Mission
The Photo Patch Foundation exists to support and spread the word about the 2.7 million children in the United States of America that have at least one incarcerated parent. The penal system is still technologically behind which makes it harder for these children to communicate with their parents. Photo Patch knows the importance of communication, its rehabilitative powers and its implicit consequences on recidivism and a positive society: a reduction in crime is a reduction in crime victims..
However, The Photo Patch Foundation’s primary focus is the children who are affected by incarceration. In Florida alone there are over 64, 000 children who have an incarcerated parent and in NY there are over 100,000.
In response to such statistics The Photo Patch Foundation has created a platform and vehicle to help children maintain communication with their parent and build these children a social support system, respectively. Photo Patch has already built the software that will allow these children to upload photos and type letters that will be sent to their parent. When a child sends the parent photos/letters, incarcerated parents are more likely to send back positive, encouraging words of support. Such positive parental engagement can make children better individuals and smarter students which of course affects the community and economy.
Description
Photo Patch helps children communicate with their parent via a Sponsor’s donation:
Photo Patch reaches out to potential sponsors, asking for a $5 donation that will go towards a child uploading 20 pictures and a letter
The Sponsor logs on to http://www.photo-patch.org and donates $5 for each child they want to help communicate with their parent this month.
Via some administrator (a parent, guardian or other non-profit organization partner of Photo Patch), the child is given access to the admin.photo-patch.org website where they can upload photos and type a letter for their parent.
The administrator will assist the child with a one-time profile setup that will allow them to securely store their parent’s address and their own return address in a database so they don’t have to retype it every time they want to send pictures. These are the address that Photo Patch will automatically add to the envelopes so children don’t have to.
Photo Patch uses the money to ensure that Photos/Letters are printed, packaged, signed and sent to the parents.
Photo Patch thanks the Sponsors for their donations.
Photo Patch lets the children know that their mail has been shipped.
Photo Patch begins looking for sponsor for the next month.
The Target demographic that Photo Patch seeks to help out includes:
Children who have been exposed to violence and Drugs
Children who have been in the Juvenile Justice system
Children who have a parent incarcerated
Goals
In addition to helping with youth communicate with their parent, Photo Patch’s goal is to obtain Photo Patch “Exposure” centers around the nation that will be responsible for:
Giving these children access to supportive mentors
Offering emotional help: reduce anxiety, confusion, guilt and sadness while increasing Optimism, leadership skills and social skills.
Exposing them to Educational opportunities not present in deprived public school systems:Technology courses
Job Readiness training
Entrepreneur development
Financial Literacy
Because access to a center will be still be difficult for some distant children, The Photo Patch Foundation would like to have a Photo Patch Bus that can deliver the support, warmth resources that these children are missing out on.
The Photo Patch Foundation would also like to use it’s status, connections and team efforts to lobby against the harsh communication regulations common in most prisons across the nation. Instead of forever adapting to these laws, The Photo Patch Foundation would like help make the criminal justice system a better one that doesn’t inherently help destroy families.
Want to know more, become a Sponsor, Volunteer, or Partner?
Check out our site www.photo-patch.org
Follow us on:
Twitter, Instagram, Facebook @PhotoPatchFoundation
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