, especially with busy lives. But this small gesture can make a huge difference.
A way to simplify this process is by using apps for inmates like Pelipost. Pelipost is a photos-to-prison app designed specifically for those who are incarcerated. All you do is download the app, upload your photos, and click send. We handle the rest!
Make a phone call
You'll need to find out when your incarcerated loved one can take phone calls and then mark it in your calendar to call them.
Small acts of connection mean a lot to someone on the inside. Those small acts add up quickly — as do the absence of these moments of connection.
Visit your inmate in personS
Physical visitation regularly isn't always possible. This is especially true for those who live far away from the correctional facility.
If you can, visit your loved one as often as possible. The in-person connection can mean so much, especially when someone is struggling with loneliness and disconnection.
If you have a loved one in prison, trust us when we say that staying connected will have significant benefits for your incarcerated loved one. Prison can feel isolating. And as some of our PeliPeople share in their stories on our blog, the look on someone's face when they don't receive any mail is devastating.
Prison is a place where a person becomes a number. They're stripped of normal life but shouldn't be stripped of their humanity. Staying connected with loved ones can be a vital link to the outside world, to a person's identity outside of those walls, to hope and love and support.
Read customer stories
Incarceration can significantly impact a family on many levels, including emotionally and financially.
If you can't afford to stay connected to your incarcerated loved one,
you have options
Transportation
Sometimes our loved ones are hours away from us. If travel isn't sustainable, you can look up programs in your area that offer rideshares for families visiting loved ones in correctional facilities.
Sending Photos
Pelipost offers an Inmate Prepaid Account Program called PeliPALS, you can have your loved one load the account with funds, and then you can send photos to prison as needed through one of the best apps for inmates. The struggle to send pictures is real. That struggle was the reason Pelipost was created in the first place.