Parenting From Behind Bars
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Jose Rosado, 42, is incarcerated at a Rikers Island prison. For almost ten years he has spent 23 hours a day in isolation, reading the Bible, the Koran and archeology among other tomes he calls his anchor.
Now he's reading Hop on Pop. While Juan Camacho, a drug dealer, prefers The Cat in the Hat, Qaaid Reddick, 27, rediscovered The Little Engine That Could.
All are part of a five week literacy course called "Daddy and Me," in which eight prisoners record books for the kids they left behind. Other such programs focus on female inmates, while this effort strives to show that reading isn't just Mom's job.
The final session was held on visiting day and fathers read to their kids who took home the CDs. Before they left, Mr. Camacho grabbed his son and said, "When you hear my voice, remember that Daddy is with you."
The program, described in The New York Times, is inexpensive and deserves to be replicated. At the start of the new year, hopefully it's a motivator for changing lives.
Reported By Dr. Marciene Mattleman, KYW Newsradio
